When I think of Christmas Cookies, the first two that come to mind are gingerbread and sugar cookies. I am sure every area has their special Christmas cookie, but here sugar cookies are all the rage. There are 2 types that I am aware of, the soft cake like round sugar cookies with a cake frosting on top, and then there is the type that you cut out and decorate with icing. Cookie decorating parties are a hit with the kids and is sure way to activate the Christmas spirit.

But I Am Gluten Free!

All of that sounds great but what if you or someone you love has a gluten allergy? You make the whole party gluten-free! Here is the thing gluten-free doesn’t equal bad tasting. Just like almost anything that comes out of the kitchen, the finished product is a result of the recipe, ingredients and the process used. When my daughter had to start eating gluten-free I dreaded it. Everything that I had ever eaten that was usually full of gluten and made to be gluten-free tasted nasty. It had a chalky texture, a weird aftertaste, and never satisfied the memory of how it tasted with gluten. Gluten-Free sugar cookies are delicious for everyone in the family.

Tips for Successful Sugar Cookies

I am going to share three tips for successful and delicious gluten-free sugar cookies.

1. Don’t Use To Much Flour – Here’s the thing, most gluten-free flour mixes require a little more moisture than regular all-purpose flour. So, we add some extra water to the recipe, and we DO NOT roll out the dough on flour. This allows the dough to keep its moisture and takes away the opportunity for that chalky texture.
2. Refrigerate Dough – Don’t let the dough get super soft. If you find it is taking you longer to cut out or to mold your cookies pop them back in the fridge for 20 minutes before putting in the oven. You do not want to cook them super soft.
3. Quality Ingredients – The ingredients you use will really affect the final product. Homemade vanilla extract is out of this world and the extra umph homemade vanilla sugar makes in the recipe can’t be described. I find in anything the quality of the ingredients equals the quality of the final product. So, stock your pantry with organic cane sugar instead of bleached white sugar if you can. If you don’t have all the homemade vanilla products and the organic sugar that I use in this, make the substitutions, your cookie will still taste good. But I would suggest working on building that pantry, homemade and buying it in bulk makes it so much more affordable to have the fancy things.

THE CHRISTMAS KITCHEN – A GLUTEN-FREE HOLIDAY MADE EASY (E-BOOK)

$10.00

We love to make memories building gingerbread houses or frosting cookies to give away. Making homemade ornaments or simmer pots that make the house smell better than a candle store. We gather together as a family and make things together. All the while laughing, talking, remembering and most importantly opening our hearts to one another.…

Category: E-Books

Tags: Christmas, E-book, Gingerbread, Gluten Free, Recipes

Sourcing Bulk Ingredients

Most of my ingredients I try to source in bulk. I do enough cooking and baking from scratch that it is more cost effective for me to purchase in bulk. If you are interested in building your pantry on a budget, I highly suggest checking out Azure Standard. I can order from them once a month if I want to, which I don’t need to do that, and meet a semi-truck at a specific drop location. Everyone purchasing helps unload all the product for that drop and then we take our goods and head home. I have saved so much money this way. For example, the items I have in bulk for this recipe are: organic cane sugar (I used to make my vanilla sugar), baking powder, salt, gluten-free flour, beetroot powder, and turmeric all of which I get from Azure Standard.

I also have a great source for vanilla beans and make my vanilla extract and vanilla sugar in bulk. Now is a great time to stock up on vanilla and make those extracts and specialty sugars so they have time to sit, they will be ready this time next year. Now let’s get to the recipe…

Sugar Cookies (Gluten-Free)

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Chill 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 45 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Servings 18

Calories 219 kcal

Equipment

• 1 Stand Mixer
• 1 Large Bowl
• Plastic Wrap
• Parchment Paper
• Baking Sheet
• Cookie Cutters
• Measuring Cups & Spoons

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 cup unsalted butter softened
• 1 1/4 cup vanilla sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 cup gluten-free 1 for 1 all-purpose flour we use Bob’s Red Mill
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp water

Instructions

 

Sugar Cookie Cut Outs

• In a medium bowl mix flour, baking powder and salt until combined.
• In your mixers bowl add butter and vanilla sugar and beat until light and fluffy. I use speed 4 on my mixer.
• Once your sugar and butter mixture is ready, switch to speed 2 and add eggs, vanilla extract and water. Mix until fully combined.
• Slowly add dry ingredients until everything is fully combined and looks like sugar cookie dough. (if you want to dye your dough with beet powder, turmeric or mint this is the time you would add a small amount to your dough so it can be mixed in thoroughly. Remember that less is more.)
• Shape dough into a round 1″ thick disc, wrap in plastic wrap or in a Ziplock bag. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
• After it has chilled you can remove it from the refrigerator and preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• Unwrap dough and roll it out. I highly suggest rolling out the dough between two pieces of parchment paper. If you use gluten all purpose gluten free flour to roll it out you run the risk of making your cookies taste chalky.
• Roll dough until it is 1/8 – 1/4 “ thick.
• Cut dough into desired shapes. The number of cookies you will get will vary depending on size of cookie cutters used.
• Transfer to parchment lined baking sheet. I use my spatula to transfer the cut out cookie shapes.
• Bake for 15-20 minutes at 325 degrees, until the edges just slightly start to brown.
• Let cool completely before decorating, or enjoying.

Our Favorite Variation

• Replace steps 7-10 with the following.
• Unwrap dough and like creating with playdough create fun shapes with the dough. You can make braided or twisted candy canes with two different colors of dough, or any variety of creations. Try not to over work the dough.
• Transfer created shapes to parchment lined baking sheet and gently flatten with finger to 1/4″ thick.
• If dough has softened a lot then refrigerate for 15 minutes before continuing to step 11.

Video

Notes

You can create colorful sugar cookie dough by adding natural dyes into the dough with dry ingredients.  It only takes a small amount to dye the whole batch so use sparingly. A few color ideas are:

Beet Root Powder = Pink or Maroon

Turmeric = Yellow or Golden

Cacao Powder = Brown

You can mix and match any of these to create custom colors. 

You can also ice the cookies with our Naturally Dyed Icing. 

This recipe is available in a cute pdf printable in our e-book, The Christmas Kitchen – A Gluten-Free Holiday Made Easy

Nutrition

Calories: 219kcalCarbohydrates: 29gProtein: 3gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0.4gCholesterol: 45mgSodium: 64mgPotassium: 11mgFiber: 2gSugar: 15gVitamin A: 342IUCalcium: 32mgIron: 1mg

Keyword Cookie, Dessert, Gluten Free

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