Inspired by conversations on the Food52 Hotline, we're sharing tips and tricks that make navigating all of our kitchens easier and more fun.
Today: Gluten-free cookies don't need to be dense hockey pucks or crumbly messes -- here's how to get them right, just in time for the holidays.
As far as baking goes, cookies are easy: There’s no risky bain marie or smoldering hot caramel, no worrying about your dough not rising. You just mix together some butter, sugar, eggs, and flour, form your dough into cute little shapes, bake them, and then eat a few too many while they are nice and warm.
Gluten-free cookies are a little more tricky. They have a tendency to become hockey pucks, which are useful for holiday family games, but not as fun to eat. They canfall apart upon first bite, resulting in a pile of buttery crumbs on your fancy dress. Worst of all: They taste“interesting.”
More:Alice Medrich's gluten-free Russian Tea Cakes are interesting in only the best ways.
There is hope, however, for good gluten-free cookies. With a few special floursand techniques, you’ll be able to make cookies that can hold their own at holiday parties.Here are a few important tips to keep in mind:
Use a Mix of Flours
Unfortunately, no single gluten-free flour will perform as well as ordinary all-purposeflour. A cookie made with just rice flour will be too cakey, while one made with only almond meal with be too dense. To mimic wheat flour, you will need to mix flours of different densities with a bit of tapioca or potato starch to lighten it up; the recipe below is a good place to start.
More: Baking with a scale will change your life -- here's why.
Remember: Xanthan Gum is Your Friend
It might sound scary, but xanthan gumis key for successful gluten-free baking. It helps bind together the ingredients, preventing your cookies from falling to pieces. Be careful to not use toomuch; no one likes gummy baked goods.
Let Your Dough Chill Out
Like serving booze at awkward family gatherings, refrigerating your dough will make your cookie experience much more pleasant. Chilling helps the flours and xanthan gum absorb liquid, which makes the dough sturdier and easier to handle. Without a proper rest, your cookies are likely to crumble.
Mix It Up
Think of mix-ins as the Spanx of the cookie world. They are a sly way to ensure that your cookies look like cookies, not misshapen gluten-free blobs. They give some structure to your dough, preventing it from crumbling. Fold in whatever you like: chocolate chips, dried fruit, chopped nuts. They add texture and variation, but also take the performance pressure off your plain dough. And really, do people complain about finding chocolate chips in their cookies?
These spicy chocolate cookies are a fun way to add some excitement to your cookie plate. A little bit of chipotle powder adds a subtle kick, while a hefty amount of chocolate makes them crowd-pleasing.
Spiced Chocolate Cookies
Makes 4 dozen
For the cookies:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
54 grams oat flour
58 grams brown rice flour
28 grams potato starch
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup raisins
1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
For the cinnamon sugar coating:
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
See full recipe (and save and print it) here.
Do you have any special tricks for gluten-free cookies? Tell us in the comments!
Photos by Mark Weinberg
FAQs
Gluten-Free Flour: For best results, use a high quality gluten-free flour blend that contains xanthan gum. King Arthur Flour Gluten-Free Measure-For-Measure Flour is my favorite gluten-free flour. I've also had good results with Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free 1:1 Baking Flour.
How can I improve my gluten-free cookie texture? ›
Binding agents (such as xanthan gum, guar gum, or flax) help give gluten-free baked goods the elasticity needed to create structure — so if your favorite gluten-free flour mix doesn't contain one, you'll probably want to add one.
How to make gluten-free cookies less crumbly? ›
Let Your Dough Chill Out
Chilling helps the flours and xanthan gum absorb liquid, which makes the dough sturdier and easier to handle. Without a proper rest, your cookies are likely to crumble.
How do you make gluten-free baking taste better? ›
Flavor. New bakers should try adding extra vanilla and/or spices to recipes. Gluten-free flours often have unique tastes, and adding additional flavoring to recipes will help cover up these unfamiliar flavors.
What is the secret of baking with gluten-free flour? ›
Gluten-free flours often contain fine starches, so they absorb more liquid than conventional flour. To address this, gluten-free recipes usually call for more liquid and produce looser batters. They may also call for a larger quantity of leavening, like baking powder, to help add volume and lighten the texture.
Do I need to add xanthan gum to gluten-free flour for cookies? ›
Xanthan Gum adds thickness and viscosity to gluten-free breads and other baked goods. Without xanthan gum, your gluten-free baked goods would be dry, crumbly and flat. Because xanthan gum is gluten-free and vegan, it's the preferred thickener for those home bakers with food allergies.
Can you overmix gluten-free cookie dough? ›
Many traditional cookie recipes advise not to overmix the dough. If you overmix gluten, your dough may become rubbery, and your cookies may be hard. Because you don't work with gluten, you don't have this problem. But gluten also helps soften the flour by creating little pockets of air.
What is the best gluten-free flour that isn't gritty? ›
Cassava Flour
It's also very absorbent and pairs well with brown or white rice flour to add structure without too much grittiness. It's grain-free and can be used as a 1:1 for all purpose flour in some recipes. We like it in tortillas, cookies, and crackers, and it's also featured in our MB Gluten-Free Flour Blend!
How to keep gluten-free cookies from being dry? ›
Don't overmix: Overmixing can cause gluten-free baked goods to become tough and dry. Mix your ingredients until just combined and avoid overworking the dough. Doughs and batters tend to gelatinize the gums (xanthan & guar) in flour blends/mixes, so you could end up with a 'slimy' texture if you over do it.
How to tell when gluten-free cookies are done? ›
While visual cues like the toothpick test and pressing the top of the cake will still help, the best way to determine if your baked goods are perfectly done is with a timer and oven thermometer. This is because gluten-free treats often look underdone and slightly wet inside after baking.
Removing gluten makes cookie dough less springy. So the cookies spread as they bake.
How do you thicken gluten-free cookies? ›
Cornstarch: This is my secret ingredient! It thickens up the dough to create the softest, chewiest chocolate chip cookies you've ever tasted! Baking Soda: Helps the dough to rise in the oven. Kosher Salt: Just a sprinkle of coarse salt balances out the flavor of these cookies and keeps them from being too sweet.
What is the best gluten-free flour to use with yeast? ›
If you want to buy just one gluten-free flour, we highly recommend the Pillsbury all-purpose gluten-free flour. Not only is it our favorite gluten-free flour, and easy to use in gluten-free recipes, but it's also one of the few gluten-free flours currently on the market that is recommended for baking with yeast.
What is a gluten-free additive for baking? ›
Xanthan gum: Critical in gluten-free baking, xanthan gum holds ingredients together, providing elasticity and springiness. Like baking soda or baking powder, you need only a little to make a big difference.
Does using gluten-free flour affect cookies? ›
Removing gluten makes cookie dough less springy. So the cookies spread as they bake. And then they spread some more. This is why my gluten-free cookies in the first experiment were so much wider than wheat-based cookies.
What alternative flour is best for cookies? ›
Buckwheat Flour
Nutty in flavor, high in fiber, and rich in vitamins, this ancient grain flour is another great gluten-free swap. When combined with other flours, buckwheat adds texture, complexity, and notes of toasted nuts to breads, pancakes, cookies, scones, and other baked goods.
Which gluten-free flour is the most like flour? ›
Cassava Flour
In contrast to tapioca flour, which is made from a starchy liquid extracted from the cassava root, cassava flour is made by grating and drying the whole root. This flour is gluten-, grain- and nut-free. It's most similar to white flour and can easily be used in recipes calling for all-purpose flour.
Which gluten-free flour works best with yeast? ›
If you want to buy just one gluten-free flour, we highly recommend the Pillsbury all-purpose gluten-free flour. Not only is it our favorite gluten-free flour, and easy to use in gluten-free recipes, but it's also one of the few gluten-free flours currently on the market that is recommended for baking with yeast.
