Description
Delight in these festive Gluten Free Christmas Snickerdoodles featuring a soft, chewy texture rolled in cinnamon sugar and topped with colorful red and green gumdrops. Perfect for holiday celebrations, these cookies combine classic flavors with a gluten-free twist.
Ingredients
Scale
Dry Ingredients
- 2 ¾ cups gluten-free all-purpose flour blend
- 1 ½ teaspoons cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Topping
- ¼ cup granulated sugar (for rolling)
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 24 red and green gumdrops
Instructions
- Prepare the wet mixture: In a large bowl, beat the softened butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar together until the mixture is light and fluffy, ensuring a creamy base for the dough.
- Add eggs and vanilla: Incorporate the eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition, then stir in the vanilla extract for flavor.
- Combine dry ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the gluten-free flour blend, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt to evenly distribute the leavening agents and seasoning.
- Form the dough: Gradually add the dry ingredient mixture into the wet mixture, mixing carefully until a soft dough forms without overmixing.
- Chill the dough: Cover the dough and refrigerate it for 30 to 60 minutes to firm up, which helps in shaping the cookies and prevents spreading during baking.
- Preheat oven and prepare baking sheets: Set your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line baking sheets with parchment paper to prevent sticking and ensure even baking.
- Make cinnamon sugar coating: In a small bowl, combine ¼ cup of granulated sugar with 1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon, stirring well to create the classic Snickerdoodle coating.
- Shape and coat dough balls: Roll the chilled dough into 1.5-inch balls, then roll each ball in the cinnamon sugar mixture to coat it evenly.
- Arrange and decorate: Place the coated dough balls on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Press one red or green gumdrop onto the top of each dough ball gently.
- Bake the cookies: Bake in the preheated oven for 9 to 11 minutes, until the edges are set and the centers appear slightly underbaked for a soft texture.
- Cool the cookies: Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes to firm up, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- For best results, use a gluten-free all-purpose flour blend that includes xanthan gum or add 1 teaspoon if your blend does not contain it.
- Chilling the dough is important to prevent the cookies from spreading too much during baking.
- Gumdrops add a colorful, festive touch but can be replaced with holiday sprinkles or left off if preferred.
- Store baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- These cookies freeze well; freeze unbaked dough balls for up to 3 months and bake directly from frozen, adding a couple of extra minutes to baking time.
