Crispy Gingersnaps Drizzled with Chocolate

 So, good news - If you don't want to make your gingersnaps free from dairy or eggs, you can make my chewy gingersnaps recipe and just flatten and bake them as directed below.  However, if you are serving anyone with rice, dairy or egg issues, this recipe is delicious!  Light and crispy.  Yum!   

Yummy Chocolate Drizzled Gingersnap cookies, ready to eat!

Crispy Gingersnaps Drizzled with Chocolate (GF, nut-free, dairy-free, egg-free)

Makes 24 cookies

Preheat oven to 375 F.  Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.  

In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: 

1/4 cup white corn flour OR cornstarch

1/4 cup oat flour (make sure GF if Celiac or sensitive) OR brown rice flour OR sorghum flour

1/4 cup potato starch

2 Tbsp tapioca starch

2 Tbsp sorghum flour

scant 1/2 tsp xanthan gum

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/8 tsp ground cloves

In a mixer, beat until relatively smooth and a bit fluffy:

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup coconut oil (not melted)

3 Tbsp oil

Add and mix in thoroughly: 

2 Tbsp molasses

2 Tbsp applesauce

Add dry ingredients and mix until smooth.  Scrap and give another few stirs with your spatula.  Scoop 1 Tbsp scoops onto your prepared parchment-lined cookie sheets.  These spread quite thin, so 12 per pan should work well.  

Flatten cookies by dipping a flat bottomed glass lined with plastic wrap in granulated sugar and pressing down the tops of the cookies.  Usually once works, but you can dip and press the tops a second time if any doesn't have sugar evenly coating the surface.  

Cookies flattened with sugar coated glass cup

Bake cookies at 375 F for 6-8 minutes.  Shorter cook time will make for slightly less crisp cookies.  Let rest on the pan for a few minutes before removing to cooling rack to cool.  

Fresh from the oven. Let rest shortly before moving to cooling rack. 

Let them cool fully. These cool quickly because they're so thin. 

Place cooled cookies on a parchment-lined baking pan.  Melt the following together at 50% power in the microwave, stirring regularly: 

3/4 cup high-quality dark chocolate chips (dairy-free are readily available in dark chocolate chips)

1 tsp oil

Place melted chocolate in a small freezer ziploc.  Snip a small corner off and then drizzle over half of each cookie.  Place the cookies in the refrigerator 15 - 20 minutes until the chocolate has set.  Remove and serve!  These will store nicely in a closed container for a few days.  (They've never lasted longer than that around here).  

Gingersnaps drizzled with chocolate.

SO pretty!

Crispy Gingersnaps Drizzled with Chocolate Recipe by Successfully Gluten Free!

These yummy gingerbread cookies are a fun alternative to gingerbread houses.  Personally, I love them plain, but they're delicious and pretty with piped with royal icing frosting.  They also work perfectly to have the kids use royal icing and decorate with candy!  These cookies are made with the same batter as my gingerbread houses, so if you'd like to make a double batch of dough, I find you can make 4 mini houses from one batch of gingerbread and your second batch of dough will make a pile of cookies for decorating! 

Fresh Gingerbread Cookies!  Yum! 

Gluten Free Gingerbread Cookies!

Makes ~25 cookies, depending on size

In a mixer, combine with a paddle attachment (not a whisk attachment!): 
2 3/4 c Kristin's Gluten-Free Flour Mix
1/3 cup brown sugar

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ginger

1/8 tsp cloves

Add and mix in until nicely combined: 

1/2 cup oil

2/3 cup molasses

1 egg

Divide into two and roll each half of batter out between two large pieces of plastic wrap to 1/4" thick (Don't roll these too thin or they'll be hard to cut and lift off the plastic wrap).  Place each oval on a cookie sheet and put in the refrigerator to chill 30 minutes.  

Two of these sort of dough ovals were chilled. 

While dough is chilling, line cookie sheets with parchment paper.  Preheat oven to 325 F.   

Cut out a gingerbread shape.  I like to press down and wiggle the cutter around a bit to get nice, clean edges. Use the plastic wrap to help you lift the shape off the plastic wrap.  Carefully transfer to the parchment-lined pan.  

Cut the shapes and use the plastic wrap to help you lift them up and off. 

Gingerbread Men and a Candy Cane - ready to bake!

Repeat with your other gingerbread shapes.  It's best to try to have evenly sized cookies on each pan.  Once you've cut out all your gingerbread shapes from your flattened oval, you can use the plastic wrap to lump the dough back together.  Flatten again between the plastic wrap.  You can repeat this until the piece of gingerbread is too small.   Make sure you don't forget about your second piece of chilling gingerbread dough! 

Ready for the oven.  I had enough for about 4 pans worth of medium-sized cookies.

Bake each pan of gingerbread cookies at 325 F for ~15 minutes.  Small cookies may need only 10 minutes, and larger may need up to 18 or so.  I like the cookies to have puffed nicely, and look like they're just getting a touch of crispiness around the edge.  This keeps them slightly soft, but sturdy enough to handle and decorate once cooled.  

Fresh from the oven!  

Let the cookies cool 3-5 minutes on pans before removing them to cooling racks with a spatula.  

Once fully cool, decorate as desired!  Royal icing recipe is below.  Enjoy! 

Believe it or not, there are gingerbread cookies under those candies and icing.

Royal Icing:

Beat the following in a grease-free bowl until stiff: (If needed, add a bit more confectioner’s sugar (very slowly) until desired thickness)

3 egg whites (make sure NO yolk is in whites)

1 lb. confectioner’s sugar

½ tsp cream of tartar

1 tsp vanilla

You can keep the icing in a bowl with a tightly fitting lid if you want to make it in advance.  If you will be taking awhile to decorate, you'll want to keep bowl covered at all times with damp cloth because this icing dries fast and becomes hard.  You can pipe this frosting on, or you can just use a knife or back of a spoon to apply (which we tend to do while working with kids). Enjoy!

My youngest making her gingerbread house before she moved on to decorating gingerbread cookies. 

Gluten Free Gingerbread Cookies by Successfully Gluten Free!

Chewy Gingersnap Cookies

These are delicious, chewy, and puffy gingersnap cookies - perfect for the winter season.  And, the best part about them is you don't have to refrigerate the dough before you roll it in sugar and bake it!  This turned out to be a happy side-effect of turning my friend Julie's recipe into a gluten-free version of her favorite chewy gingersnap cookies.  One thing I love is converting long-loved recipes into gluten-free versions so they can still be happily enjoyed.  You can make these cookies flatter (just flatten a bit more) or keep them puffier (don't flatten as much).   Perfect for the holidays, too! Enjoy!

Julie's favorite Chewy Gingersnaps (now Gluten-Free!) fresh from the oven!

Chewy Gingersnap Cookies
Makes 48 small (1Tbsp) or 24 large (2 Tbsp) cookies

Preheat oven to 375F.  Line 2-3 cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicon lining.

In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients: (it is important to mix dry ingredients separately in GF baking to avoid clumping/uneven cooking)
1 cup white rice flour
1/2 cup brown rice flour
1/4 cup tapioca starch
1/4 cup potato starch
3/4 tsp xanthan gum
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves

Beat in a mixer until fluffy:
1/2 cup + 2-3 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
3-4 Tbsp oil

Add an mix in:
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg

Mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients until thoroughly combined.

Prepare a plate or bowl with white granulated sugar. 

Scoop 1 Tbsp or 2 Tbsp scoops of cookie dough into the sugar and roll until evenly coated.  Place on prepared cookie sheets.   Press lightly with a fork to flatten a bit. 

Bake at 375F 5-7 minutes for smaller cookies and 7-9 minutes for larger cookies.  (If you cook the cookies longer than this, you'll end up with crispier cookies instead of chewy ones)

1 Tbsp sized cookies pre- and post-baking.

Cool on cooling rack.  These cookies store really well in a tupperware at room temperature for several days.  We found they tasted even better the next day!
Enjoy!