This gluten-free sugar cookie recipe is sponsored by Bob’s Red Mill and contains affiliate links. The post was last updated on November 19, 2019 with new pictures and baking instructions. Please see my disclosures for details.
I keep getting requests for a gluten-free sugar cookie recipe, so I decided this year would be the year I would create one… actually, this is the year I would PERFECT a gluten-free sugar cookie recipe. Yes indeed, these cookies are PERFECT in taste and texture.
Of course there are a ton of gluten-free sugar cookie recipes widely available on the Internet, and I’ve tried a lot of them.
Honestly, none of them wowed me. Some were too crunchy and grainy. Some recipes even failed miserably because the cookies spread and didn’t keep their shape as promised.
Having no luck on the Internet, I tried to create a recipe of my own using a variety of gluten-free flours. Some turned out okay … but in all honesty, the ones that turned out the BEST were made with my trusty Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour Blend.
This 1:1 gluten-free flour blend works like a charm each and every time I use it.
Recipe Inspiration
The inspiration for this no-spread gluten-free sugar cookie recipe came from the book, Ratio by Michael Ruhlman.
Ruhlman is a baker who has decoded the secrets to baking to specific ratios or combinations of fat, flour and sugar.
Ruhlman’s sugar cookie ratio calls for equal parts sugar and fat (so 8 ounces of butter and 8 ounces of sugar) along with an egg and 1.5 parts flour (or 50 percent more flour). It gets a little confusing to a novice baker like me, but Ruhlman explains all the science in his book and I’m willing to just go with it!
With this knowledge, I decided to create my own gluten-free sugar cookie recipe using the Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour Blend and the ratios set forth by Ruhlman. I have found that Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour Blend can be used in most recipes as a cup for cup substitute for wheat flour. Bob’s makes gluten-free baking so easy to do and you can convert just about any recipe that calls for wheat flour into a gluten-free masterpiece.
After playing with the ratios a bit, and a bunch of trial and error, I came up with this absolutely perfect gluten-free sugar cookie recipe, one that I use year round but especially over the winter holidays. I can cut these cookies into any shape and the shape will hold!
How to Make Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies
You might chuckle at how easy it is to make this recipe. So easy!
To make the dough, you cream together butter and sugar for one minute in your standing mixer. Then you add your egg and vanilla until well combined, and then add the 1:1 gluten-free flour.
Mix the dough until all the flour is incorporated.
You’ll then wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours or overnight. Do not skip this step! Refrigeration is key to ensuring these cookies hold their shape.
Tip! Most sugar cookies call for baking powder or baking soda. These ingredients leaven cookies and would interfere with them holding their cut-out shapes. Skip the baking powder and baking soda – and you won’t miss it – trust me!
When you’re ready to make the cookies, roll out the dough to about a one half inch thickness and cut the cookies into the desired shapes.
Next, place your baking sheet (with cut out cookies on it) back in the fridge for another hour. The cold will help the cookies keep their beautiful shape so they look at good as they taste.
Tip! You’ll want to use a well-floured surface to roll out the cookies, however, when you do that, it adds more flour to the mixture and dries out the cookies. Instead of using flour, I use powdered sugar to “flour” my surface. Works like a charm!
Once the gluten-free sugar cookies are chilled, place them in a 350º preheated oven and bake for 13-15 minutes. I suggest cooking them until the bottoms just begin to brown. It’s better to undercook them than overcook them, especially if you’re looking for a chewy, soft-baked texture.
Once the cookies are fully cooled, it’s time to decorate them – the fun part!
To make royal icing, mix egg whites in a standing mixer over medium speed for one minute, then add butter, vanilla and powdered sugar until all ingredients are well incorporated.
Tip! If icing is too stiff, add a little bit of milk; if mixture is too runny, add more powdered sugar.
You’ll then want to portion the icing so you can dye it with different colors. Put a little icing in a variety of bowls and then add desired amount of food coloring to each.
I prefer to use food dye from India Tree because the dyes are vegetable colorants vs. artificial dyes. I personally think no one needs to be eating artificial dye and try to avoid it when possible. You’ll just need to use more food dye than usual when you use the natural stuff.
While I use royal icing to “frost” these cookies because it provides a beautiful, glossy sheen to the cookies, you could also make traditional buttercream frosting, which is fluffier and some might say tastier too.
How Do They Taste?
These gluten-free sugar cookies are surprisingly soft yet still have a slight crunch to them too. (If you slightly undercook them they will be super soft and doughy – so good!!) They’re sweet, tender and perfect for decorating!
Once you add the royal icing, these gluten-free sugar cookies taste even BETTER. I’m not kidding! Let the icing sit atop the cookies for a few hours (or day) before serving them because the taste of the cookies intensifies.
I think it’s because moisture from the icing seeps into the cookies, making them a little sweeter and softer. My mouth is watering thinking about eating these delicious, iced beauties!
I had a lot of fun making these cookies and it was so easy to do with Bob’s Red Mill’s 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour Blend.
I know I crush on this flour all the time, but I do it with good reason. Bob’s has yet to let me down.
I have a feeling this flour will soon become your go-to gluten-free flour blend, and this recipe will be your go-to gluten-free sugar cookie as well. Enjoy!
Easy Gluten-Free Sugar Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
Cookies
- 12.5 ounces Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Flour Blend (~1.5 cups)
- 1 cup salted butter at room temperature (2 sticks)
- 1 cup sugar (8 oz)
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
- Powdered sugar (for flouring surface)
Royal Icing
- 2 large egg whites
- 2 Tbsp. butter melted
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1-2 tsp. milk (only if needed)
- Food coloring India Tree makes artificial dye-free food dye
Instructions
Cookies
- To make the dough, cream together butter and sugar for 1 minute. Add egg and vanilla until well combined and then add the flour. Mix well until all flour is incorporated. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
- Prepare a cookie sheet with parchment paper and lightly "flour" a clean surface with a dusting of powdered sugar.
- Roll dough until about 1/2 inch thick, then use your cookie cutters to cut desired shapes. Place cookies on cookie sheet. Once all cookies are cut out, place cookie sheet in the fridge for 1 hour to cool. This is an essential step to prevent the cookies from spreading when baking.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake cookies for 13-15 minutes or until the bottom of the cookies are slightly brown. Remove cookies from oven and cool for 5 minutes on baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack. Allow cookies to fully cool before icing.
Royal Icing
- Mix egg whites in a standing mixer over medium speed for 1 min. Add butter, vanilla and powdered sugar until all ingredients are well incorporated. If frosting is too stiff, add a little bit of milk; if mixture is too runny, add more powdered sugar.
- Add dye (as desired) to frosting and decorate cookies. Enjoy!
Notes
- This gluten-free sugar cookie recipes makes about 20 cookies depending on how large you cut them.
- It is essential that you cool the cookies both before rolling out the dough and after you cut the dough into shapes. The cold will ensure the cookies keep their shape and you wind up with beautiful cookies.
- I use powdered sugar to “flour” my surface before rolling out the cookies. I don’t want to add additional flour to the mixture, so the powdered sugar works like a charm!
- There are no hard and fast rules on decorating these cookies. As I mentioned, I like to use natural food dyes, but use whatever you desire or have in your pantry.
They came out delicious, thank you!
It’s so hard to say. You definitely want that dough cool. I notice the more I work the dough, as is the case with reused already rolled out dough, the more likely it would spread.
Hi Jenny – I’m having an issue with my cookies spreading. I followed the instructions, cooling before and after. Any suggestions on what might be causing them to still spread?
Oh no! The dough must be fully cooled after mixing and again cooled before baking.
Idk what I did wrong they spread completely. I followed the directions to the t. 😪
Hi! Where do you find Christmas sprinkles to use on sugar cookies if you have Celiac? All the ones I’m finding have the disclaimer that they’re processed where wheat is processed. Since I’m new to GF, I’m not sure what to use. I can’t wait to make these cookies! Thanks!
Each stick weighs 1/4 pound/4 ounces/110g. One stick contains 8 tablespoons
Hello.
How much is 2 sticks of butter in weight? We don’t use sticks in Denmark.
Hope you Can help me.
Thank you
Yes, I think it will work just fine although I haven’t tried it personally. Just follow refrigeration instructions in the recipe.
Can you use non dairy butter?
Yay. Yes I think you can freeze it just fine. I haven’t done that bc we eat them up so fast! Good to know the earth balance works too.
I must admit, I was afraid of how these would turn out on my first attempt and having to swap out real butter for Earth Balance. But these cookies did not disappoint in taste or texture! My son and I loved them. Since there was a lot of batter for just the two of us, I wonder if the dough can be frozen?
Wow thanks Kathy. So happy it worked for you!!
Hey Jenny, I made the cookies with coconut sugar and they were great! I have a marble rolling pin and granite counter top, so it stayed cold enough. I didn’t have to use anything to roll them out. I only refrigerated the dough overnight not after rolling them out and they kept their shape while baking. Thank you for a fabulous recipe. My husband said they reminded him of a shortbread cookie.
All great questions. I haven’t tested with coconut sugar so I don’t know. You could use flour to roll out.
Could you use coconut sugar? We don’t use white sugar any longer. Could I roll out on something different than powder sugar?
I used salted butter. If you use unsalted butter, just add a pinch of salt to the recipe. Good luck!
Does the recipe for the gluten-free sugar cookies call for salted butter? Just want to confirm before I begin making them.
I’m not sure if Splenda will work bc I haven’t tried. Another option is ZenSweets monk fruit sweetener bc it measures cup for cup with real sugar. I haven’t tried it though but it’s worked in other recipes. Good luck!
Is it OK to make with Splenda? GF and diabetic, here.
LOVE your posts and recipes.