Description
Cranberry Thumbprint Cookies are dairy-free and gluten-free, and make the perfect addition to your holiday baking list. They’re small batch and freeze well, but they also have a deliciously crispy and chewy texture with a sugary coating and an orange cranberry filling.
Ingredients
For the cranberry jam filling:
- 1/2 cup cranberries, fresh or frozen
- 2 tablespoons cane sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- Juice and zest from half an orange
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
For the cookie dough:
- 1/4 + 1/4 cup cane sugar, divided
- 1/4 cup cashew butter, room temperature
- 2 tablespoons virgin, cold pressed coconut oil
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup light buckwheat flour
- 1/2 cup blanched almond flour
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
For the chocolate drizzle:
- 1/4 cup dairy-free dark chocolate chips
- 1/2 tablespoon virgin, cold-pressed coconut oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a small sauce pan, stir together the cranberries, sugar, cardamom, orange juice and zest and bring to a low boil, stirring occasionally to ensure the mixture doesn’t burn. Once the mixture starts to thicken, remove from heat and stir in the chia seeds. Cover and let cool.
- To make the cookie dough, add 1/4 cup cane sugar, cashew butter and coconut oil to a large mixing bowl and use an electric mixer to beat together until creamy. Beat in the egg and vanilla.
- In a small bowl, sift together the buckwheat flour, almond flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. On low-speed, gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture until a dough forms. You may need to stop a few times to scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl.
- Add the remaining 1/4 cup cane sugar to a small plate. Shape the dough into roughly one-inch balls and roll in the sugar. (You should get 12-14 balls). Arrange about 2-inches apart on the baking sheet and use your thumb to create a well in the centre of each cookie.
- Bake for 8 minutes and remove from oven. If the thumb impressions have disappeared, carefully use a 1/4 teaspoon to reshape them. Add the cranberry filling to each thumb impression. Return to oven and bake for another 5 minutes. Let cool on the pan for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- For the optional chocolate drizzle, add the dark chocolate chips and coconut oil to a small microwave safe bowl and microwave in two 30-second intervals, stirring in between and after until smooth. Drizzle the chocolate over the cookies.
- Store cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator or freeze for up to 3 months.
Notes
- Make sure the cashew butter and coconut oil are at room temperature. This will ensure they mix together smoothly with the cane sugar.
- If you don’t have cashew butter, you can substitute almond butter.
- If you can’t find cane sugar, you can use granulated sugar in the cookie dough. In order to create the crispy cookie coating, however, I suggest using a courser sugar, such as turbinado, to roll the cookies in.
- To keep these cookies gluten-free, make sure your ground cardamom and any ingredient substitutions are certified gluten-free.
- Be sure to check out the detailed sections above the recipe card for additional advice and suggestions for making this recipe.
