Gluten Free Christmas Cookies

What is better than a gluten free Christmas cookie? I don’t know anyone who doesn’t love them. My gluten free Christmas cookies are easy to make and fun for all the family. You can get as creative as you like, with different shapes, icing colours and you can even make them into Christmas tree decorations if you wish.

Thanks to the ground almonds in this recipe, these cookies are soft in the middle but still hold their structure well and the dough is easy to manage prior to baking. My cousin and I had so much fun baking and icing these while listening to Christmas tunes, one of my favourite ways to feel ‘Christmassy’ and I will be making these again on Christmas eve!

INGREDIENTS

• 100g Ground almonds
• 300g Gluten free plain flour (I am using Doves Farm)
• 75g golden caster sugar
• 75g dark brown soft sugar
• 250g margarine
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla essence
• Pinch of salt
• 2tsp xantham gum

For the icing:

• 500g Royal Icing Sugar
• Approximately 80ml water as required
• Food colouring – I am using the gel ones from Lakeland HERE

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 170C, Gas Mark 3. Grease and line flat baking trays ready for your cookies.
2. Mix together all the dry ingredients (sugar, flour, almonds. Measure out the marg and in chunks, add it to the dry mixture. Use your fingers to rub in the margarine to make breadcrumbs.
3. Add the vanilla essence to the mixture and work with your hands to create a ball.
4. Once you have a smooth ball of dough, roll out onto a floured surface. Keep the dough moving on the surface so it doesn’t stick.
5. Roll out to approx 1cm thick. Cut out using cookie cutters and re roll and repeat as required until all the dough is used up.
6. Place the cookies onto the baking tray with at least 1cm or so between each cookie so they have a slight bit of room to grow in the oven.
7. This is the stage that if you want to make them into christmas decorations you will need to put a hole
8. Bake for 10-15 minutes until just changing colour but not fully golden (if over cooked they will go too hard and you won’t get the nice chewy centre).
9. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.
10. Make the icing. With an electric whisk, sift the icing sugar and gradually add the water. You want the icing to hold, but still be able to pipe it and it hold on the cookie. Add more or less water as required.
11. Split the icing into bowls and add the colouring, before putting into icing bags.
12. Pipe your cooled cookies as desired. Put ribbon through any you wish to make Christmas decorations!
13. Enjoy!

This recipe is perfect for family fun at Christmas, and you will have plenty of delicious cookies to share out with the family over the festive season. My cousin, Emma (pictured!) and I, had a fantastic time making these and I am sure you will too!

I hope you like this recipe and have a wonderful Christmas!

K

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