Gluten-Free Gingerbread Cookies

While made without the standard all-purpose flour, these gingerbread cookies have a perfectly-soft texture. They have the potential to become a holiday season tradition in your home! Whether served chilled or fresh out of the oven, they have a melt-in-your-mouth kind of effect that is purely irresistible. They have just the right amount of spice and sweetness, shaped into the cutest Christmas cookies I’ve made to date!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup cashew butter

• 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted + cooled

• 1/3 cup coconut sugar

• 1/3 cup maple syrup

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 2 cups almond flour

• 1-2 tsp gingerbread spice* (dependent on how strong you want the flavor to be!)

• 1/2 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 tsp pink salt

• sprinkles (optional)

• Frosting:

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar (this is a great alternative!)

• 3 tbsp unsweetened milk

• 1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

2. In a medium-sized bowl, mix the cashew butter, coconut oil & sugar maple syrup, and vanilla extract together. In a separate, smaller bowl, mix the almond flour, gingerbread spice, baking soda, and pink salt together. Slowly stir the dry ingredients into the bowl of wet ingredients until everything is well-incorporated.

3. Scoop all of the batter out onto a sheet of parchment paper. Use a rolling pin (or your hands) to flatten the batter as evenly as possible. Use a cookie cutter to shape the gingerbread men, or a mason jar to create circles. Move the shaped batter onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (or keep it on the one you’ve been using then move it to the pan when you’re done).

4. Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and let the batter bake for 12-14 minutes. Let the cookies then sit out and cool for at least 20 minutes (can also put them in the fridge!), or until fully cooled, before icing.

5. Make the icing by simply using a hand mixer (a small blender should work, too) to whip the ingredients together until silky-smooth. My technique for icing is to always pour it into a flat-based dish and dunk the cookies face-down, halfway into it, one-by-one. Use any leftover for drizzling over the top of the cookies. Finish off by adding sprinkles, if desired.

6. Enjoy! Store leftovers, if any, in an airtight container in the fridge for up to about 10 days for best results.

Notes:

• Use code KATESCLEAN15 to save money on the Spicewalla site!