Most of the sugar cookies I have tasted are a bit dry as they all contain egg. Therefore, I added additional butter to the recipe I developed so that you do not have to sacrifice on flavor or texture. Additional butter makes them more delicate, but not as delicate as shortbread. They are somewhere in between shortbread and sugar cookies. Enjoy this gluten free cut out sugar cookie recipe and fun decorating them.
If you would like to see more pics of the steps to make them, just leave a comment in the below box. (No one will see your email address, just your comment.) Enjoy!
A traditional gluten free cut out sugar cookie recipe with a bit more butter to add flavor. They are delicious and festive at the same time.
Ingredients:
- 2-1/2 cups Carla's Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Blend Recipe
- 1/2 teaspoon gluten free baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 11 Tablespoons (1 stick + 3 Tbsp.) unsalted butter,softened (or for dairy-free/vegan*
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract (optional)
- Gluten-free jam of choice**
- Confectioner's sugar, for dusting (optional)
Instructions:
- In a medium-size bowl, whisk the flour blend, baking powder, and salt and set aside.
- In the bowl of your mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until the butter is lighter in color, about 5 minutes using a high-speed mixer,.
- Add the egg, vanilla and almond extract (if using) and beat just until combined.
- Add the flour mixture slowly and beat on low speed just until combined. (If the dough remains sticky, add a bit more flour, until you can gently roll it out or it no longer sticks to your hand.)
- For sandwich cookies, roll the dough out onto sheets of parchment paper to about 1/8-inch thick, and 1/4-inch thick for single cookies.
- Transfer cookies to baking sheets and refrigerate for 1 - 2 hours or until firm. (The longer the dough is refrigerated, the less the dough will spread during baking.)
- Preheat your oven to 350°F**.
- Cut out the cookies using a heart, star or circle cookie cutter (I use my 101 cookie cutters) spacing them at least 1-inch apart, They barely spread/puff. Remove the extra dough around the cut out dough.
- Using a smaller cutter, cut out a smaller but identical shape from half the cookie dough cutouts.
- Using the scraps, repeat the above process, as many times as you can. The dough doesn't become too tough. Refrigerate or freeze dough as needed to keep its shape. Chilled dough also does not spread.
- Bake the whole cookies for 10 - 11 minutes. Bake the small stars and star-framed cookies for about 9 minutes. Bake 10 - 11 minutes or more if making single-layer cookies and rolling them out to 1/4-inch. Allow them to rest in the baking pan for about 4 - 5 minutes and then transfer to wire racks to cool.
- Fill the whole cookies with 1 teaspoon of your favorite gluten-free jam and top with lid. Gently press the top cookie onto the jam to prevent cracking. If desired, dust with confectioners' sugar.
Tips
*The proper temperature of your butter is extremely important when creaming butter. You should be able to just dent the butter stick when you squeeze it.
*For dairy-free butter substitute: The best substitute is 90% palm oil and 10% water. However, you may use Earth Balance Butter Sticks for crisp cookies and Earth Balance Shortening Sticks for fluffy cookies. Alternatively, use half of each),
**If your jam is thick, heat jam in saucepan and allow to slightly cool before filling cookies.
***If you desire your cookies to not turn golden brown at all, bake on 325°F for a longer period.
**You have a choice of using tapioca flour or cornstarch in my All-Purpose Flour Blend. Note that I used cornstarch.
The dough is hard as a rock. What’s up?
Nigaude,
I use this recipe almost every Christmas time to make these cookies. So, I’m assuming you’re using an ingredient that’s not listed above. You must use my homemade flour blend. Here’s the link, as it is linked above – https://glutenfreerecipebox.com/gluten-free-all-purpose-flour-blend/.
My Grandma’s recipe calls for nutmeg in the dough. I haven’t been able to convert it well, but I add the nutmeg to this dough and it’s almost the same (except I can eat them )
I have had some great results using half GF flour and half almond “flour” (I used a bullet to finely grind raw almonds). With confectioner’s sugar, it creates a texture and taste not unlike shortbread. My kids LOVE them!
I have also used 1c coconut flour, but I needed to add an additional 1/2 c coconut oil to the recipe. It was too dry otherwise.
Angela,
I know exactly what you’re talking about. I have a similar recipe at – http://glutenfreerecipebox.com/gluten-free-shortbread-cookies/. You can even add some almond extract which provides an incredible flavor.
Coconut flour absorbs moisture like crazy; therefore, additional liquid and/or fat is necessary.
Happy holidays!
Carla