Chewy Ginger Molasses Spice Cookies: Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free

This recipe for chewy ginger molasses spice cookies uses almond flour and coconut flour for a gluten-free version of the classic. It also incorporates coconut milk for a dairy-free option.

Our house is currently an intricate series of piles. There are piles of homework not yet recycled, waiting in limbo, homework to do, resting in between the recyclables. There are boxes that need to be opened and unpacked, the contents finding a home in our small space. There is laundry to be folded and laundry to be washed. There are shoes tumbling from the rack, over the entrance, socks scattered around them.

We live around the piles, pulling from them as needed. We disrupt them, tossing the contents about, trying to find the one thing. Slowly I pick up the pieces, one by one. I’m trying to find their homes, put the pieces back into their snug-fitting spots, but I am pulled away again and again. There are meetings at school early. There are doctor and dentist appointments filling the space. Late nights spent at the table over spelling lists and journals. There are noses to be wiped and sports and friends and places we’ve said we’ll be. So the piles are still there cluttering my spaces.

I walked away for a while. I was having trouble finding myself in the chaos, knowing where the things we’re dealing with end and where the soul of me begins. Saying something meaningful became impossible, and the conversations swirling around the news had me closing my doors to visitors. In the middle of it, though, there was still this.

I cleaned the counter covered in bills, notices, applications for some tech school for one kid, ACT information for another, medical bills, and orthopedic appointment reminders. I tucked away the spelling notebook and the number line we use to help our youngest with too much math homework every night, and I asked the kids – scattered throughout the house hiding, too – if they wanted to make cookies.

Eggs were cracked, flour dusted. We rolled dough balls in spiced sugar and filled the house with the sweet, warm smell of baking cookies.

These cookies use coconut flour and almond flour in place of your traditional wheat, making them gluten-free. Still, you’d never know it. Ole told me not to tell people when I handed them a cookie, instead waiting for them to taste it before revealing.

They’re chewy, and if you eat them on day one, the cardamom-and-sugar edges will have a nice, crisp quality protecting the soft interior. Filled with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and cardamom, these are better than any scented candle or room diffuser.

The house is still a mess, a layer of dust and crunched leaves still seems to cling to every surface, but at least my house smells like a Christmastime bakery.

Chewy Ginger Molasses Spice Cookies: Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free

Yield: 4 dozen cookies

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

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Ingredients

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup coconut oil, warmed until liquid
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 2 large eggs (room temperature)
• 1 large egg yolk (room temperature)
• 1 cup almond flour
• 3/4 cup coconut flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground green cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• For rolling:
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground green cardamom

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the sugars, coconut oil, and molasses. Add in the eggs and mix to combine.

In a separate bowl, mix together the almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, cloves, salt, and black pepper. Add the dry ingredients to the wet, stirring about halfway through to incorporate before adding the rest. Mix until smooth.

Refrigerate dough for 2 hours or until stiff. The dough can be made ahead, refrigerated overnight, and scooped just before baking.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375ºF.

In a small bowl, combine the granulated sugar and cardamom. Spoon dough into 1-tablespoon-sized balls and roll in sugar. Place on a lined baking sheet, at least four inches apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden. Allow to rest on the baking sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Notes

These cookies store and freeze wonderfully. Fresh, they have a crisp edge and chewy center, but the edge softens with storage.

This post is in partnership with Fair Trade USA to raise awareness for Fair Trade. Buying products made from Fair Trade Certified ingredients ensures that farmers are being fairly compensated. These seemingly small differences can help farmers and families succeed, allowing them to afford clean water, better housing, transportation, schooling for their children, and more. Check out BeFair.org to learn more.

Fair Trade Products Used

• Wholesome! Molasses, Cane Sugar, and Brown Sugar
• Frontier Natural Products Co-Op Vanilla, Cinnamon, and Nutmeg
• Arrowhead Mills Coconut Flour

Spectrum Essentials Coconut Oil

For Fair Trade Month (ahem, last month), these companies have offered a gift basket of products to one reader. Please enter below for a chance to win.

• Wholesome!
• Cascadian Farm
• Marich Chocolates
• Mighty Leaf Tea
• Chuao Chocolatier
• Honest Tea
• Larabar
• Frontier Natural Products Co-Op
• Sunspire
• Lundberg Family Farms
• Immaculate Baking Co.
• Arrowhead Mills
• High Brew Coffee
• Spectrum Essentials