These easy Vegan Gingerbread Cookies use almond flour and have a quick chilling time. No egg replacers needed! These gingerbread men (and women!) are soft, chewy, and perfect for the holiday season, gift giving, and cookie exchanges.
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Looking for more gingerbread recipes? Check out Gingerbread Bundt Cake, Gingerbread Cinnamon Rolls, and Healthy Gingerbread Loaf!
Why You’ll Love These Cookies
- Only 7 ingredients and a fast chilling time!
- Less sugar than a traditional gingerbread cookie recipe, but no one will ever know.
- Gluten free and paleo friendly for a holiday cookie to meet dietary needs!
- Delicious decorated with icing or without icing, if that’s more your style!
Recipe Ingredients
This vegan gingerbread cookie recipe is made with a simple ingredients. Here’s a look at what we need:
- vegan butter – use your favorite vegan butter, like Earth Balance.
- molasses – the key ingredient for gingerbread flavor. Grandma’s Molasses is a popular brand.
- coconut sugar – I love the flavor of coconut sugar here, but you can use brown sugar, date sugar, or maple sugar.
- vanilla extract – to enhance all those gingerbread flavors.
- super-fine almond flour – the almond flour creates extra chewy cookies. I love Bob’s Red Mill. I haven’t tried almond meal with this recipe so I don’t recommend using it here.
- tapioca flour – tapioca flour will help hold the dough together. I haven’t tested this recipe without it but arrowroot or cornstarch can be subbed. Coconut flour may also work, but I haven’t tried it. If using coconut flour, I’d only use 2 tablespoons here.
- gingerbread spices – ground ginger, ground cinnamon, all spice and just a pinch of cloves makes the warmest of gingerbread.
- non-dairy milk of choice – the dough needs a little liquid to bring it all together. Add 1 tablespoon of almond milk, cashew milk, coconut milk, or even water at a time until you have a cohesive but slightly sticky dough.
- powdered sugar – we need confectioner’s sugar for a sweet icing. If you want to keep these paleo, you can blend 1 & 1/2 cups coconut sugar with 1/4 cup tapioca flour or arrowroot starch until fine.
- lemon juice – just a squeeze of lemon juice makes the best icing.
PALEO ICING TIP: You won’t get the white contrast of confectioner’s sugar if you opt for coconut sugar. Here I used organic powdered sugar.
Find the full detailed instructions with measurements in the recipe card below, at the end of this post.
How to Make Vegan Gingerbread
These vegan gingerbread men couldn’t be any easier! The key is to chill the dough for at least 1 hour, but other than that, it’s super easy. Here are the step-by-step instructions:
MAKE DOUGH
Combine wet ingredients: In a large bowl, combine the melted butter, molasses, sugar, and vanilla until smooth.
Mix in dry ingredients: Add almond flour, tapioca flour, and gingerbread spices to the butter mixture and mix with a wooden spoon.
Add dairy-free milk: While blending the flour mixture into the wet ingredients, add 1 tablespoon of milk at a time until the dough is soft and moist.
CHILL
When you have achieved cookie dough texture, shape it into a round disc.
Wrap in plastic wrap and chill the dough for at least 1 hour, and up to a couple days, in the refrigerator.
PREHEAT OVEN & ROLL OUT DOUGH
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place the gingerbread dough in between two pieces of parchment paper.
Roll the dough out to 1/4″ thickness with a rolling pin. Then, use your favorite the gingerbread cookie cutters (or other shaped cookie cutters) to cut out the dough (the number of cookies will depend on the size of your cookie cutters).
Quickly scoop the gingerbread people onto the parchment-lined baking sheet with a flat edge spatula, leaving about 2″ space.
BAKE COOKIES
Bake cookies for 9-12 minutes. Continue rolling and cutting out dough until all the dough has been used.
Cool cookies on baking sheet until completely set.
MAKE ICING
In a small bowl, mix the powdered sugar with lemon juice until the icing is thick enough (but thin enough) to decorate.
Transfer the icing to a piping bag. Decorate the gingerbread men and women with lines and dots as desired.
Allow the icing to set for 30 minutes before storing.
Serving Suggestions
There really is nothing better than baking a whole batch of gingerbread Christmas cookies.
These are the perfect gingerbread people to enjoy on Christmas day, wrap in cellophane to gift to family and friends, or bake them for a cookie exchange.
They’d pair great on a cookie plate with my Buckeye Balls, Reindeer Bark, Cherry Oatmeal Cookies and Gingerdoodles.
How to Make Ahead & Store
Make Ahead: Gingerbread dough can be made up to 2 days in advance. Store tightly wrapped in plastic wrap in the fridge.
Storage: Leftover cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 3 days. Cookies store best flat as to not mess up icing.
Recipe FAQs
What is the difference between gingerbread and ginger cookies?
Both are spiced cookies. However, gingerbread are cut into shapes and contain a variety of spices while ginger snaps are rolled into balls and are primarily ginger flavor.
Can I use a different flour, like all-purpose flour, whole grain, or gluten-free flour?
This recipe was developed specifically for almond flour, so please stick with that for best results.
Can I use coconut oil?
Coconut oil holds up differently compared to butter. Even though the dough is chilled prior to baking, I can’t say with 100% confidence using coconut oil here would work the same.
Do I have to chill the dough?
Yes! Chilling the dough will ensure the gingerbread hold their shape. This dough can be chilled up to 2 days in advance, kept in the refrigerator.
More Holiday Cookie Recipes You’ll Love:
If you make this Vegan Gingerbread Cookies recipe, be sure to leave a comment and review below! I love hearing from you and it helps others learn more about the recipe too!
Gluten Free Vegan Gingerbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 4 ½ tablespoons vegan butter, melted, or ghee if not vegan
- 2 ½ tablespoons molasses
- ¼ cup coconut sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups super-fine almond flour
- ¼ cup tapioca flour
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon all spice
- ⅛ teaspoon cloves
- 2-3 tablespoons milk of choice or water
Icing
- ¾ cup confectioners sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice, or milk or water
Instructions
- Mix together the melted butter with molasses, sugar, and vanilla until smooth.
- Add in almond flour, tapioca flour and gingerbread spices. As the dough starts to come together, add milk 1 tablespoon at a time until dough is soft and moist. This may take a bit, just be patient and use your hands if necessary.
- Once the dough has combined, shape into a round disc (for rolling out later) and place on parchment lined cutting board. Cover and chill the dough for at least 1 hour, up to 2 days in the refrigerator.
- Preheat oven to 350ºF and line large baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
- Now it's time to roll and cut out the dough: place dough in between two pieces of parchment paper. This gingerbread dough is a little sticky so this part is necessary. Use roller or pastry roller to roll the dough to about 1/4" thickness. Cut out dough using the gingerbread cookie cutters (or other shaped cookie cutters).
- Using flat edge spatula, quickly (but gently) scoop the gingerbread onto the parchment lined baking sheet, leaving about 2" space. Bake for 9-12 minutes. Continue rolling and cutting out dough until all the dough has been used. Cool cookies on baking sheet.
- Mix together powdered sugar with lemon juice (or water or milk) until icing is thick enough (but thin enough) to decorate the gingerbread with lines and dots as desired. Allow icing to completely set (at least 30 minutes) before storing.
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