Dairy Free Sugar Cookies
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These soft dairy free sugar cookies are so delicious. It’s a small batch that’s simple to make using coconut oil and gluten free flour. Everyone loves them!
Baking cookies is one of my favorite things to do during the holidays. My family has several traditional holiday cookies, including pineapple filled cookies, pizzelles, and ricotta cookies.
It wouldn’t be Christmas without a big batch of these dairy free sugar cookies, too. These light, soft cookies have a classic sweet flavor. Even though they’re dairy free and gluten free, everyone loves them regardless of food allergies or intolerances.
Step by Step Instructions for Dairy Free Sugar Cookies
Step One: Combine the Dry Ingredients
In a small bowl, whisk together the gluten free flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
Step Two: Make the Dough
In the large bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, mix the melted coconut oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla extract. Add the dry ingredients (flour mixture) to the bowl and mix until a uniform dough forms.
Step Three: Refrigerate the Dough
Scrape the dough onto a large piece of wax paper. Shape the dough into 2 disks and wrap it in the wax paper. Transfer the dough to the refrigerator, chilling it for 30 to 40 minutes.
Step Four: Roll the Dough
Roll the dough to a thickness of no less than a quarter inch. If the dough is thinner than this, the cookies will come out crispy instead of soft.
Step Five: Shape the Dairy Free Sugar Cookies
Cut the cookies into shapes using 2- to 3-inch cookie cutters. If the dough sticks to the surface, re-roll that portion of dough on a newly-floured surface so the cookies can be easily removed from the surface.
Step Six: Bake the Cookies
Place the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for 8 to 9 minutes, until the cookies are set. Bake one cookie sheet at a time in the center of the oven.
Step Seven: Decorate the Cookies
Once the cookies have cooled, brush them one at a time with a simple syrup. Quickly add the sprinkles or decorating sugar to each cookie before the simple syrup solidifies so the decorations can stick.
Dairy Free Sugar Cookie Tips & Frequently Asked Questions
These sugar cookies use coconut oil in place of butter. Since the dough is refrigerated and then rolled, the texture of these coconut oil sugar cookies is very similar to a butter-based cookie.
The best sugar cookies are soft and tender. The key to getting a soft texture is to roll the dough at least a quarter inch thick, or up to a third inch thick. If you roll the dough very thin, the cookies will be brittle and they’ll tend to break apart.
If you accidentally roll the dough thinner than a quarter inch, I recommend shaping the dough back into a disk and rolling it out again. While it’s not ideal to roll the dough multiple times, the cookies will come out better this way than if you bake them too thin.
These cookies are done baking after about 8 minutes, or as soon as they’re set. If you bake them for 10 minutes or longer, they’ll likely be crunchy instead of soft. It’s essential that you remove them from the oven as soon as they’re set.
Sometimes when I roll out the dough for these dairy free sugar cookies, the dough sticks to the surface and I can’t easily pick up the cut out cookies. When this happens, it’s best to re-flour the surface and roll out the dough again.
These gluten free sugar cookies can be made with your favorite gluten free flour blend, such as King Arthur’s Flour or Bob’s Red Mill. You could also use regular wheat flour for this recipe if you’d prefer.
Coconut Oil Sugar Cookies Recipe Yield
This coconut oil sugar cookie recipe yields about 30 cookies, depending on the size of your cookie cutters. I use cookie cutters that are 2 to 3 inches wide. This is a small batch that can easily be doubled or tripled.
To make the sugar cookie dough ahead of time, you can put it in the fridge overnight. Then in the morning, leave the dough on the counter at room temperature for about an hour. This will make it soft enough to roll easily.
Easy Icing Recipe for Sugar Cookies
I like to brush a simple syrup onto these baked, cooled dairy free sugar cookies and sprinkle the decorating sugar onto the cookies before the syrup hardens. This easy icing recipe is a simple combination of water and sugar that’s boiled together to liquify the sugar.
The simple syrup allows the decorating sugar or sprinkles to stick to the cookies. It also gives them a nice flavor and shine. To decorate the cookies with frosting instead of sugar or sprinkles, try one of these naturally colored frosting recipes. This paleo maple frosting is another great option.
To make a batch of sugar cookies without refined sugar, try my maple sugar cookies.
Dairy Free Sugar Cookies
Recommended Equipment
Ingredients
Cookie Dough Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups gluten-free flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/3 cup melted coconut oil
- 1/2 cup organic sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Topping Ingredients
- 2 tbs sugar
- 3 tbs water
- Decorating sugar or sprinkles
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the gluten free flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In the large bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, mix the melted coconut oil, sugar, eggs, and the teaspoon of vanilla extract. Add the dry ingredients (flour mixture) to the bowl and mix until a uniform dough forms.
- Scrape the dough onto a large piece of wax paper. Shape the dough into 2 disks and wrap it in the wax paper. Transfer the dough to the refrigerator, chilling it for 30 to 40 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and set the rack in the center of the oven.
- Remove one disk of the dough from the refrigerator and place it on a floured work surface. Roll the dough to a thickness of 1/4 inch (any thinner than that will yield crispy cookies). Add a tablespoon of flour to the dough if necessary to roll it out without having the dough stick to the rolling pin.
- Cut the cookies into shapes using 2- to 3-inch cookie cutters. Place the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for 8 to 9 minutes, until the cookies are set. Bake one cookie sheet at a time in the center of the oven. Continue with the second disk of dough once the first disk is done, but leave the dough in the refrigerator until you’re ready to roll it.
- Remove the cookies from the oven, and carefully transfer them to a cooling rack.
- While the cookies are cooling, make a simple syrup by boiling 2 tablespoons of sugar and 3 tablespoons of water in a small pot. Stir until the sugar is dissolved (a couple minutes).
- Once the cookies have cooled, brush the cookies one at a time with the simple syrup. Quickly add the sprinkles or decorating sugar to each cookie before the simple syrup solidifies so the decorations will stick.
- Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days, or freeze for later.
Approximate Nutrition Info
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Gluten Free Dairy Free Sugar Cookies Price Breakdown
This recipe costs a total of $2.87 to make, or $.20 per serving (2 cookies). Try this soft gluten free, dairy free sugar cookie recipe for an allergy-friendly dessert.
These are FABULOUS! My son’s teacher asked for the recipe! I even used canola oil instead of coconut. Thank you!!!
These are the best sugar cookies I have ever eaten.
I’ve made the recipe three times now, and I’m still so happy with them!