Old-fashioned gingerbread cookies are a Christmas classic, usually made with butter and eggs. These dairy-free vegan cookies give you that familiar flavor but are friendly for those with dietary restrictions. We’ve nixed the wheat for gluten-free flour combined with rice flour, the latter of which gives these cookies their light, crisp texture. If the GF mix you have on hand contains xanthan gum, leave that ingredient out of the gingerbread cookie recipe below.
If you’re a first-time vegan baker, you may be wondering about vegan sugar. Some refined sugars, including powdered and brown sugars, are processed using animal by-products. Many vegan brands are easy to find in today’s supermarkets. For more of a caramelized flavor, you could swap the plain sugar for coconut sugar.
Instead of flax eggs or vegan butter, this recipe gets its moisture from applesauce and coconut oil, which is mixed into the dry ingredients, no second mixing bowl required. This cookie recipe is light on spices, but if you want to add a dash of ground cloves or allspice, go for it.
You can use this vegan recipe for gingerbread men, stars, hearts, candy canes, or any other shape you like, but look elsewhere for a gingerbread house recipe, since these cookies won’t be sturdy enough to support that kind of cooking project. Use the glaze to dunk donuts, drizzle on cinnamon rolls, decorate sugar cookies—or any other baked goods—using a piping bag or butter knife. Want to make the glaze even more flavorful? Swap out a few tablespoons of the water for maple syrup.
Recipe information
Total Time
1 hour 20 minutes (includes chilling)
Yield
Makes 36 cookies
Ingredients
Cookies:
Vanilla glaze:
Preparation
Cookies:
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
Step 2
In a large bowl, whisk together the 2⅓ cups rice flour, the all-purpose flour, sugar, arrowroot, ginger, cinnamon, xanthan gum, salt, baking soda, and nutmeg. Add the coconut oil, applesauce, and vanilla to the flour mixture and stir with a rubber spatula until a thick dough forms. Gradually add the cold water and stir until the dough is slightly tacky. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Step 3
Dust a clean work surface with some rice flour, place the dough in the center, and roll the dough around until the surface is entirely coated in flour. Dust a rolling pin with more rice flour. Roll out the dough to ¼-inch thickness.
Step 4
Cut out cookies with your desired cookie cutters and transfer them from the floured surface to the parchment-lined baking sheets with a spatula, placing them about 1 inch apart. Bake for 7 minutes, rotate the baking sheets, and bake for 5 minutes more. Let stand on the baking sheets for 10 minutes then transfer to cooling rack.
Vanilla glaze:
Step 5
In a small bowl, combine the powdered sugar, hot water, and vanilla and whisk briefly. If the glaze is too thick, add warm water one tablespoon at a time until the icing reaches a thick yet slightly runny consistency. If it becomes too runny, add more powdered sugar ¼ cup at a time.
DO AHEAD: The glaze can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
How would you rate Gluten-Free Vegan Gingerbread Cookies?
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Reviews (1)
Back to TopIs e amount of vanilla a mistake? 1/4C seems like an awful lot of vanilla for a recipe this size...
Mars
Toronto
12/14/2021
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