Now that all the Thanksgiving cooking is behind us I am in full-on baking mode. I spent the whole of last week in the kitchen testing one cookie recipe after another as a preparation for the holiday cookie season. So here I am with this season’s first refined sugar-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, grain-free, and healthy paleo cookie recipe, Almond Flour Gingerbread Cookies.
If you are new to baking with almond flour, this paleo ginger molasses cookies recipe is a good one to start as it is just so easy. Everything comes together in a food processor with just a few ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry. I am talking about almond flour, coconut sugar, molasses, and warm winter spices to fill your home with the classic Christmas gingerbread smells.
These paleo ginger snaps are light, soft and chewy. Not to mention, they are perfect when served with a glass of milk. Just like we did when we were kids. But wait, who am I kidding, I still serve my cookies with a glass of milk.
Intrigued? Let’s break it down.
Ingredients for this healthy gingerbread cookies recipe
This gingerbread recipe uses only 10 ingredients:
- Almond Flour: I love my making my own blanched almond flour, but you can use store-bought almond flour as well. This brand (affiliate link) is my favorite.
- Spices: I used ground cinnamon, ground ginger, and allspice in the recipe below, but you can also add in a pinch of ground cloves and nutmeg.
- Blackstrap Molasses: I used this unsulphured blackstrap molasses (affiliate link).
- Coconut Sugar: I love using coconut sugar in baking as it tastes very similar to brown sugar, but it has a low glycemic index that doesn’t spike up your blood sugar. However, if you do not have coconut sugar you can substitute it with brown sugar.
- A Large Egg: You only need one large egg to get a great texture.
- Coconut Oil: Most ginger snap cookies use a stick of butter, but here we are swapping it with just two tablespoons of melted and cooled coconut oil. With that being said, I have also tested this recipe with grapeseed oil and it worked perfectly.
- Baking Soda: Only ½ teaspoon of baking soda for the perfect chewy and coarse texture.
- Vanilla Extract: Only a tablespoon of vanilla extract to bring together and enhance all the flavors in the recipe.
Is ginger paleo?
If you are new to paleo baking you might be wondering whether or not ginger is a paleo-friendly ingredient. The answer is yes. With high levels of anti-inflammatory compounds called gingerols, both fresh ginger and ground ginger spice are paleo-friendly.
How to make gluten-free gingerbread cookies
The process of making these paleo almond flour molasses cookies has 3 folds.
First, place almond flour, baking soda, coconut sugar, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, allspice, and a pinch of salt in the bowl of your food processor. Pulse a few times to mix.
Second, add in coconut oil, molasses, egg, and vanilla into the bowl of the food processor. Process until it forms into a ball and starts collecting on one side of the bowl. This takes about 15-20 seconds. Transfer the dough into a bowl, cover it with stretch film, and let it cool in the fridge for 30 minutes.
At this stage, there are two important things to mention:
- You will end up with a very sticky dough. This is normal so don’t be tempted to add in more almond flour.
- Do not skip the chilling time. The time spent in the fridge helps solidify the fat in the cookies, which helps cookies to spread less as they are baking in the oven.
Finally, use a tablespoon measure to divide the cookie batter into equal pieces and arrange them on a parchment-lined large baking sheet leaving at least 2-inches of space in between each cookie. I used this (affiliate link) 40 mm ice cream scoop and ended up with 12 of these paleo ginger cookies.
Bake in a 350 F degree oven for 10-12 minutes. Let it cool for 5 minutes and serve them with a glass of milk.
Can’t get enough of the gingerbread flavors? Try my refined sugar free and gluten-free gingerbread cake. Topped off with a delicious (maple sweetened) cranberry compote, it is a healthier cake recipe that you can make for the holidays.
A Few FAQs answered for the best gluten-free and paleo gingerbread cookies:
- Can I use a flax egg in place of the egg? Every time I share a recipe with an egg I get emails from readers asking if they can substitute it with a flax egg (1 part ground flax seeds mixed in with 2 ½ parts water). This time I tested the recipe with a flax egg and it did not work so I do not recommend using flax eggs.
- Can I dip the cookies in coconut sugar before baking? You sure can.
- Can I roll out the cookie dough and use a gingerbread cookie cutter to make gf gingerbread cookies? As I mentioned earlier, this cookie dough is a very sticky one. I didn’t try this, but I think it you can roll it out with a rolling pin in between two pieces of parchment paper spread with a little bit of arrowroot powder (here we use arrowroot powder to prevent it from sticking to the parchment paper). You might have to chill the dough again before cutting it with your cookie cutter.
- Can I freeze the cookie dough to bake it later? You sure can. To do so, form the cookie dough into mounds and place them on the baking sheet. Put it in the freezer. Once it is frozen, you can place them in a freezer bag to bake them later.
Diet Key
This Recipe is:
Want more delicious cookie recipes?
If you are in need of more cookie recipes, you are in for a treat because I am joined by a few of my favorite food blogger friends for a virtual cookie swap to spread the joy of baking during this holiday season.
Below are the links. Click around, get in the kitchen and bake the most delicious cookies for your friends and family.
- Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Oatmeal Cookies Healthy
- Shortbread Pecan Cookies
- Almond Flour Peanut Butter Cookies
- Gluten-Free Biscotti with Hazelnuts & Chocolate by The Bojon Gourmet
- Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cookies by Snixy Kitchen
Other almond flour recipes you might like
- Almond Flour Cake
- Pumpkin Muffins with Almond Flour
- Pancakes with Almond Flour
- Gluten-Free Chocolate Cupcakes
- Healthy Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins
- Paleo Strawberry Cake
This recipe has been adapted with minor changes from Perhance to Cook.
Paleo Gingerbread Cookies Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups almond flour, 220 gr
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup coconut sugar, 76 gr
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon allspice
- Pinch salt
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted and cooled or avocado oil
- 3 tablespoons molasses
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Place almond flour, baking soda, coconut sugar, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, allspice and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse 3-4 times to mix.
- Add in the coconut oil, molasses, egg, and vanilla and process until a dough forms. This takes about 15-20 seconds.
- Transfer the dough into a bowl, wrap with plastic, and let it rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Remove the dough from the fridge. Using a spoon (or a small ice cream scoop) measure 1 ½ tablespoons of dough per cookie and arrange them 2 inches apart from each other on the baking sheet.
- Gently press on each cookie to slightly flatten.
- Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes. Allow it to cool on the sheet pan for 5 minutes and serve.
Video
Notes
- Yields: This recipe makes 12-14 cookies cookies. The nutritional values below are per cookie.
- You will end up with a very sticky dough. This is normal so don’t be tempted to add in more almond flour.
- Do not skip the chilling time. The time spent in the fridge helps solidify the fat in the cookies, which helps cookies to spread less as they are baking in the oven.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi. Can I substitute the allspice for pumpkin spice?
Hello Camila,
I think you meant using pumpkin spice in place of all spice? If so, yes? It won’t have the signature all spice (mostly coming from the cloves) taste but it would still be good.
Hope this helps.
love your site.
Thank you.
Would this dough roll out well to cut gingerbread people? Looking for a healthier cookie cutter recipe to do with my son. Thanks!
Hi Kim,
Sadly, the dough for this cookie is very stick. It won’t roll out like regular gingerbread cookies. Therefore, I don’t think that it is a good candidate to use with a cookie cutter.
Hope this helps.
I’ve been trying various paleo dessert recipes from different sites with varying levels of success and these came out amazing!! I used truvia brown sugar because that’s what I had and then I only had the unsulphured black strap molasses which is very bitter so I halved the amount the recipe called for and replaced the other half with maple syrup and it worked beautifully. Highly recommend these!! I’ve tried making paleo gingerbread loaves and none of them have come remotely close to being as good as these cookies. Also, I didn’t have a food processor and used a fork and it still worked, so don’t let that stop you from making these. Thanks for a great recipe!!
Hello Jordan,
I am thrilled to hear that you liked this recipe. I truly appreciate you taking the time to share your experience and leave a review.
Wishing you and yours a happy holiday season.
Super yummy and easy to make!
I loved the consistency of these cookies – so soft. I left my dough in the fridge overnight and made the next day and they turned out great. They definitely expand though, way more than any other cookie I’ve ever made so be sure to spread them out or else you’ll have a gingerbread sheet pan, ha! 10/10 would recommend and will be making again.
This is music to my ears Madi. I am thrilled to hear that you enjoyed this recipe. Thanks so much for coming by and taking the time to leave a review.
These sound great! I am a cancer survivor & my diet has limitations so these will work for me.
I don’t have a food processor large enough to make these, can I use a hand mixer as well? Any adjustments if I do? Thanks
I’ve made these two days in a row – when you get the chill time perfect and the bake time perfect these are these ginger cookies literally can be beat, so moist and chewy and full of flavor. My new fav cookie
Nice texture and taste! I like it much more than typical gingerbread cookies
Happy to hear that you liked it Daryna.
They are new favorite cookies now