Gluten-Free Christmas Cookies with Homemade Icing

Sweet and buttery gluten-free cut-out cookies that are easy to make, hold their shape, and taste incredible. With a simple cookie icing recipe to make decorating a breeze!

Ingredients

For the Cookies

• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 ½ cups white sugar
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• 2 ½ cups gluten-free all-purpose flour containing xanthan gum (plus more for flouring your work area)
• ¾ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon table salt

For the Icing

• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 3 tablespoons milk of choice (plus more as needed)
• 1 tablespoon light corn syrup (optional, for shine and stick)
• ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• Food coloring (optional)

To Decorate (All Optional)

• Red, white, & green sanding sugar
• Red, white, & green sprinkles
• Holiday shaped sprinkles

Instructions

To Prepare Cookie Dough

1. Add softened butter and white sugar to your stand mixer bowl (or large mixing bowl). Using your stand mixer (or hand mixer), mix ingredients together on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase speed to medium. Continue mixing for 1 to 3 minutes, until the ingredients are light, fluffy, and fully creamed. Be careful not to overmix, as this can make the mixture greasy.
2. Once butter and sugar are creamed, pause the mixer and crack the large egg directly into the mixing bowl. Add the vanilla extract, then resume mixing on low speed. Mix until ingredients are just combined, approximately 1 minute.
3. Sift the gluten-free flour through a sifter directly into a medium mixing bowl, ensuring any clumps are broken up for a smooth consistency. Once the flour is smooth, add the baking powder and salt. Whisk these dry ingredients together thoroughly to incorporate.
4. While mixing the wet ingredients on low speed, slowly pour the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Add the dry ingredients in gradual increments, mixing well between each addition until fully incorporated. Continue mixing on low speed until a thick cookie dough forms.
5. Once the ingredients are fully combined into a thick cookie dough, cover the mixing bowl tightly with plastic wrap or a lid and place it in the refrigerator. Chill the dough for at least 2 hours, and up to 3 days for best results.

To Bake Cookies

1. Preheat your oven to 350° Fahrenheit (175°C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set it aside. Cover a large section of your kitchen counter or a similar flat area with another sheet of parchment paper. Lightly flour this parchment paper and your rolling pin with gluten-free flour.
2. Remove the mixing bowl from the refrigerator and transfer the chilled dough onto the floured parchment paper. Roll the dough into an evenly flat sheet, approximately ½-inch thick. For easier rolling and to prevent sticking, you can cover the dough with an additional sheet of parchment paper or lightly flour your rolling pin as needed, being cautious not to add excessive flour.
3. Use your favorite cookie cutters to cut the rolled sheet of dough into desired shapes. Carefully lift the cut cookies off the parchment paper and transfer them to the prepared baking sheet, spacing them approximately ½ to 1 inch apart. Repeat the process of gathering dough scraps, re-chilling if needed, rolling, and cutting shapes until all the dough is used.
4. Place the baking sheet in the preheated oven. Bake cookies for 10 minutes, then check for doneness. Continue baking for an additional 1 to 4 minutes as needed, until the cookie edges are very lightly golden brown.
5. Carefully remove the baking sheet from the oven. Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes to firm up slightly, then carefully transfer them to a wire cooling rack. Allow the cookies to cool completely before decorating.

To Decorate Cookies

1. While the cookies cool, prepare the cookie icing. In a second medium mixing bowl, combine the powdered sugar, milk, light corn syrup (if using), and vanilla extract. Whisk these ingredients together until a smooth cookie icing forms. If the mixture is too thick, slowly whisk in additional milk, starting with ½-tablespoon increments, until your desired consistency is achieved.
2. Whisk food coloring into the icing until the desired shade is achieved (this step is optional). If you plan to create multiple colors of icing, first divide the prepared white icing into smaller bowls before adding different food colors to each.
3. Transfer the prepared cookie icing to a piping bag fitted with a piping tip for precise decorating. Alternatively, you can use a plastic food-safe bag and snip off one tiny corner to create a makeshift piping tip.
4. Once the cookies have cooled completely, decorate them with the cookie icing and any optional toppings like sanding sugar or sprinkles as desired. Allow the cookie icing to harden completely before serving or transferring the decorated cookies to an airtight container for storage.

Recipe Notes & Tips for Success

• Butter Temperature: For optimal creaming, your butter must be softened, but crucial to note, it should not be warm or melted. Room temperature (slightly pliable) is ideal.
• Gluten-Free Flour Choice: Not all gluten-free flours are created equal. Different brands can yield varying results. For our recipes, we’ve had excellent success with King Arthur Measure-for-Measure and Bob’s Red Mill all-purpose gluten-free flour blends. Ensure your chosen flour blend explicitly states it contains xanthan gum. If it doesn’t, you will need to add about 1/2 teaspoon of xanthan gum per 2 1/2 cups of flour to the dry ingredients for proper structure.
• Accurate Flour Measurement: Always use the “spoon and level” method for measuring your gluten-free flour. Scoop spoonfuls of flour into your measuring cup until it’s overflowing, then use the back of a spoon or the straight edge of a knife to level off the top evenly with the rim of the cup. This prevents over-measuring, which can lead to dry, crumbly cookies.
• Icing Options: Our homemade icing recipe is fantastic, but it’s totally optional! Feel free to use store-bought prepared icing, substitute it with your favorite buttercream frosting, or skip the icing altogether. You can also simply top the plain cookies with sanding sugar or sprinkles right before baking for a simpler touch.
• Light Corn Syrup in Icing: Adding light corn syrup to the icing gives it a beautiful sheen and helps it adhere better to the cookies. It also helps the icing set more smoothly. You can omit it if you prefer, but the texture might be slightly different.
• Gluten-Free Decorations: When choosing sprinkles or other cookie decorations, always double-check that they are certified gluten-free. While most sprinkles don’t contain glutenous ingredients by nature, cross-contamination can be a concern depending on the brand and manufacturing process, especially if you have high sensitivity.
• Making it Dairy-Free: To adapt this recipe for a dairy-free diet, use your preferred softened dairy-free butter alternative in the cookie dough. For the icing, use almond milk or another suitable dairy-free milk alternative.
• Preventing Cookie Spread: The single most important factor in preventing cookies from spreading and losing their shapes is ensuring the dough is thoroughly chilled when it enters the oven. If your kitchen is warm or if you’ve been working with the dough for a while, don’t hesitate to place the cut-out cookies on the baking sheet back into the fridge for 20-30 minutes before baking. A cold dough maintains its form significantly better.
• Storage: Store any uneaten cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 1-2 weeks. Please note that both the cookies and icing will gradually become drier over time.
• Yield: The actual number of cookies produced will vary based on the size and shape of the cookie cutters you use.

Approximate Nutrition Information for One Serving

Serving Size: 1 iced cookie

Calories: 340 cal

Protein: 2 g

Fat: 11 g

Saturated Fat: 7 g

Trans Fat: 0.4 g

Cholesterol: 38 mg

Sodium: 95 mg

Potassium: 44 mg

Total Carbs: 61 g

Fiber: 1 g

Sugar: 43 g

Net Carbs: 60 g

Vitamin A: 334 IU

Calcium: 20 mg

Iron: 0.1 mg

Nutrition Disclaimers

Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.

Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.

To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. The result will be the weight of one serving.