These Gluten Free Christmas Biscuits (a.k.a. Christmas sugar cookies), are a festive, buttery treat that's perfect for decorating. With a golden brown outside and soft center, they bring the beloved holiday flavor of classic sugar cookies to any dessert table.
I love making gluten free versions of the nostalgic, classic foods I grew up eating. When I was first diagnosed with celiac disease many years back, I had a hard time adjusting to a gluten free lifestyle. I made it my mission to create recipes that tasted just like the original. Satisfying my sweet, or savory, tooth without ever compromising on texture or flavor.
Just like my gluten free chocolate chip cookies or my gluten free oatmeal raisin cookies, these don't last long in my house. The perfect taste and texture tandem with festive Christmas frosting flies off the dessert table in the blink of an eye!
What makes these Christmas cookies the best
- Seriously, the perfect texture: With golden brown, crisp edges and a soft, tender inside, these cookies are perfect for icing and decorating.
- Holiday tradition worthy: Get the kids involved in the baking and cutting process for fun memories and quality time.
- Customizable: Easily personalize this recipe with different spices, frosting, or sprinkles.
Ingredients you'll need
- Butter
- Sugar
- Almond Extract: This adds a slightly nutty flavor that brings more depth to the cookies.
- Gluten Free Flour: King Aurthur's Gluten Free Flour Blend is my favorite kind of gf all purpose flour, but you can use your favorite kind.
- Other baking staples: Vanilla extract, eggs, baking powder, and salt.
What is the best gluten free flour for baking?
When choosing a gluten free flour for baking, it's best to avoid types that include almond flour, coconut flour, or other specialty flours. These kinds of gf flours can alter the taste and texture, making cookies more crumbly, dense, or sometimes overly moist.
A high quality flour blend like King Aurthur's Gluten Free Flour Blend is always a good option because it closely mimics the taste and texture of traditional wheat flour. If you do a lot of gluten free baking, I recommend making your own gluten free flour blend.
How to make gluten free Christmas biscuits
The wet ingredients: In a stand mixer or large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add vanilla, almond extract, and the egg, mixing well.
Combine dry ingredients: In another large bowl, whisk gluten free flour, salt, and baking powder together until combined.
Mix dry and wet: Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stirring to combine.
Chill the dough: Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill the dough for at least one hour.
Roll and cut: On a floured surface, roll out the cookie dough until about ¼ inch thick. Using cookie cutters, cut and shape the dough to your liking.
Bake: Transfer the cut cookies onto a prepared baking sheet and bake until edges are golden brown.
Frosting ideas: How to make homemade icing
I don't know about you, but my favorite part of cookies or gluten free cupcakes is the homemade icing on top. Here's a classic frosting recipe for that works wonders for these cookies, but you should also try my peanut butter frosting and chocolate frosting for future baking endeavors.
Ingredients for icing
- Powdered sugar
- Butter
- Milk (dairy or non-dairy)
- Vanilla extract
- Food coloring (optional)
Mix the icing: In a large bowl, combine powder sugar, butter, milk, and vanilla together until desired consistency is reached.
Color and decorate: Divide the icing into different bowls and add your choice of food coloring to each. Add the frosting to a piping bag or use a knife to frost the cookies.
Can I make christmas biscuits ahead of time?
Make ahead options: Prepare the dough ahead of time and freeze in a ziplock baggie or airtight container until you're ready to make. Let the dough thaw in the fridge overnight, then proceed with rolling and cutting.
Storing: Store baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week. Be sure the cookies are completely cooled and the frosting has set before storing.
Freezing: Freeze baked, unfrosted cookies for up to three months. Thaw cookies at room temperature then frost.
More gluten free baking recipes you'll love
- Gluten Free Pumpkin Bars
- Gluten Free Banana Cake
- Gluten Free Carrot Cake Cupcakes
- Gluten Free Lemon Drizzle Cake
- Gluten Free Blackberry Muffins
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Gluten Free Christmas Biscuits
Ingredients
The Cookies
- 1 ⅓ cups butter softened
- 1 ½ cups sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 egg
- 4 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour King Arthur gluten-free blend is my favorite, regular flour works as well
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
The Icing
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- ½ cup butter softened
- 1-2 tablespoons milk as needed
Instructions
The Cookies
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- In a stand mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy then add egg, vanilla and almond extracts
- In another bowl, combine remaining ingredients then slowly add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until well combined
- Refrigerate dough for 1 hour
- Heavily flour your work surface with white rice flour and place half the dough on to surface and top with more white rice flour
- Roll out dough and cut out shapes with cookie cutters
- Gently place cookies on a greased or silicone mat lined baking sheet (I use a spatula)
- Bake at 350 degrees for 8-9 minutes or until slightly golden brown
- Cool on pan 3-5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack
- Continue with the other half of the dough
The icing
- While all the cookies are cooling, whip together butter, powdered sugar and milk. Add small amounts of milk until desired texture is reached.
- Frost cookies after they have completely cooled
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