Lemon Ginger Snaps (GF & Plant-Based)
These cookies are amazing for six good reasons:
- They’re gluten free, perfect for those who are unable to consume wheat based flours.
- They are plant based, great for plant based or vegan eaters.
- The recipe is super easy!
- One batch makes 50 cookies or 25 sandwich cookies!
- Ginger & Lemon, what could be better? And…
- It’s a one pot cookie recipe. (well one pot and one bowl 🙂 )
A One Pot Cookie Recipe?
Yes! This recipe basically only needs only one medium size pot. Using a pot on low heat helps to mix the coconut oil, molasses and maple syrup together smoothly. A separate bowl is needed to mix your flour mixture together but most of the work is done in a pot.
Red Quinoa Flour & Oat Flour
I tried this recipe using two different flours to see how each flour would work for this recipe. Both flours performed great however my preference is the red quinoa flour and I’ll give you the reasons below. But first let’s talk about how to make or purchase quinoa flour and oat flour.
It’s rare to find quinoa flour in the store so I make mine. Here’s how you can do it too…
- 1 cup of organic red quinoa, wash, drain and dry quinoa.
- After completely dried, spread quinoa on a parchment sheet lined baking sheet.
- Place in a 325 degree oven to toast the quinoa for about 20 minutes, rotating and mixing the quinoa after 10 minutes for it not to burn.
- Remove and let cool.
- After cooled, place quinoa in a high powered blender and blend till it forms a flour.
- One cup of quinoa should yield 1 1/2 cups of flour.
*Toasting the quinoa first removes the bitterness quinoa tends to have and makes for a tastier flour.
Oat flour can be purchased quite easily. However it can also be made in a high powered blender using regular gluten free organic oats. Just use 1 1/2 cups of oats, place in a high powered blender and blend till it forms a flour. I saw oat flour for sale at my local market so I just went on a bought it. This is the brand I used.
The Difference In Flours
After trying this recipe using both oat flour and red quinoa flour, I determined that red quinoa flour was my favorite. However both flours produced a wonderful cookie. Here’s the results from both flours.
Using Red Quinoa Flour
- The molasses flavor paired nicely with the quinoa flour and the flavor was more intense like a regular ginger snap.
- The color of the cookie was darker.
- Quinoa has an inherent nuttiness and it made the cookie more complex.
- The cookies were more crisp with the quinoa flour.
Using Oat Flour
- The molasses flavor and ginger are less pronounced.
- The cookie is lighter in color.
- Oat flour makes the cookies slightly softer.
- The lemon is more noticeable.
Final Thoughts
Whether you use red quinoa flour or oat flour, these cookies will most likely be a staple in your cookie jar. They are so easy to make and are so delicious no matter which flour is used. These cookies are also great to give as gifts. One batch makes about 50 cookies! And the addition of the lemon peel adds a brightness to the cookie and elevates an ordinary ginger cookie into something special! Not to mention that besides them being gluten free, they are also plant based!
Lemon Ginger Snaps (GF & Plant Based)
AuthorDesireeCategoryCookies, Desserts, Easy Recipes, Gluten FreeDifficultyBeginnerThis easy breezy ginger snap recipe is gluten free, plant based and makes about 50 cookies with hardly any effort involved. If you're looking for batches of cookies to give as gifts look no further!
In a pot on low to medium heat place inside the molasses, maple syrup and coconut oil. To that add the lemon peel. ginger and cinnamon.
Stir the molasses mixture till the coconut oil is melted and everything is incorporated. Remove off the stove.
In a medium size bowl place your quinoa flour or oatmeal flour (I used homemade toasted red quinoa flour). To that flour add the baking soda and pinch of sea salt (about 1/8 tsp of sea salt) and whisk together.
Mix the flour into the molasses mixture and stir until it's all incorporated.
The mixture will become quite thick once the flour is mixed in but it will still be quite soft. Place the pot in the fridge for about 30 to 40 minutes so the cookie dough can harden to make it easier to handle.
After about 30 to 40 minutes the dough will harden up so that it can be removed and easily rolled into a 14 inch cylinder shape.
Wrap the cylinder shaped dough into plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for an hour to overnight. At this stage the dough can stay in the refrigerator for up to three days and be brought out when you're ready to bake!
*This cookie dough is great to prepare ahead of time.
When ready to bake, take out the roll of cookie dough and start slicing! Ginger snaps are normally crisp cookies. So I would suggest slicing 1/4 inch size slices like in the picture below.
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 6 to 8 minutes. These cookies bakes fast! So it's important to be mindful of that and not be far from the kitchen while the cookies are baking.
Ginger Snaps!
These ginger snaps can also become sandwich cookies!
Place a tiny dollop of cream cheese (my favorite brand being Green Valley Creamery Lactose Free cream cheese) on one cookie and place another cookie on top. Sandwich them together and you have a delicious cookie sandwich. The creaminess of the cream cheese compliments the spice of the ginger.
Any leftover sandwich cookies made can be placed in the refrigerator for storage. With storage the cookies soften up...yum!
If using oat flour, the cookies will be lighter in color due to the oat flour. This version came out just as delicious as the red quinoa flour ginger cookies. However my personal preference is the red quinoa flour version.
The flavor of the red quinoa flour and molasses works very well together and provides more of that traditional ginger cookie taste. I find the oat flour softens the molasses and ginger flavors. Either version is amazing but if you like a more subtle ginger snap, go with the oat flour.
These cookies are great to give packaged as gifts!
Ingredients
Directions
In a pot on low to medium heat place inside the molasses, maple syrup and coconut oil. To that add the lemon peel. ginger and cinnamon.
Stir the molasses mixture till the coconut oil is melted and everything is incorporated. Remove off the stove.
In a medium size bowl place your quinoa flour or oatmeal flour (I used homemade toasted red quinoa flour). To that flour add the baking soda and pinch of sea salt (about 1/8 tsp of sea salt) and whisk together.
Mix the flour into the molasses mixture and stir until it's all incorporated.
The mixture will become quite thick once the flour is mixed in but it will still be quite soft. Place the pot in the fridge for about 30 to 40 minutes so the cookie dough can harden to make it easier to handle.
After about 30 to 40 minutes the dough will harden up so that it can be removed and easily rolled into a 14 inch cylinder shape.
Wrap the cylinder shaped dough into plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for an hour to overnight. At this stage the dough can stay in the refrigerator for up to three days and be brought out when you're ready to bake!
*This cookie dough is great to prepare ahead of time.
When ready to bake, take out the roll of cookie dough and start slicing! Ginger snaps are normally crisp cookies. So I would suggest slicing 1/4 inch size slices like in the picture below.
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 6 to 8 minutes. These cookies bakes fast! So it's important to be mindful of that and not be far from the kitchen while the cookies are baking.
Ginger Snaps!
These ginger snaps can also become sandwich cookies!
Place a tiny dollop of cream cheese (my favorite brand being Green Valley Creamery Lactose Free cream cheese) on one cookie and place another cookie on top. Sandwich them together and you have a delicious cookie sandwich. The creaminess of the cream cheese compliments the spice of the ginger.
Any leftover sandwich cookies made can be placed in the refrigerator for storage. With storage the cookies soften up...yum!
If using oat flour, the cookies will be lighter in color due to the oat flour. This version came out just as delicious as the red quinoa flour ginger cookies. However my personal preference is the red quinoa flour version.
The flavor of the red quinoa flour and molasses works very well together and provides more of that traditional ginger cookie taste. I find the oat flour softens the molasses and ginger flavors. Either version is amazing but if you like a more subtle ginger snap, go with the oat flour.
These cookies are great to give packaged as gifts!
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