Gingerbread Cookies – GF

In our family we love baking.  Therefore, having to go gluten-free was quite the life crisis for me.  I don’t really care for the taste of most store-available items, and I care even less for the price!  So, it’s been years of epic failure followed by trying again – but I think this is a gingerbread cookie even a non gluten-free eater can enjoy!

Baking:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
1 1/4 cup Bob’s Red Mills GF oat flour
1 cup millet flour
1/4 cup white rice or tapioca flour
1 1/2 tsp xanthum gum
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ginger powder
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
Blend these dry ingredients together and set aside.
In a separate mixing bowl –
1/2 cup butter – beat thoroughly.  Then add:
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup molasses
1 egg
1 tbsp vinegar (I use Apple Cider Vinegar)
After blending those thoroughly, add the dry mix to it and blend well.
Chill in the refrigerator for a minimum of three hours.
Roll on a lightly floured surface (I use tapioca or white rice flour to roll.  If the dough is still a bit sticky no worries – just sprinkle some flour across the top of the dough as well as your surface before rolling it out – it will work like a charm!).
Cut into desired shapes and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet.
Bake 8-10 minutes (depending on how thick you rolled it.  Personally, I like thicker, so I habitually roll my dough closer to a 1/4 inch thick so usually 10 minutes does the trick;-).
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to the wire racks for cooling.

Decorating:

The key to a perfect gingerbread cookie is the frosting and toppings.  The jelly beans I use are YUMEARTH’s organic sour beans.  I find them fairly cheap online at Lucky Vitamin, but I’m pretty sure the health section of your local health food store or grocery store would most likely carry them at this time of year 🙂

For the frosting, I use my mom’s Vanilla Butter Frosting recipe:
1/2 cup soft butter beaten till soft or creamy.  Then add:
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 1/4 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp of milk
If it is a little stiff, add a smidgen more milk until you have the consistency you want.  You do not want this too runny – you want it to be moldable though for going in the frosting tubes for decorating 😉

Have fun!!!!