The recipe for these gluten-free gingerbread cookies is based on a traditional Estonian recipe with a special spice mix that gives them a lovely unique taste. I have modified it to a gluten free version, tested a different flour blend every Christmas for the last three years and I believe they are close to perfection now. They keep their not-too-crumbly structure and good taste for days. They can be made thicker, or thinner, just as you prefer.
The dough can be made ready for up to two weeks before baking and kept in the refrigerator. Alternatively, you can make a bigger amount and freeze it.
Gluten-free gingerbread cookies
Course: DessertCuisine: EstonianDifficulty: Medium57
kcal12
hours6-9
minutes1,4
kgThese gluten-free gingerbread cookies are based on a traditional Estonian recipe with a special spice mix giving them a lovely unique taste. They keep their not-too-crumbly structure and good taste for days thanks to a tested flour mix. They can be made thicker, or thinner, just as you prefer.
The dough can be made ready up to two weeks before baking and kept in the refrigerator. Alternatively, you can make a bigger amount and freeze it.
Ingredients
250 g syrup
170 g brown sugar
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground cloves
1 tbsp ground cardamom (usually comes in pods, so just peel and ground with a food processor)
1 tsp ground ginger
250 g unsalted butter, cut into cubes
2 eggs (room temperature)
200 g gluten free buckwheat flour
300 g Doves Farm gluten free plain white flour
100 g gluten free potato starch
2 tsp gluten free bicarbonate of soda
- Optional icing
200 – 300 g icing sugar
1 egg white (I use freshly squeezed lemon juice & a little bit of water instead just to avoid raw egg)
Optional food colouring
Directions
- Add the syrup, sugar and spices to a thick-bottomed pot, mix well and heat until starts to bubble.
- Remove the pot from the heat and mix in the butter until melted. Let it sit and cool for 10-15 min.
- Add eggs beating them into the mix one by one.
- In a separate bowl, mix well the flours and the bicarbonate of soda, add the dry mixture slowly to the egg mixture. You should be able to mix the dough with a spoon and pour it onto a cling film sheet to wrap the dough in it.
- Once the dough is nicely tucked in, place it to a cool place to toughen up and absorb the lovely taste from the spices at least until the next day.
- Roll the dough between your hands until it feels soft like Play-Doh, then roll it with a rolling pin on a floured table as thick or thin as you prefer (adjust the baking time according to the thickness of the dough and size of the cookies). Use cookie moulds or cutters to shape the cookies, reuse the leftover dough until no leftovers left.
- Bake at 200/180 fan/gas 6 on a baking sheet covered oven tray for 6-7 mins for thinner and smaller size cookies, 8-9 minutes for thicker and bigger size cookies.
- Let cool for a few hours and decorate. For the icing, just mix the ingredients and use a decorating tool or a simple small clear plastic bag (with a tiny cut hole in the corner).
Please use the hashtag #TheNonGlutenOne if you make this recipe so I can re-share the love. And do let me know if there’s anything wrong with this recipe. Use my contact page or email me info@thenonglutenone.com.
