Gluten Free Snickerdoodles – Soft, Sweet, Chewy, and Delicious!

By wpengine

December 6, 2024

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These soft and chewy cinnamon gluten free snickerdoodles will quickly become your favorite holiday cookie recipe!

The best gluten free snickerdoodles

With a fluffy cookie base and sweet cinnamon sugar coating, you will fall further and further in love with each irresistible bite.

The cookies are gluten free and grain free, and no one will ever guess!

Serve them on a holiday cookie tray at your next Thanksgiving gathering or Christmas party. Or make a large batch to keep all to yourself.

These thick cinnamon sugar snickerdoodles taste almost too good to share.

Also try this gluten free Crustless Pumpkin Pie

Popular gluten free cookies

With no wheat flour and no eggs to weigh them down, sugary homemade snickerdoodles will put Pillsbury to shame.

The gluten free vegan cookies can also be wheat free, dairy free, low carb, paleo, egg free, added sugar free, and keto friendly.

Among all the chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter cookies, and sugar cookies, these gluten free snickerdoodles are a guest favorite and always among the first to go.

Every time I bring them to an event, people ask me for the recipe!

Still craving cookies? Make Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Gluten free snickerdoodle cookie ingredients

The recipe calls for almond flour or almond meal, powdered sugar or a sugar free alternative, butter or coconut oil, pure vanilla extract, salt, baking soda, water, and cinnamon sugar for the classic snickerdoodle coating.

Almond flour – Instead of wheat flour, the base of this recipe can be either almond flour or fine almond meal for flourless snickerdoodles.

If you would rather use gluten free all purpose flour to make a nut free version, try this award winning recipe for Vegan Snickerdoodles.

I do not recommend substituting coconut flour, cassava flour, or brown rice flour here, because the results will be completely different.

Spices – Ground cinnamon in the coating gives these cookies their delicious cinnamon sugar snickerdoodle flavor.

A pinch of salt balances out the sweetness, and baking soda makes the cookies perfectly light and chewy.

Sugar – Use powdered sugar or unrefined powdered coconut sugar.

Or for low carb and keto snickerdoodles with just one net carb each, use a powdered sweetener without sugar. Erythritol or a monk fruit blend work well.

I have not tried swapping out the powdered sugar for pure maple syrup or honey. If you wish to experiment, let me know how it goes.

Vanilla – It is important to buy pure vanilla extract for the best taste.

Stay away from anything that says imitation vanilla on the package label to ensure your finished product does not taste artificial.

Fat source – You can use full fat butter, plant based butter, or coconut oil in this gluten free cookie recipe.

Coconut oil imparts a wonderful slight coconut flavor. Go with the butter or vegan butter option if you do not want this taste.

The butter or oil works best if it is fully melted before mixing with the other cookie ingredients.

Step by step recipe video

Above, watch the gluten free snickerdoodle recipe video

How to make gluten free snickerdoodles

Step one is to preheat your oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

Melt the butter or coconut oil, then combine it with the almond flour, powdered sugar, salt, baking soda, pure vanilla extract, and water in a large mixing bowl.

Stir all ingredients to form a snickerdoodle cookie dough.

Since the recipe has no gluten, you do not need to worry about over stirring the batter.

Form balls with a spoon or cookie scoop, then flatten into round cookie shapes with your hands. If you prefer, you can use cookie cutters to make cutout shapes instead.

In a cereal sized bowl, stir the cinnamon and granulated sugar until well mixed.

Dip each unbaked cookie fully into the cinnamon sugar coating with a spoon.

Place the gluten free treats on a baking sheet, and bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for twelve minutes.

Let the recipe cool for at least ten minutes before handling. They will firm up considerably during the cooling process.

Store leftover cookies in a covered container on the counter or in the refrigerator for up to five days. You can also freeze the cookies for at least three months.

Recipe Tip: Add a scoop of store bought or Coconut Ice Cream in between two cookies to create your own homemade cinnamon gluten free ice cream sandwich.

Flavor variations

Pumpkin pie: To make pumpkin snickerdoodles, replace the water in the recipe below with two tablespoons of canned pumpkin puree.

Add a fourth teaspoon of ground pumpkin pie spice to the cinnamon coating.

Chocolate chip: This one is easy. Simply throw in a handful of mini chocolate chips when you stir together the dry ingredients.

Cheesecake: Freeze twelve to fourteen teaspoon size amounts of cream cheese or cream cheese frosting on a parchment lined plate.

Press one of these small balls into each piece of cookie dough before forming the cookie around the frozen cream cheese.

Baking time and temperature remain the same as for the non stuffed version.

Peanut butter: Swap out the butter or coconut oil for a fourth cup of softened peanut butter. You can use almond butter or cashew butter if preferred.

On my list of ideas to try is using peanut flour instead of almond flour in this recipe. If you make this version before I do, please let me know how your results turn out.

Caramel apple: Substitute an equal amount of applesauce for the water.

Just before baking, press a salted caramel into the center of each cookie dough ball.

Sugar cookies: If you want plain gluten free sugar cookies instead of snickerdoodles, just omit the cinnamon sugar coating.

Enjoy your cookies unfrosted and hot from the oven. Or decorate them with frosting, royal icing, raspberry jam and powdered sugar, edible glitter, or sprinkles.