When our son, Joe, was diagnosed with Celiac disease last summer, it became my mission to learn how to bake gluten-free cookies, brownies, bars, and cakes so that he could still enjoy the treats he loves — especially around the holidays.
I’ve had some fails, that’s for sure, but I’ve also found some delicious recipes that work so well you might hardly be able to tell they are gluten-free!
Here are the favorite gluten-free cookies in our house that made the cut for the holidays – along with some of my tips.
Chewy Gluten-Free Andes Mint Cookies
Amanda over at Heartbeet Kitchen knows her stuff, believe me. I’ve been following her for quite some time as her sourdough expertise (and her sourdough starter!) helped me get started in that endeavor. Along the way, I have found several gluten-free recipes that have been stellar – including these Chewy Gluten-Free Andes Mint Cookies.
These were a new hit at my family’s Christmas! Super fudgy with that wonderful Andes mint melted into the top … I mean, what’s not to love? These are easy to make and don’t require chilling the dough, which is an added bonus, especially when it comes to gluten-free baking.
Chew Gluten-Free Andes Mint Cookies
Big, Chewy Gluten-Free Ginger Molasses Cookies
Here’s another favorite from Heartbeet Kitchen! These are a riff of Sarah Kieffer’s ginger molasses cookies, which I have been making as part of my holiday cookie collecting the past couple of years. To find a gluten-free version that works like a charm makes me so happy!
I use Sarah Kieffer’s icing recipe (with or without the rum) and dip part of the cookie in this delicious icing. Then I let the cookies sit on a parchment-covered cookie sheets until the icing hardens enough to either store in the refrigerator or freezer. (To be honest, often it’s cold enough for me to set my cookie sheets out on the front porch. Minnesota winters give me a third freezer!)
I make sure I use gluten-free sprinkles, by the way. This is a favorite brand I find on Amazon, along with these and these.
Big Chewy Gluten-Free Ginger Molasses Cookies
Gluten-Free Iced Oatmeal Cookies
Another gluten-free blog I love is Meaningful Eats. I made these Gluten-Free Iced Oatmeal Cookies and we immediately loved the chewy texture and sweetness of the icing – so good!
Gluten-Free Iced Oatmeal Cookies
Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Blossoms
Peanut butter blossoms are on almost everyone’s cookie list at Christmas, so I was thrilled to find Heartbeet Kitchens gluten-free version. And I love, love, love using Valrhona Dark French Semisweet Chocolate Discs — not inexpensive to be sure but such good chocolate. It’s totally worth it!
Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Blossoms
Gluten-Free Cranberry Orange Bread
My mom made this Gluten-Free Cranberry Orange Bread recipe from Meaningful Eats for the day after Christmas, and we were amazed at how moist and tender the crumb was. The tart of the cranberries is a perfect complement to the citrus-y orange of the bread too.
Pro tip: she added extra dried cranberries, which we both highly recommend!
Gluten-Free Cranberry Orange Bread
Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Balls
Making this family recipe for Peanut Butter Balls gluten-free was easy — we just needed to find gluten-free crispy rice cereal and make sure the almond bark we use is gluten-free. Thank you, Malt-O-Meal, which offers gluten-free crispy rice cereal, and Essential Everyday almond bark, which I found at our local Cub Foods.
Once Joe got home from college, we snarfed up the first batch right away. Thankfully Joe had time to make a 2nd batch right before Christmas Eve.
What’s the best flour to use for gluten-free baking?
I am far from an expert on this particular question. I am still learning with each gluten-free recipe I bake. However, I can say that I used Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten-Free Flour for all of the cookie recipes above and I was very happy with the results. For the cranberry-orange bread recipe, my mom used King Arthur’s Measure-for Measure Gluten-Free Flour with excellent results.
Can I freeze gluten-free cookies?
Yes! I freeze all of these cookies in airtight containers and have no issues with quality.
If you try any of the recipes in this post, I’d love to hear from you so be sure to share a comment below! I hope you enjoy them as much as our family has this holiday season.
XOXO – Lara