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Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies
The light, tender texture and vanilla-y flavor of this gluten-free sugar cookie will have you sharing it far and wide. Make it as a drop cookie, or roll the dough out and cut it into shapes; either way you'll have a happy crowd.
Ingredients
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) butter
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cups King Arthur Gluten-Free Flour
- 1/2 cup almond flour or finely ground almonds, blanched or unblanched
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
Instructions
- Lightly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets. Preheat the oven to 350°F (for drop cookies; if you're making cutout cookies, don't preheat the oven).
- Beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla stir until combined, scraping the sides of the bowl and stirring again briefly.
- Add the dry ingredients, stirring just until the dough comes together.
- To make drop cookies: Drop the dough by teaspoonfuls (a teaspoon cookie scoop works well here) onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 1 1/2" between them. Bake the cookies for about 12 minutes; they won't brown, but will feel set. Remove them from the oven, and cool completely on the pan.
- To make cutout cookies: Scoop the dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap, flatten it into a disk, and wrap. Refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Remove the dough from the refrigerator, and dust your work surface and dough with cornstarch or gluten-free flour.
- Roll the dough about 1/4" thick and cut the shapes of your choice with a cookie cutter. Place cutouts on a parchment-lined baking sheet and chill for 10 minutes. Re-chill any dough scraps before rolling.
- Bake the cookies for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove them from the oven, and cool completely before icing.
Nutrition Information
- Serving Size 38g
- Servings Per Batch 18
Amount Per Serving:
- Calories 160
- Calories from Fat 60
- Total Fat 7g
- Saturated Fat 3.5g
- Trans Fat 0g
- Cholesterol 25mg
- Sodium 55mg
- Total Carbohydrate 24g
- Dietary Fiber 1g
- Sugars 11g
- Protein 2g
* The nutrition information provided for this recipe is determined by the ESHA Genesis R&D software program. Substituting any ingredients may change the posted nutrition information.
Tips from our bakers
- For a wonderful variation on flavor, try adding the grated rind (zest) of 1 orange and 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg to the dry ingredients.
- Drop cookies baked for 12 minutes will be soft and tender; bake them a couple of additional minutes for a more sturdy cookie.
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Reviews
I made these for my daughter and had never attempted to make cut out sugar cookies before. I followed the instructions and was very pleased with the end result. I had no trouble rolling out the dough. The recipe yielded 33 beautiful cut out cookies. They looked and smelled just like my family recipe I have used for years . I will have to let you know how they taste because my daughter is coming into town tonight and I made these as a early Christmas surprise !
I used this recipe when I made halloween cookies and everybody said they tasted amazing! It was really simple to make and I would recommend to anybody.
I baked these for the first time today, as I was tired of doing all the family cookie baking at Christmas and not able to eat any! I was very pleased at how the cutout cookies turned out, and most importantly taste. Being in a hurry, I mixed a batch to chill while doing some more baking, and I wasn't sure whether I added the xantham gum. Grrr. So I mixed a second batch, thinking I could compare results. Then in the chaos of making two different recipes simultaneously, along with two batches of these sugar cookies, I forgot which cookies were the "correct" batch, and which may be without xantham gum! I baked them all, and some of them seemed to spread a bit more and not hold their shape as well. So I'm guessing that I did indeed leave out the gum. But they all taste great and look like regular cutout Christmas cookies, which is all I wanted! My husband couldn't taste the difference. This was also the first time I'd used King Arthur gluten-free flour. I usually mix my own blend. I'm very happy with how it performs. Thank you so much for supplying recipes for those of us who have gluten issues! I always trust your products and recipes. I visit the store once a year on vacation, to stock up. Wish I lived closerI'd love to work there!
Wonderfully simple GF sugar cookie recipe. I followed the recipe as written, and it produced a nice sugar cookie. I was careful measuring the flour so I didn't add too much. I also made sure I creamed the butter and sugar until fluffy since I've had recipes,in the past, not come out because I was impatient. The cookies came out flat with a small dome. I sprinkled them with sanding sugar before they cooled just to add a little sparkle. Perfect surprise for my daughter.
So, this worked wonderfully, but as a *very* edited version. First, I had no eggs, so I used three tablespoons of mayo instead. Second, I had no almond flour or nuts, so I added extra gluten free baking flour instead. I had no xanthan gum, and I worried the lack of nuts would hurt the taste, so I added a tablespoon or so of lemon juice in the hopes it would add nice flavor and maybe work well with the mayo tartness. Lastly, it refused to stop being powder and turn into dough, so I added milk a tablespoon at a time until it was scoopable double. BUT, once I changed alllll of that and gave it a few extra minutes to bake, it made great drop cookies.
When I baked the cookies, I expected them to be very good, because all of the reviews said they were excellent. However, when i took them out of the oven, they had not flattened at all. They were still in round balls, the exact same as when I has baked them. Although they were mooist and soft in the middle, and tasted very good, there was absolutly no way I could use them for the recipe I'd intended to make. I tried to flaten out the cookies before baking them, but still they would not spread. ended up having to make a different reecipe from another website.Sorry to hear about your frustrating baking experience, Gluten-Free Baker. It sounds like there might have been too much flour added to the dough, which prevented them from spreading and baking properly. To ensure you're using the right amount, we recommend checking out the "Measuring Standards," link next to the ingredients header above. You'll see that either measuring your flour by weight using a scale, or fluffing and sprinkling the flour into your measuring cup are the best ways to ensure your recipe turns out perfectly. We hope this helps make your future baking experiences more enjoyable. Happy GF baking! Kye@KAF
This recipe was perfect! I added both lemon extract and dried lemon zest to the dough and made cutout cookies for a neighbor with celiac disease.
Used rice flour and almond flour. Used half of sugar. Pretty decent
Quick and easy recipe for sugar cookies. I rolled out teaspoon-size balls, and flattened slightly with my thumb. Baked 14 minutes for a slightly firmer cookie...perfect. Delicate, yet not shattery. A winner! So, here's my question, KAF team...what do you think about using this dough for thumbprint cookies? Could it handle the jam? And could the sugar be reduced a bit, so they're not too-too sweet? I put some jam on a baked cookie, and it was a bit too sweet for me. But I like the idea, as this dough was so easy to work with! What do you think? Thanks!!These will make lovely thumbprint cookies! You can reduce the sugar by 10% no problem. We've found that beyond a 25% reduction, the texture is compromised. Annabelle@KAF
These are really good. The dough came together nicely, and the flavor was very good , without the "dusty" overtones that I find with some gf recipes. After baking the first batch and finding they did not flatten at all, I flattened each ball of dough before putting them in the oven. I dusted them with powdered sugar when they were still slightly warm, and the result was a gf cookie that could "pass."
