Looking for healthier gluten free vegan Christmas Cookies?
Take a look at this gluten free sugar cookie recipe with cinnamon, walnut and maple flavor! The cookies are crisp, crumbly and addictive! No eggs, no dairy, no processed ingredients, just healthy gluten free vegan maple sugar cookies.
Making gluten free vegan sugar cookies may be tricky because usually gluten free flours without xanthan gum tend to produce dry cookies especially when they are made without eggs. But that’s alright, with a few good substitutes we can make absolutely delicious vegan gluten free sugar cookies!
Vegan Gluten Free Sugar Cookies For Christmas
Cut out sugar cookies can be made for different occasions, but these are perfect for Christmas – because cinnamon is scientifically proven to be the most Christmas-y smell in the world. And yes rolled cookies are fun at Christmas time with tree and star shapes!
Gluten Free Sugar Cookie Recipe With Maple Cinnamon and Walnuts
The base of these gluten free vegan cookies is ground walnuts, vegan butter, maple sugar and a blend of gluten free flours. For the vegan egg, I went with apple sauce and ground flax seeds – simple healthy ingredients.
Why Walnuts?
In baked goods the walnuts give a wonderfully rich nutty flavor, and the moisture and oil aids to the texture. Just make sure your nuts are fresh and not rancid if you don’t want a bitter aftertaste. I get my raw organic walnuts from here.
Don’t like walnuts, choose your favorite and grind them up just like that!
The gluten free flours used:
- Walnut flour (ground walnuts) – which creates a perfect crumbly texture, and give a pleasant nutty flavor;
- Arrowroot flour (a healthier alternative to cornstarch) – which puffs them and helps with binding
- And sorghum flour (for extra binding and structure forming)
How To Make Gluten Free Vegan Sugar Cookies
Once you have all ingredients, mix them together using a food processor or by hand. Then chill the dough and roll it.
Use your favorite shapes to cut the sugar cookies and place them on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Sprinkle the cinnamon and maple sugar powder.
Bake them for about 15 minutes, but watch them closely, you might need to bake them even longer, up to 20 minutes if you like them crispier.
Cool and serve, no need for frosting or anything else!
How To Store These Gluten Free Sugar Cookies
Once fully cooled, store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 1 week. This cookie recipe also freezes really well. You can make these cookies up to a month in advance.
Another option is to freeze the dough and let it defrost overnight if you want freshly baked cookies in the morning!
Tools To Make These Cookies
- Non-stick baking sheet – a good solid cookie sheet if you want to avoid teflon pans.
- A food processor – to blend the ingredients easier and faster (the one I’m suing in the video).
- Cookie cutters – for nice Christmas themed cookies.
- Unbleached chlorine-free parchment paper – nothing sticks to it, and it can stand up to a 450°F.
Other vegan gluten free Christmas cookie recipe you might like: Gluten Free Christmas Cookies with white chocolate decorations and coconut sprinkles.
Gluten Free Vegan Sugar Cookies With Walnuts & Cinnamon
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup walnut flour - ground walnuts
- 1 cup sorghum flour
- 1/3 cup arrowroot flour
- 1/3 cup maple sugar
- 2 tbsp apple sauce
- 2 tbsp ground flax seeds - golden
- 1/2 cup vegan butter - I used Miyoko's
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/3 tsp baking powder
- 1/3 tsp ground vanilla bean - or extract
Instructions
Prepare the ingredients
- Place the cubed vegan butter in the freezer for 10-20 minutes before starting. And blend the walnuts into flour, use a coffee grinder or a blender. You will need a little less than 1/2 cup halved walnuts.
Mix the ingredients to form the cookie dough
- In a food processor, add the cold butter, the flours, the ground walnuts, maple sugar, salt, baking powder and ground vanilla bean (or vanilla extract). Pulse a few times until small crumbles form.
- Then mix the apple sauce with ground flax seeds and add that to the food processor as well. Mix until the dough start to come together into larger crumbles. The dough shouldn't be too thick or too sticky, just enough to form a soft pliable mass. See video. Adjust by adding more flour or liquid if it doesn't feel right.
- Gather the dough into a ball, wrap it and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. This will help with an easier cutting.
- Roll the dough out between two parchment papers until it is approx. 1/4 inch thick.
- Use star cookie cutters (or other) and cut as many shapes as possible, re-rolling the dough scraps and cutting again.
- Place the shapes on a non-stick baking sheet covered with parchment paper. I also like to place in the freezer the cut cookies for another 10 minutes while the oven is pre-heating – 350 F.
Prepare the cinnamon and maple sugar dusting
- In a high speed blender or coffee grinder combine 1.5 tbsp maple sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon, blend until you get a fine sugary powder.
- Just before baking, take the cookies out from the fridge and dust the cinnamon and maple sugar powder all over them (use a sifter). The heat of the cookie will hold and melt the powder on the cookie so it won't fall off after baking. Another option is to dust them after baking, as soon as they come out of the oven – they will have a less darker color.
Bake the gluten free vegan sugar cookies
- Once the oven is preheated, bake the cookies for 15 minutes. If you want browned crispier cookies – 20 minutes.
- Allow the cookies to cool for 2-3 minutes, then transfer them to a flat surface to cool.
- Once the cookies are cooled, they will get crispier.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator.
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Kathryn
Wednesday 27th of October 2021
Hi! Instead of using butter could I use coconut oil? If so how would I measure that into this recipe?
HealthyTasteOfLife
Wednesday 27th of October 2021
Yes, just use the same amount.
Sam
Saturday 17th of October 2020
Can I use almond flour instead of walnut, I can't wait to make them this holiday season!
HealthyTasteOfLife
Saturday 17th of October 2020
Sure, absolutely, it has the same consistency as walnut flour!