I don’t know about you, but having celiac can make me feel really left out of all those totally delicious and epic holiday cookie exchange parties. I’ve been to a few, and invited to more, but honestly I don’t even go any more because it’s just so dang depressing to go to a cookie party and not be able to eat ANYTHING. Solution: 12 days of gluten-free Christmas cookies coming right atcha!
Back in the day, BC (before celiac, if you will), my best friend Daniela, my brother, and one of our neighbors/besties Catherine would get together every year and do a totally epic Christmas cookie baking saga. We’re talking like 6 Christmas cookie recipes in one day, including sugar cookies – and you know how long those take to rest in the fridge, plus baking, cooling, and decorating them…sometimes we’d start in the afternoon and be decorating after midnight. While watching Harry Potter, obviously.
I MISS THOSE TIMES. For now, let’s just make ourselves feel better with these 12 different gluten-free holiday cookie / treat recipes for the 12 days of gluten-free Christmas cookies!
My top 12 favorite holiday baking recipes:
- The Fluffiest Gluten-Free Snickerdoodles
- Christmas Crunch (a family favorite recipe!)
- Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies with holiday m&m’s
- Perfect Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Butter Walnut Shortbread Minis
- Sugar Cookie Cutouts (yes, the kind you decorate!) from a Girl Worth Saving
- Real Deal Chocolate Chip Cookies from Danielle Walker
- Grain-Free Gingersnaps from Primal Palate
- Raspberry Thumprint Cookies from Bakerita
- Chocolate Crinkle Cookies from 40 Aprons
- Triple Chocolate Peppermint Cookies from What the Fork Blog
- N’Oatmeal Cookies from the Whole Smiths
- BONUS: Gluten Free Cinnamon Rolls (Cinnabon Copycat) from 40 aprons
Click any of the pictures or links below to be taken to the delicious recipe!
The Fluffiest Gluten-Free Snickerdoodles
Ever since I perfected this recipe a few years ago, these are a yearly staple. Would it really be the holidays without some delicious snickerdoodles? No way!
Christmas Crunch (GLUTEN-FREE)
A moment for one of my family’s most iconic recipes – Christmas Crunch. This has been a staple in our house for *decades*, and my brother and I used to give this as gifts to our teachers as early as primary school!
Holiday Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies
You can use holiday m&m’s for these, chocolate chips, or whatever you fancy. But if you look closely, you’ll notice the writing on this funny little container from the Wizarding World in Orlando…and a combo of peanut butter and chocolate? Can’t be beat.
Perfect Peanut Butter Blossoms
Arguably my favorite cookie OF ALL TIME. Yeah, you read that right. Because peanut butter (or sunbutter, in this case) is the best combination of all time. Fact. Especially when there’s dark chocolate and sea salt involved.
Butter Walnut Shortbread
These were *supposed* to be cookies. For some reason, I couldn’t figure out how to make them actually come out in cookie form – but they worked as blondies! For the win. because they are based on my grandmother’s recipe that we would make every single year and they are freaking DELICIOUS.
Sugar Cookies | A Girl Worth Saving
Real Deal Chocolate Chip Cookies | Against All Grain
Hands down one of the best two gluten-free chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever had (the other one is below!) If you’re having any trouble with these, check out Danielle’s troubleshooting guide or youtube video on how to make them!
Grain-Free Gingersnaps | Primal Palate
Same as the Snickerdoodles, it wouldn’t really be the holidays without some delicious gingersnaps. Plus, my friends like to call me hint of ginger, so you know…I can’t resist these cookies!
Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies | Bakerita
N’Oatmeal Cookies | The Whole Smiths
Oatmeal cookies used to be my all-time favorite, and I was actually known for my oatmeal cookie recipe (from the King Arthur Baking Companion…) until this whole gluten thing happened and I went off all grains for a really long time. Luckily I don’t have to miss out anymore because here’s a delicious gluten-free version!
Chocolate Crinkle Cookies | 40 Aprons
These weren’t a staple in my family, but I went to so many Christmas parties that had these chocolate crinkle cookies and I’ve loved them ever since!
Bonus: gluten-free cinnamon rolls | 40 aprons blog
I started making these a few years ago for Christmas morning and now I dream about them all year. Yes, cinnamon rolls take some work – whether they’re gluten-free or not, but these are the BEST.
Bonus: Apple Chaider + Gingerbread Marshmallows
you know, in case you need to wash all those sweets down with something totally warming and delicious.
Um, yes to ALL of these! Thanks for sharing my crinkle cookies, Dana 🙂
of course! Thanks so much for making such an awesome recipe!