Valentine's Day Sugar Cookies

These gluten free sugar cookies roll easily and are quick to make. They have great lemon flavour, and are chewy on the inside with a crunchy shell! The recipe makes approx. three dozen cookies, however when using a smaller cutter you can get between 50-60 cookies! They can be enjoyed for any occasion, and the lemon flavour can be substituted for your favourite!

Valentine's Day is among us! This means chocolates, sweets, and lots of love! I love cookies, so what better for a love day than indulging in my favourite kind of cookie! Sugar cookies are so versatile, they can be enjoyed for any holiday and are so colourful and joyous! I made a different recipe for Christmas Sugar Cookies, and I would say this one is just as delicious! However, if I was using a larger cookie shape I would stick to the Christmas recipe. For my Valentine's inspired cookies I used a liner cookie cutter, and instead of jam I used icing in the centre. They are soft inside, and crunchy on the outside just like a sugar cookie should be!

Gluten Free Sugar Cookies

1 1/2 Cup All Purpose Gluten Free Flour

1/2 Cup Coconut Flour

1/2 Cup Sugar

1 Tsp Xanthan Gum

1 Tsp Baking Soda

1 1/2 Tbsp Lemon Juice

1 Tbsp Lemon Zest

1 Cup Butter

1 Egg

In mixer beat together Egg, Lemon Juice, Lemon Zest, and Butter. In a separate bowl thoroughly combine the remaining ingredients and add to the mixed. Mix until combined and a dough forms. Place in an air tight container and refrigerate for at least an hour. The dough will be to warm to roll immediately after mixing. 

Remove from the fridge and preheat oven to 350 Degrees. Roll out in sections on parchment paper, using icing sugar rather than flour to help with rolling. This ensures that the cookies do not become crumbly.

Places cut outs on a parchment lines cookie sheet and cook 8-10 minutes, until the bottoms begin to brown. Let cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Do not apply icing until cookies are completely cooled.

Icing

2 Cups Powdered Sugar

2 Tbsp Milk

1 Tbsp Lemon Juice

Mix together, adding either more milk or sugar until you reach desired consistency. Add food colouring if you desire a particular colour.

These cookies are so easy to make, and will be a great treat for Valentine's Day! Do not forget to check out my post of Valentine's Day Gluten Free Pancakes! They are perfect for breakfast in bed or an enjoyable breakfast with family and friends! I hope everyone feels extra special this Saturday and enjoys their day!

K.

Christmas Rolled Sugar Cookies

Christmas is right around the corner! There are so many exciting things about the holiday season. Starbucks has their holiday drinks out, the neighbors have their gorgeous light display up, and all the stores have began decorating! It seems like this time of year many people have an extra bounce in their step. While the holidays are exciting, they can also be stressful! What do you buy for everyone on your list? How big should you order the turkey? Is there really enough time in a day to accomplish all that holiday baking you want to do? Countless hours go into preparing for Christmas, and it seems like it is over in a snap. After all the long days and hard work, the days around Christmas should be relaxing and enjoyable, filled with family, friends, food, and festive cheer!

It seems like there is always extra stress around preparing the big holiday meal. Everything needs to be timed perfectly. By the time dinner time arrives children are getting hungry and whiny, adults may have had a few to many egg nogs and need some food in their stomach, and you are exhausted from all the cooking. Placing a sugar cookie on everyone’s plate adds decoration to the Christmas table, and allows everyone to have a bit of dessert before dinner. Breaking the rules is okay on Christmas, right?

These sugar cookies are gluten free and are incredibly easy to make! They freeze well, so they can be made in advance and brought out when needed. The icing also freezes well, or they can even be iced on Christmas as a fun and festive way to keep everyone occupied! They roll out easily, and have a delicious sweet taste with a soft texture. You wont even know that they are gluten free!

Christmas Rolled Sugar Cookies

½ Cup Butter at Room Temperature

½ Cup White Sugar

1 Egg + 1 Egg White

½ Cup Coconut Flour

½ Cup All-Purpose Gluten Free Flour

¼ Tsp Baking Soda

½ Tsp Xantham Gum

1 Tsp Vanilla

¼ Tsp Cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a mixer whip together Butter, Sugar, and Eggs.

In a separate bowl sift the Coconut Flour, All-Purpose Flour, Baking soda, and Xantham Gum.

Add the flour, and the remaining ingredients, to the Butter mixture and mix until combined. Dough will form.

Place in an airtight container, and set in the fridge over night, or until chilled. The dough will be too warm to roll out immediately and will stick to the counter and rolling pin.

Roll out the cookie dough in sections. Keep the remaining dough in the fridge until you are ready to roll it out. This ensures sharp and easy cuts. 

**When rolling the dough, place icing sugar on the rolling pin and counter rather than flour. Flour will add more texture to the cookies and cause them to become crumbly and more difficult to roll.**

Place cut cookies onto a parchment lined cookie sheet with 1-inch space. They do not need a lot of room to expand, but they do rise.

Bake large cookies for 10 minutes, and mini cookies for 5 minutes.

Makes approximately 16-20 cut cookies, depending on size.

-Let cool on the tray for 5 minutes, then move to wire racks and let cool for 30 minutes before icing.

Sugar Cookie Icing

1 Cup Powder Sugar

1 Tbsp Milk

½ Tbsp Light Corn Syrup

In a mixed combine all ingredients. If you want the icing to be runnier add milk very slowly, I recommend ½ a tablespoon at a time. If you want it thicker add more icing sugar slowly, I recommend ½ a tablespoon at a time. I prefer to make a variety of consistencies and place them in separate bowls. Then I can dip some cookies into the thinner icing, and use thicker consistencies for piping.  After dividing the icing into various bowls, add food coloring to make your preferred color. After icing allow the cookies to dry for a few hours before placing into freezer bags or containers so they do not stick and to prevent the icing from getting wrecked.

Sugar cookies are a holiday favorite! These sugar cookies allow a person with gluten intolerances to enjoy Christmas baking with everyone else, and they add a pop of color to any holiday arrangement. Placing a cookie on everyone’s plate is also a great way to decide where everyone is sitting, just in case you have an Aunt Tina who can not sit to close to Uncle Jim, and a Cousin Cecil that decided she does not want to sit in view of the turkey! Place these perfect cookies with a nametag, and no one will argue about where they want to sit!

I heard a rumour that Santa loves sugar cookies too, so why not make a few extra for him too? Pair them with a glass of milk or egg nog, and you will guarantee your spot on the nice list for the next few years!

I hope you enjoy this holiday season! I am sending my wishes for a stress free, gluten free, fun filled Christmas. With lots of family, food and cheer! I hope everybody has the time to do some baking, and hopefully tries these gluten-free Christmas favourites!

K.