Sometimes recipes come easily at the perfect time.
We had so much fun making gingerbread a few days ago, that I thought to myself what if I could change up a couple of ingredients in the recipe and make gluten free gingerbread men cookies out of it.
Could it be that simple? I wasn’t sure, but I decided to go for it and guess what?? It was!
To transform the recipe into something that could be rolled out and cut into gingerbread men shapes, I needed to make the recipe more dry.
So, I added a cup of Barney Butter blanched almond flour (you can replace this with regular gluten free flour blend), reduced the water, and added in a pinch of ground cloves for some spice.
Everything else in our gingerbread recipe stayed the same. I’m not sure who was more excited, me or my kids…I guess it was a tie because we were all thrilled about it.
The gluten free gingerbread men cookies were simple to make and so much fun to decorate together as a family, so I’m sharing the recipe with all of you so you can get in on the fun.
But before I do, here’s a decorating tip. You can make gingerbread reindeer by turning the gluten free gingerbread men cookies upside down, so try it both ways!
Gluten Free Gingerbread Men Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups gluten free all purpose flour
- 1 cup Blanched almond flour (or replace with 1 cup of gluten free flour)
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 1/2 cup coconut oil melted
- 1/2 cup organic coconut palm sugar
- 1 egg
- 3/4 cup molasses
- 1 tbsp hot water
Instructions
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Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
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Add the coconut oil to your mixing bowl.
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Turn the mixer on low and add the egg, coconut palm sugar, and molasses and mix until well combined.
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In a separate bowl, mix the flours, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and baking soda.
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Slowly pour the dry mixture into the mixing bowl continuing to mix it on low for a minute.
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Turn it to medium low and slowly dribble the water into the bowl.
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Cut a piece of parchment paper the size of your baking sheet and lay it on your counter.
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Place half of the dough on the parchment paper. (Wrap the other half in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator until ready to use. )
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Press down with your hands to flatten the dough on the parchment paper a bit.
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Place a new piece of parchment on top of the dough and then roll to 1/4 thick with a rolling pin.
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Remove the top piece of parchment, and get your cookie cutters ready.
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Fill a small bowl or plate with 1/8 cup water. Dip your cookie cutter in the water, and then cut out your gingerbread man shape.
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Peel away the edges with your fingers, or a toothpick for smaller areas. If the dough is not coming up easily, place it in the freezer for 5 minutes and try again.
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When finished, slide your baking sheet under the parchment paper and place it in the freezer for 5 minutes. If you're ok with the cookie shapes spreading a little bit then you can skip the freezer step before baking.
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Bake in the oven for 8-10 minutes, until firm but soft.
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Let cool completely and then decorate with your favorite gluten free icing and sprinkles.
Recipe Notes
Tip: To maximize your cookie cutting on the dough, it's a good idea to cut out the shapes as close together as you can. When you're finished, cut the parchment paper out around each cookie shape and arrange on your baking sheet. This will keep them from growing together while they bake.
Happy Holidays!!
Looking for more holiday recipes? Try my gluten free Christmas cut out sugar cookies, gluten free gingerbread and Grandma’s gluten free rolls.
These look great!! Quick question: Can I substitute 1 cup of All-Purpose Flour instead of the Barney Butter blanched almond flour?