These soft & chewy gluten-free ginger cookies are a perfect addition to your holiday assortment! Lightly spiced with ginger, cinnamon, molasses and more, plus a sprinkle of sugar on top, they have the best flavor! And with a crinkle top and soft & chewy inside, they have the best texture! No one will ever guess they are gluten-free! Bonus: Super Easy Recipe!
Gluten-Free Soft & Chewy Ginger Cookies
An easy recipe for the yummiest soft & chewy gluten-free ginger cookie!
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So excited for you to try these Gluten-Free Soft & Chewy Ginger Cookies!
We already have an amazing Roll Out Gingerbread Cookie recipe that so many of you love! But I am constantly asked for a “non-roll out” ginger cookie… so made this for all of you who requested it!
And I couldn’t be happier… they are soooo good!
They have a crinkle top and soft & chewy center. And spiced with ginger, cinnamon, molasses and more, they have the best flavor.
Plus, the turbinado sugar topping is the best finishing touch!
I have a cooking video on this page, and as with all our recipes, there is a printable recipe with exact measurements at the bottom of this page.
So here’s what you’ll need:
butter or dairy-free butter
brown sugar
egg
molasses (Note: in the video I said I used blackstrap molasses but I actually used Wholesome organic unsulphured molasses)
vanilla extract
gluten-free all purpose flour (we use GF Jules – affiliate link)
baking soda
salt
ginger
cinnamon
cloves
nutmeg
large pinch pepper
turbinado sugar (Hat tip to Fit Foodie Finds who I noticed used turbinado sugar rather than regular sugar. After making a batch with regular sugar, I tried and preferred the turbinado sugar. You might recall from our Blueberry Muffins, that turbinado sugar holds its form during baking so you see the sugar crystals still!)
You may have noticed that we are affiliate for GFJules. A great gluten-free flour is so important with gluten-free baking! To learn more about why we love GFJules flour and why we have used it for 10 years, click here.
Bonus: at the bottom of that post is a one-time use affiliate Discount Code.
And importantly, purchasing through an affiliate link does not change your cost at all. It generates a small percentage of the sale for me, and purchasing through an affiliate link helps me fund this website and all the recipes I share, so thank you!
Back to the Gluten-free Soft & Chewy Ginger Cookies…
They come together quickly!
The batter comes together in 3 simple steps, but I recommend chilling it for 30 mins (up to 1 hour), so plan for that.
First you cream the butter and brown sugar until really well combined – and light and fluffy.
Then mix in the egg, molasses and vanillas extract until well combined and a caramel color.
Separately combine the gluten-free flour, baking soda, salt and spices with a pastry cutter whisk or fork, then add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix to combine.
That’s it!
The batter will be thick and sticky, difficult to form balls with, so I cover it and chill in the refrigerator for 30 mins (up to 1 hour).
After chilling, the dough will easily roll into balls.
Roll each ball in turbinado sugar to get that sugar on top look!
Then bake for just 10-12- minutes! I generally take mine out at 11 minutes but with cookies I like to give a range for oven variability.
Pro tip: Keep the dough balls a good 2 inches apart on the baking sheet as they will spread while baking.
You’ll have perfect soft and chewy ginger cookies!
Crinkle top, plenty of sugar crystals on top and a perfectly flavored and fabulously soft cookie that stays soft!
These soft & chewy cookies are a perfect addition to your holiday assortment! Lightly spiced with ginger, cinnamon, molasses and more, plus a sprinkle of sugar on top, they have the best flavor! And with a crinkle top and soft & chewy inside, they have the best texture! No one will ever guess they are gluten-free! Bonus: Super Easy Recipe!
18 thoughts on “Gluten-Free Soft & Chewy Ginger Cookies”
I just made these since I happened to have all ingredients on hand. Easy and delicious!! I did sub the vanilla extract for maple syrup and they turned out perfect!! 🥰 My family has enjoyed so many of your recipes!!
So excited you made them right away! Happy you love them and thank you so much for leaving a comment/ rating… it is helpful to other people considering them, especially when it’s a new recipe. Thank you!
I made these tonight. 36 cookies. I placed the first 24 cookies on an air bake sheet and baked for 12 minutes. Picture perfect until they cooled and went flat, still pretty though! Very tasty, though the middles were really soft, but I like them that way. I placed the remaining cookies on a thicker Nordic ware half sheet and baked for 14 minutes. These did not crackle on top and remained flat. I swear by that air bake sheet, I think it made a difference.
Great recipe and I followed it to the letter.
I have my dough chilling at the moment but I’m excited to see and taste the finished product. This is a new recipe for my son. I usually used my daughter in laws recipe which is very good as well and it’s mixed up differently with not as many spices. I think this will be a great cookie and hopefully can use this recipe again.
Can these be frozen once they are cooked? Also, I have demara sugar.
Can I use this instead of turbinado? The cookies look and sound delicious. Thanks.
Great questions! Yes, the cookies can be frozen for 3 months. And I have never used demerara sugar but just looked it up and it should work well! Let me know how you like them!
I am not a fan of the GF flours, can’t do the tapioca flour. I love this recipe, but would like to substitute almond flour. Has anyone done that with good results?
Hi! My name is Karen, and I’m the mom in our Healthy Gluten-Free Family. My posts and pictures here and on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter are labors of love that allow me to share a very personal journey with you, one our family has taken together — learning, experimenting and sharing how to raise a healthy happy gluten-free family. Read more ...
I just made these since I happened to have all ingredients on hand. Easy and delicious!! I did sub the vanilla extract for maple syrup and they turned out perfect!! 🥰 My family has enjoyed so many of your recipes!!
So excited you made them right away! Happy you love them and thank you so much for leaving a comment/ rating… it is helpful to other people considering them, especially when it’s a new recipe. Thank you!
I wanted to print this recipe but 21 pages is ridiculous sorry not impressed
There is a print button on the recipe, directly below the photo, that will print just the recipe.
These are amazing!! I love chewy cookies and these have so much flavor. I drizzled white chocolate on top too!
Thank you! Happy you love them! And love the idea of a white chocolate drizzle — so festive!
I made these tonight. 36 cookies. I placed the first 24 cookies on an air bake sheet and baked for 12 minutes. Picture perfect until they cooled and went flat, still pretty though! Very tasty, though the middles were really soft, but I like them that way. I placed the remaining cookies on a thicker Nordic ware half sheet and baked for 14 minutes. These did not crackle on top and remained flat. I swear by that air bake sheet, I think it made a difference.
Great recipe and I followed it to the letter.
Thanks for sharing! I will have to look for that baking sheet! Happy you love the cookies!
Can I substitute coconut oil for butter?
Great question! I haven’t done it so not sure — I think it will impact the texture.
Ok thank you!
I am not a baker. This recipe produced an excellent cookie! For my oven, the smaller the cookie, the better the outcome. Thanks!
Happy you loved them and found the recipe easy! Thank you!
I have my dough chilling at the moment but I’m excited to see and taste the finished product. This is a new recipe for my son. I usually used my daughter in laws recipe which is very good as well and it’s mixed up differently with not as many spices. I think this will be a great cookie and hopefully can use this recipe again.
Hope you all love them!
Can these be frozen once they are cooked? Also, I have demara sugar.
Can I use this instead of turbinado? The cookies look and sound delicious. Thanks.
Great questions! Yes, the cookies can be frozen for 3 months. And I have never used demerara sugar but just looked it up and it should work well! Let me know how you like them!
I am not a fan of the GF flours, can’t do the tapioca flour. I love this recipe, but would like to substitute almond flour. Has anyone done that with good results?