Gluten-Free Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies

Why We Love This Recipe

Irresistible blend of rich cocoa and warm spices!

Hands down, it is the finest last-minute Christmas cookie recipe.

The familiar and exciting flavor makes it ideal for cookie exchanges.

Be as creative as you want with the shapes and impress your kids and guests.

A recipe that offers a delightful and festive twist to traditional favorites.

Recipe Ingredients

Flour: I've made these gingerbread cookies gluten-free by using buckwheat flour. Feel free to use your favorite gluten-free flour or substitute with all-purpose flour if you wish.

Brown sugar: For a deep, earthy, molasses flavor.

Flaxseed meal: Mixed with water, flaxseed powder is a good substitute for eggs. Just like it did for my mocha gingerbread biscotti. You can use milk to bind the dough, as I did with my chocolate ginger cookies. You can use 1 egg instead if you wish.

Honey: This gives the gingerbread cookies with chocolate a lovely floral sweetness. You could use molasses, which is what is traditionally used in these cookies. Or maybe maple syrup.

Cocoa powder: For a rich chocolate flavor.

Butter: I used salted butter. However, if you wish to use unsalted butter, please add 1/8 teaspoon of salt to the dry ingredients.

Gingerbread spices: Cinnamon powder, ginger powder, clove powder, and nutmeg were used to give these chocolate cookies a beautiful gingerbread flavor. I also used this spice mixture for making my spiced madeleines and gingerbread crinkle cookies. You can also use a store-bought spice blend.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

How To Make Gluten-Free Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies

Step 1: Prepare flax egg by mixing flaxseed powder with water in a small bowl. Set aside for 5–10 minutes.

Step 2: Combine the dry ingredients in a medium bowl: buckwheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt (if using unsalted butter), cocoa powder, cinnamon powder, clove powder, ginger powder, and nutmeg powder.

Step 3: In a large bowl, whisk softened butter with honey, brown sugar, and flax egg until creamy.

Step 4: Make the chocolate gingerbread cookies with cocoa powder dough by stirring the dry ingredients into the wet with a spatula.

Step 5: While your oven preheats to 180°C, line a baking tray with baking paper or Silpat.

Step 6: Lightly dust your work surface with flour. Roll out the dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut out the desired shapes and transfer them to the prepared baking tray.

Step 7: Bake for 10–12 minutes. For crispier cookies, add an extra minute.

Step 8: Allow cookies to cool on the tray, as they will harden as they cool.

Step 9: Enjoy the cookies warm.

Optional Step: Let them cool completely. Serve them as-is or decorate the gingerbread and chocolate cookies to your heart’s content.

How To Decorate The Gingerbread Cookies

Buttery, light, and wonderfully rich in flavors, you’ll love these gingerbread cookies as-is. But ‘tis the season, so I didn’t want to skip the chance to be festive and decided to decorate them. It's so therapeutic for me.

• You can use a simple mixture of icing sugar and water for decorating. Just remember that the icing should be smooth and thick. Use a piping bag or a small offset spatula to spread the icing on the cookies.
• Royal icing also works beautifully here. For years, I've followed the Bake At 350 blog for tips on making royal icing and cookie decoration. If you don't want to be bothered with any of that, a simple drizzle of dark or white chocolate will do very well.
• Or, as I said earlier, keep them plain. They taste like a million bucks and look adorable any which way!

Pro Tips

• The gluten-free dough comes together fairly quickly and doesn't need much resting time.
• In case the dough of these soft Christmas cookies is too soft and sticky, refrigerate for 15–20 minutes.
• This is a great make-ahead recipe for chocolate gingerbread cookies. Stick the dough in the refrigerator for up to 2 days until you're ready to roll it out. Do let the dough sit on the counter until it loses some of its chill before you proceed with baking.
• You can cut chocolate cookies into any shape you like. I love my little gingerbread men, Christmas trees, and snowflakes, and I simply adore decorating them.
• You can leave out the cocoa powder to make the BEST gluten-free gingerbread cookies!