Holiday cookies are the grain-free cut-out cookie dough you can actually stamp, stack, and decorate without it falling apart. Coconut oil and almond flour roll smooth between parchment, cut clean shapes, and bake to a delicate golden snap. Eighteen cookies later, the kitchen smells like Christmas and the decorating is entirely up to you.
MAKES 18 COOKIES
Ingredients
2¼ cups almond flour
4 tablespoons (60 ml) coconut flour
¾ cup palm sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
16 tablespoons (240 ml) coconut oil, cut into ½-inch pieces and slightly softened
2 tablespoons (30 ml) coconut milk
1 teaspoon (5 ml) tapioca flour
2 teaspoons (10 ml) vanilla extract
Preparation
1.В В Place palm sugar in food processor and grind until superfine. Remove from processor and set aside in a bowl.
2.В В Whisk flour, palm sugar, tapioca flour, and salt together in a large bowl. Using an electric mixer on medium-low speed, beat the coconut oil into the flour mixture one piece at a time. Continue to beat the flour-coconut oil mixture until it looks crumbly and slightly wet.
3.В В Beat in the coconut milk and vanilla until the dough begins to form large clumps (about 30 seconds). Knead the dough in the bowl by hand a few times until it forms a large cohesive mass.
4.В В Transfer the dough to a clean counter and divide into two even pieces. Press each piece into a four-inch disc, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until the dough is firm yet malleable (about 30 minutes).
5.В В Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll the dough out between two large sheets of parchment paper to an even quarter-inch thickness. With the dough sandwiched between the parchments, slide it onto a baking sheet and refrigerate until firm (about 10 minutes).
6.В В Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
7.В В Working with one sheet of dough at a time, remove the top piece of parchment and stamp out cookies using cookie cutters. Transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheet with a thin metal spatula, spaced about one inch apart.
8.В В Bake the cookies one sheet at a time until light golden brown (about 10 minutes), rotating the baking sheets halfway through baking. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating as desired. Repeat with the remaining dough using freshly lined baking sheets.
DECORATING GLAZES: Use your favorite paleo jams (see Fruit Jam Recipe, page 221) as a glaze to decorate, or pipe non-dairy dark, milk, or white cacao nibs. Cacao decorating glaze can be made smooth by adding a small amount of coconut oil and coconut milk while heating to reach desired consistency. Heat cacao nibs in microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until smooth.
Pro Tips
- Grind the palm sugar superfine in the food processor first — coarse sugar leaves a gritty dough that tears when you stamp out shapes.
- Roll the dough between two sheets of parchment. It's the trick that keeps this dough from sticking without adding extra flour that dries it out.
- Chill the rolled sheets before cutting. Firm dough gives sharp cutter edges; warm dough gives sad, rounded shapes that spread in the oven.
- Decorate with paleo jam glaze or melted cacao nibs thinned with a little coconut oil — both set into a proper bakery finish.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make the dough ahead?
Yes — the discs keep two days in the fridge and the rolled sheets freeze beautifully. Stamp and bake straight from chilled for the cleanest shapes.
Why did my cut-outs lose their shape?
Almost always warm dough or an under-heated oven. Chill the cut cookies ten minutes on the sheet before baking if your kitchen is warm.
What can I use to decorate?
Paleo jam glazes in different colours, melted cacao nibs thinned with coconut milk, or a simple dusting of cinnamon mixed with palm sugar.
How long do decorated cookies keep?
A week in an airtight tin once the glaze or cacao sets. Layer them with parchment so decorations don't stick together.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
Method
- 1. В В Place palm sugar in food processor and grind until superfine.
- Remove from processor and set aside in a bowl. 2. В В Whisk flour, palm sugar, tapioca flour, and salt together in a large bowl.
- Using an electric mixer on medium-low speed, beat the coconut oil into the flour mixture one piece at a time.
- Continue to beat the flour-coconut oil mixture until it looks crumbly and slightly wet. 3. В В Beat in the coconut milk and vanilla until the dough begins to form large clumps (about 30 seconds).
- Knead the dough in the bowl by hand a few times until it forms a large cohesive mass. 4. В В Transfer the dough to a clean counter and divide into two even pieces. Press each piece into a four-inch disc, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until the dough is firm yet malleable (about 30 minutes). 5. В В Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll the dough out between two large sheets of parchment paper to an even quarter-inch thickness. With the dough sandwiched between the parchments, slide it onto a baking sheet and refrigerate until firm (about 10 minutes). 6. В В Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 375°F.
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. 7. В В Working with one sheet of dough at a time, remove the top piece of parchment and stamp out cookies using cookie cutters.
- Transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheet with a thin metal spatula, spaced about one inch apart. 8. В В Bake the cookies one sheet at a time until light golden brown (about 10 minutes), rotating the baking sheets halfway through baking.
- Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating as desired.
- Repeat with the remaining dough using freshly lined baking sheets. DECORATING GLAZES: Use your favorite paleo jams (see Fruit Jam Recipe, page 221) as a glaze to decorate, or pipe non-dairy dark, milk, or white cacao nibs. Cacao decorating glaze can be made smooth by adding a small amount of coconut oil and coconut milk while heating to reach desired consistency.
- Heat cacao nibs in microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until smooth.
