Gluten Free Gingerbread Cookies are a must-bake every holiday season. They’re basically the epitome of Christmas cheer! This recipe ensures that everybody can enjoy one, regardless of intolerances, special diets, or allergies!
This recipe is free of grains, dairy, refined-sugar, and eggs. It’s vegan, paleo, and can even be modified for the AIP diet. The best part is, you wouldn’t even notice! I’ve put these cookies to the test by bringing them to Christmas parties of friends and family members that don’t avoid any specific ingredients in their diets, and I’ve received only positive feedback. Much of this feedback being shown by the tray being left with only crumbs just halfway through the night!
If you’re looking for an allergy-free Christmas cookie recipe to share this season, keep reading.
How to Make Gluten Free Gingerbread Cookies
Conventional gingerbread cookies rely on molasses, brown sugar, and spices for their distinct, gingerbread flavor. Because of this, they’re definitely not one of the worst recipes out there for your health. Brown sugar is healthier than white sugar because molasses is actually very nutrient-dense.
So what’s the problem? While conventional homemade gingerbread cookies use “real” ingredients, they’re still highly inflammatory. This is especially true for those of us who with autoimmune diseases, or who are prone to chronic inflammation.
But don’t worry! With a few easy swaps, you can enjoy anti-inflammatory, gut-friendly gluten free gingerbread cookies in just a few minutes.
Simple Swaps for Clean Gingerbread Cookies
I always approach my recipes with a “swap” mentality. I pick a junky recipe I love, and brainstorm the most effective and delicious ways to swap each ingredient out one-by-one. By the end, I have a clean version of whatever I wanted to recreate that day!
So what were the swaps in this recipe? Let’s get into it!
Swap All-Purpose Flour for Coconut Flour
As a general rule-of-thumb, coconut flour is NOT an adequate replacement for all-purpose flour on it’s own. It usually needs to be combined with a mix of other flours to achieve the correct texture.
However, combined with the other ingredients in this Gingerbread Cookie Recipe, it works out perfectly!
Swap Brown Sugar for Date Sugar
Date sugar is simply just dried and ground up dates. It’s a nutrient-dense, delicious alternative to any other granulated sugar in a recipe.
Date sugar can easily be replaced with coconut sugar in this recipe if desired.
Here’s my favorite date sugar brand!
Swap Molasses for Date Syrup
…or don’t! Molasses is actually an option on the AIP protocol, and is a natural sugar. However, my stomach handles date syrup best, therefore, I opted for this swap instead. In my experience, date syrup and molasses work interchangeably, and on a 1-for-1 ratio.
Here’s my favorite brand of dates syrup!
Swap Butter for Coconut Oil
I choose to completely stay away from dairy (here’s why). Because of this, butter is out. However, if you don’t avoid butter, butter or ghee would work fine in this recipe as well.
Coconut oil is a great swap for butter, and I’ve never noticed a difference in flavor in baking recipes.
Swap Conventional Icing for Coconut Manna Icing
Conventional icing uses refined-sugar, milk or cream, and butter. This icing requires only coconut manna, vanilla, and honey (or maple if preferred). It’s the perfect vanilla icing swap, that actually hardens like normal gingerbread icing!
Here’s my favorite coconut manna.
Ready to get into the full recipe? Let’s go!
PrintGingerbread Cookie Recipe
Gluten Free Gingerbread Cookies are perfect for the holiday season and allergy-friendly. No eggs, gluten, grains, refined sugar or nuts.
- Prep Time: 15 min.
- Cook Time: 15 min.
- Total Time: 30 min.
- Yield: 12–14 1x
Ingredients
Dough
- 3/4 Cup Coconut Flour (+ a tbsp or so more for dusting)
- 1/2 Cup Coconut Oil
- 1/2 Cup Date Sugar
- 1/4 Cup Date Syrup
- 2 Flax Eggs (or gelatin eggs if AIP) (instructions below)
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 Pinch Himalayan Pink Salt
- 1.5 tsp Cinnamon
- 1 tsp Ground Ginger
- 1 Pinch of Cloves
- 1 Pinch of Cardamom (optional)
Flax Eggs (2)
- 2 Tbsp Flaxseed Meal
- 5 Tbsp Water
Gelatin Eggs
- 2 Tbsp Gelatin
- 1 Tbsp Warm Water
- 5 Tbsp Hot Water
Icing
- 1 Cup Coconut Manna
- 1 tsp Vanila Extract
- 3 Tbsp Honey or Maple
Instructions
Dough
- Begin by preheating the oven to 350º f. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Mix ingredients for flax eggs, and set aside (flax eggs should take around 5 minutes to thicken). If using gelatin eggs, combine water, and sprinkle in a very thin layer of gelatin in water until all gelatin is used. Whisk as you go.
- Using an electric mixer (preferably), mix coconut oil (room temp.), date sugar, date syrup, and vanilla extract. Once thoroughly combined, add flax (or gelatin) eggs (once they have thickened) and mix again.
- Add in all dry ingredients, and mix again.
- Place parchment paper on the counter, and sprinkle with coconut flour. Scoop dough onto paper. Place another piece of parchment over dough, and roll using a rolling pin until around 1/3 inch thick. Remove parchment paper from top.
- Using cookie cutter shape of choice, cut out shapes in the dough. Using a thin, sharp spatula, lift cookies from parchment, and place on lined baking sheet.
- Recombine remaining dough (adding more coconut flour if necessary) and roll once again. Cut shapes, and transfer to lined baking sheet. Repeat this process until all dough has been used.
- Place in the oven for 12-15 minutes, or until just beginning to crisp on the sides. Remove, and allow to fully cool.
Icing
- Melt coconut manna down for 30 seconds at a time, until the mixture can be easily scooped.
- Mix all ingredients in a high speed mixer, and set aside.
- Once gingerbread cookies have fully cooled, use a butter-knife to spread icing onto cookies. For a smoother look, press down using your finger, or a spoon.
- Allow to harden, or enjoy immediately!
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