Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies for Valentine’s Day

I love making these Gluten-Free Valentine's Day Cookies each year. I make this recipe for a lot of holidays because it's just that good. The cookies end up perfectly soft and they're easy to roll out so you can make cute hearts or cupids!

Making gluten-free holiday sugar cookies is one of my favorite things to make with my daughter! She loves grabbing all the cookie cutters and having her choice of fun shapes and sizes.

If you're looking for a Valentine Day Dessert, that's a little different than a cookie, you can try our Chocolate Pretzel Hearts. They're fun to make and another adorable treat to share with the classroom.

Ingredients

When it comes to recipes that include gluten-free flour, substitutions are highly discouraged. You'll find the ingredient measurements below, but first, let’s see what you need to make these gluten-free sugar cookies for Valentine’s Day:

• Sugar: white granulated sugar is key for making these cookies.
• Butter: it must be softened, not melted.
• Egg: add structure to the dough.
• Water or milk: the liquid these cookies need. Milk will make them tastier!
• Vanilla: classic cookie flavor!
• Salt: to enhance all the other flavors.
• Ground cinnamon: I love adding cinnamon, but it’s completely optional.
• Xanthan gum: omit it if your all-purpose flour has it.
• Gluten-free all-purpose flour: not all GF flours are the same, so I’ve included below the ones I tried that work great for this cookie recipe. 

For the Frosting:

• Powdered sugar: a basic ingredient for any frosting.
• Milk: any kind.
• Vanilla extract: to make this frosting tastier!
• Corn syrup: adds moisture.
• Food coloring: optional for extra fun!

How to Make Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies

These gluten-free sugar cookies for Valentine’s Day are not complicated. Just follow the steps to the T and they’ll turn out perfectly every time:

1. Cream the butter
   First, you cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl.
2. Add the wet ingredients
   You add the egg, water (or milk), vanilla, salt, and cinnamon (if using). You blend until mixed well.
3. Add the flour
   Now you add the flour and the xanthan gum (if your flour doesn’t have it). Mix slowly until the dough is well combined.
4. Refrigerate
   Storing the dough in the fridge for at least 1 hour turns it firm enough to cut it out.
5. Prep the oven
   Preheat the oven and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
6. Roll out the dough
   After at least 1 hour in the fridge, you roll the dough out onto a lightly floured surface until about ⅓-inch thick.
7. Make the cookies
   With your favorite cookie cutters, cut the dough and transfer the cookies to a baking sheet. Reform and roll out the scrap dough and keep doing more cookies. When placing them on the baking sheet, allow space between each one!
8. Bake
   You bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes.
9. Cool down
   Allow the cookies to cool down for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack. They must be completely cool before decorating.
10. Make the frosting
    You combine sugar, milk, vanilla, and corn syrup in a bowl and whisk until smooth. If it’s too thick, add more milk to reach the desired consistency.
11. Color it up!
    If you want to color it up, add the food coloring and whisk until smooth and the color is even.
12. Add the frost
    Decorate the sugar cookies and enjoy!

Watch this quick recipe video to see how easy these Valentine's Day Cookies are to make.

Easy, right? Here are a few tips to be sure your roll-out Valentine cookies are the best EVER. If you are looking for step-by-step instructions for your gluten-free sugar cookies, information about ingredient swaps and more, click here.

Success Tips for Gluten-Free Baking

Don't roll the dough too thin. I know that if I roll the dough out too thin and cut it, they will spread when baking. Make sure you are keeping it thick enough to hold its shape.

Make sure your dough chills long enough in the fridge. This is also true when rolling out the dough and cutting. If it sits out too long and is overworked during that process, again, it will spread and not hold its shape. After chilling, you may want to break off half the dough and roll it out and cut half at a time.

Valentine’s Day Sugar Cookies (Gluten-Free)

Servings: 20 -24

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Chill: 1 hour hr

Cook Time: 10 minutes mins

Total Time: 1 hour hr 25 minutes mins

Easy and delicious gluten-free cookies for Valentine’s day! 

5 from 7 votes

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Ingredients

Sugar Cookies:

• 1 cup sugar
• ½ cup butter, softened
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon water or milk
• 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon, optional
• ½ teaspoon xanthan gum, omit if your all-purpose flour has it
• 2 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour, + more for rolling/dusting

Sugar Cookie Frosting:

• 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons milk
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons corn syrup
• Food coloring, optional

Instructions

For the Cookies:

• In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar at medium speed.
• Add the egg, water or milk, vanilla, salt, and cinnamon (if using). Blend until mixed well.
• Add the xanthan gum, if necessary, and the flour. Mix at a low speed until well combined.
• Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 350F, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper (or a silicone mat).
• Roll out the dough onto a lightly floured surface, until about ¼-inch thick.
• Cut out with your favorite cookie cutters, and place the cookies on a baking sheet, allowing space between each one. Make sure the cookies are not touching.
• Reform and roll out the scrap dough, then continue cutting more cookies.
• Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from the oven, and let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet before removing to a cooling rack. Cool completely before decorating.
• Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

For the Frosting:

• In a medium bowl, combine the sugar, milk, vanilla, and corn syrup. Whisk until smooth, adding more milk until it reaches the desired consistency.
• If using, add the food coloring and whisk until smooth and the color is even. Use it to frost the sugar cookies and refrigerate leftovers for up to 2 weeks.

Notes

• Not all gluten-free flours are the same. King Arthur Measure for Measure, Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 Baking Flour, and Namaste Perfect Flour Blend are the three all-purpose flours that I've made this with and that have yielded great cookies.
• Refrigeration is a must, otherwise your dough will be too sticky to roll, and the cookies will spread. If you roll out your dough and it's too sticky to "pick up," put it back in the fridge before cutting.
• Gluten-free flour absorbs less moisture compared to regular flour. As with any gluten-free recipe, using the same amount of flour provided in the recipe is recommended, and substitutions are highly discouraged.
   

Equipment

Clean Treats Cookbook

Nutrition

Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 136kcal | Carbohydrates: 22.1g | Protein: 1.2g | Fat: 4.8g | Saturated Fat: 2.9g | Cholesterol: 21.5mg | Sodium: 33.4mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 10g