‘Tis the season of ginger, butter, almond flour, and grain-free ginger snap cookies. With all the ginger snap cookie recipes cropping up, I couldn’t resist posting my own version. No brown sugar or molasses here, but lots of ginger, salt and spices.
I have 2 recipes here: the original recipe which is more of a chewy ginger snap cookies, and the snappier version, which is baked at a higher temperature and a few minor changes to the salt and spices.
This recipe is based on my cinnamon cookie recipe, with some additional spices added and a bit more sea salt. Like the cinnamon cookies, the original ginger snaps do require a bit of extra oven time to make them snappy. The new recipe is “snappier” and takes about the same amount of time to bake (and possibly less if you don’t place them in a dehydrator.
Instead of sprinkling with sugar or candied ginger, I added a very slight amount of Himalayan salt to the top of each cookie to give it an extra zing. If you don’t have Himalayan salt, any kind of coarse salt will work as well, such as kosher or coarse sea salt.
To bake up a batch of ginger snaps at a moment’s notice, roll the dough into a log, wrap in parchment paper, and then when you’re ready, preheat your oven and bake as directed. Yes, it’s that easy!
Roll the ginger snap dough, wrap in parchment paper, and then slice and bake when ready!
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I love that this recipe doesn’t use eggs. THANK YOU for that! We loved the flavor; it’s spot on. Having read your suggestion for rolling the dough into a log and slicing from there, I will do that next time as I like the idea of a more uniform shape and thickness. I also love the idea of storing it ready-to-bake. I am actually writing to let you know that I made my batch using 4 T of mild EVOO. (I have eliminated dairy for my SCD daughter, and don’t love coconut oil). They came out just fine. Not crumbly, and you can’t taste the olive oil. BUT, they are a bit “heavy” and “rich” in a way that makes your mouth feel just a TAD greasy. I will try avocado oil next time.
Hi Jennifer, thanks for the kudos! Agree that I would rather use olive oil, but sometimes coconut oil does work well. I’m wondering if you can get away with less oil next time. Yes, trying a lighter oil may work as well. There is a combo oil of sunflower and coconut oil that might work well.
Great idea to try a combination of coconut and sunflower oil! I will try less EVOO, then avocado, then the oil combination and let you know how each goes!
I made a half bath of each type to test out the recipes. My personal preference was just slightly toward the chewy version but the quick baking time of the crunchy was easier for a very similar result. They’re both delicious and my new favorite cookie to bake. I plan to try out a version subbing date paste (my usual sweetener). Thank you for posting wonderful recipes.
Thanks, Diane! Love that you tried both and did a side-by-side comparison. Would love to hear how the date paste works out!
Just made the chewy recipe for my son who has invisalign braces and a gluten free diet. I used 1/2 t of ground ginger and about 1 1/2 c crystalized ginger. They came out absolutely delicious! Thank you for the recipe!!!
Always great to hear! thank you. good luck with the braces as well 🙂
These are awesome. After my first batch spread , and spread, and spread, l made my second batch using paper muffin cases. The result was a uniform size which was received enthusiastically. Today l made some with lemon zest which takes them to a whole new level. I have also passed on the recipe to a number of people including those who need gluten free treats. Thanks for creating this recipe.
Thank you! Wondering why they spread: Did you change the ingredients or steps at all? What fat did you use?
I can not almonds, do you think it may work with a 1 to 1 Gluten Free Flour such a King Arthur or Bob’s Red Mill? Thank you!
I’m not sure, sorry. It will work with another nut or seed flour though.
Delicious! I added about a tablespoon of coconut sugar to the dry ingredients, swapped a tablespoon of honey for a tablespoon of blackstrap molasses, added a pinch of pepper for extra snap, and forgot to melt the butter and creamed it instead, and the ginger snaps still turned out great. And yes, hard to stop eating.
Great additions! thanks for sharing 🙂
My only problem is eating the cookie dough before it makes it into the oven! Delicious!
These are great cookies! I followed the recipe exactly. Thank you for posting such great recipes. I made these chewy gingersnap cookies into sandwich cookies with your vanilla buttercream recipe and then put them in the freezer to keep. My daughter LOVES them and can have them whenever she wants from the freezer. They don’t need to thaw to eat from the freezer and it keeps the cookies and icing from getting stale (cookies) or runny (icing).
Yum! thanks for the kudos and got your last name off. Cheers!
Hello! This looks delicious!! But at the moment I have no almonds to make the flour… can I use oats flour instead?
sorry, no subs have been tested.
These came out GREAT! They are the best ones I’ve made so far and “Tested” on my coworkers. Thanks a bunch for sharing this one.
THANK YOU for this recipe! My SCD kids and I made them last night and thoroughly enjoyed them. We rolled the remaining dough into balls and froze them, and then already took some out to bake today, and they were just as good. We went for the dairy free option (used coconut oil), and used a bit less honey (closer to 1/4 cup) and they were SO delicious. LOVING your website 🙂
I just made the ‘snap” cookies with ground cashews instead of almonds,… they are delicious…It looks as though both recipes have the same amount of butter though, the only difference I see in these is the temperature and time baked and the lower salt in the chewy recipe…Am I mis reading ??
that is correct!
I followed the recipe for the snap cookies and they burned 🙁 Do you think it could be the coconut oil?
They burn on me occasionally when I’ve left them in a bit too long. Watch them closely and take them out after 10 minutes if needed. I’ve edited the instructions. Thanks!
For 13 years I’ve been baking gluten free cookies and for 13 years my son hasn’t liked any. He just devoured these ginger snaps! Bless you!
Thanks! I know, I love them too!
I know you say in the headnote that you removed the cardamom from the updated ginger snap recipe, but it still shows up in the instructions which is a bit confusing. Just thought I’d mention it!
I’m excited to use these for a chocolate tart crust for dessert on Christmas Day!
thanks! removed. Yum on the chocolate tart front 🙂
Ohhhh my goodness! Just made these! WISHING I could send you a smell-o-gram thank you! I NEEDED these is my paleo life♥ So delicious.
Ha! thanks 🙂
I made one significant change to this recipe because I am on a candida cleanse right now (can’t have sugar in any form). Instead of honey/maple syrup I made “butter syrup” using melted butter, cinnamon and stevia. I am always worried about having that stevia aftertaste so I just put a tiny bit in and then tasted the batter after mixing to see if I needed more. I was also worried they wouldn’t stick together without honey/syrup but they did really well. They had the texture of a sugar cookie (ironically), which was really nice. I also used fresh minced ginger. Delicious!
Amazing recipe! Wouldn’t change a thing.
Yeah! Great to hear. I’m loving the new version as well. Best wishes.
I tried this yesterday. I dint get the snap that i wanted. I baked it at 275F in convection setting. After 15 mins, the cookies were very soft, so i couldnt turn them over. I kept it for 15 more mins (by just rotating the plate around). I still dint get the snap. I turned them and kept it for 10 more mins by lowering the temperature to 200F regular setting. Now the cookies taste like they are burnt. I followed the receipe exactly as mentioned. What am i doing wrong? Should i try with 1 egg?
No, don’t add the egg. This recipe is originally based on the cinnamon cookies and quite similar in ratio to the snickerdoodles recipe. What i would do (which I haven’t done yet) is use the new ratio of butter, honey, salt and baking soda in the Snickerdoodles, add the giner, etc. and follow the baking directions (temperature) for snickerdoodles for these. I’ll rewrite this at some point.
Can I use almond pulp? I haven’t dried it into a flour, but its drained and dry to the touch.
sorry, I just don’t know. Let me know if you do try it though.
AWESOME COOKIES!!!! These will definitely be a ‘go to’ cookie recipe for any occasion!!! I love how crispy they got. I used half fresh ginger and half ground (only because I was out of ground) and they were perfect!
thanks! always nice to add fresh ginger if you have it.
These were AMAZING! Actually, they were too good b/c I could not stop eating them. They came out perfect! Thank you!
thanks so much for posting! My husband can’t eat eggs, and he loves gingersnaps, so was looking for something special for him. My kitchen smells wonderful with all those spices baking, just love it! thanks again
I just made these amazing cookies! I a good dded a little extra almond meal, but followed the recipe exactly as written, and they came out terrific! Hard to stop eating! I have tried many recipes on this site and haven’t found one yet that wasn’t fabulous!
Thanks Gail! Good to hear.
Yummy! Thanks for a great timely recipe! They came out great!
I just made these and they were pretty fantastic! I followed the recipe to a t (using coconut oil) but they didn’t turn out like yours. Mine were also flat and thin. Even still, they were absolutely delicious 🙂 Next time I’ll see if I can make some changes, try putting them in the freezer first, less oil perhaps? or maybe trying it with an egg. Thanks for the recipe and inspiration!
interesting. I think I made them with butter last year. I’m going to try coconut oil, but I bet you’re right – letting them cool or putting them in the freezer for a few minutes might be the difference. Thanks for the feedback!
I just made these and they spread out into one giant cookie. Not sure what I did wrong. I am just starting to cook with almond meal/flour. Any suggestions?
what oil are you using? I use butter or coconut oil. the oil choice may be the issue.
Hello!! Love your site <3
I always make my cookies with almond flour, but I was wondering two things, have you ever made these with fresh ginger? and have you ever worked with coconut nectar instead of honey? thanks!!
I haven’t, but I bet it would taste great with fresh ginger. It might be softer though. I haven’t tried coconut nectar yet but from what i can tell online, you can replace honey with equal amounts of coconut nectar.
Ive made these a couple dozen times and I LOVE them but have never had them turn out thick like the picture. Mine are always spread out flat and thin…still taste awesome though…I use convection and have tried all the variables in your directions. Any other hints? Thanks,
I am having the same problem!
I haven’t made this since last winter, but I’m thinking that I must have put them in the freezer for about 15 minutes and then used the dough (although I never do that). What oil are you using?
Fantastic! I used molasses instead of honey for an even more traditional ginger snap taste. Love these, thanks!
Good to know it works with molasses!
I made these just now and they’re delicious. I might add more ginger and maybe some fresh ginger because I like a really spicy cookie. I’m newly pregnant and am trying to stay away from wheat although I don’t have an allergy. I just know that my tummy is happier without it. Does this cookie base transfer well? Like could I make a lemon cookie somehow?
just made these yesterday – and i LOVE them! perfect crispy ginger snap cookies. what a treat!
I made these yesterday but as bar cookies in a 9×13 inch pan. I baked them for 30 minutes at 300 degrees then turned off the oven and left them in the oven for an additional 30 minutes. They were pretty dry yesterday but today they are super tasty and crispy!
Ah, so you probably would like them before the 30 minute additional stay in the oven. That’s how they taste before drying them.
These looks amazing:) I also want to let you know that I’ve selected you for the Versatile Blogger Award. You can find out about why I selected you and what you need to do in my link below.
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Have a great day:)
These look fantastic! I love the almond flour and that they’re sweetened with honey. I’m going to bookmark this recipe, these are my kind of cookies 😀
Just made my first batch. Recipe adjustments: 2.5 cups of almond flour, ghee (heaping 1/3 of a cup, probably closer to half cup), no honey or sweets, 2 eggs, 325 degree oven for 18 minutes. Makes 8 big cookies. Instant favorite. Perfect for the holiday season and winter months! Just posted a picture to my Facebook page. Thanks for the inspiration!
I was wondering what you could use to substitute out the honey for something lower in sugar. I am diabetic. Do you think sugar free maple syrup works?
it’s definitely worth a try. I don’t see why not, but I’m not sure what’s in sugar-free maple syrup.
These were wonderful! Thank you for sharing, I really liked them with the salt on top.
I’m thinking this maybe needs an egg or two? Just working on it now. Saw that there’s one egg in the crisper gingerman version….
I think the sugar makes it’s crispy, but you can certainly try an egg. I haven’t.
I ended up putting one egg in the recipe and they came out very crispy. It did however make the batter/dough much looser so i couldn’t really flatten them. I froze the batter for about 15 mins before putting on the cookie sheet. The cookies also spread when baking with the addition of the egg. But, tasty, crunchy cookies overall! Thanks Erica!!
ooh. Thanks for letting us know. Interesting. I’ll have to try that. This recipe dates back to when I my son was not eating eggs for a bit.
I’m allergic to tree nuts, so no almond flour for me. Suggestions for alternatives? Is there such a thing as peanut flour?
Actually, yes, I’ve seen peanut flour at Trader Joe’s.
Try using coconut flour.
Those look amazing! I could 10 in one sitting! Yum
Made a batch tonight…wonderful!
Just made some! The dough tastes amazing!! But they’re still pretty soft, like the middle is hot but it has an uncooked texture to it. I guess I’ll keep them in until they reach the texture I like? At least in my oven, which might be innaccurate, I probably should have left them in on the higher temp for longer…
Yes, keep them in longer. And then let them cool for about 10 minutes. You can also put them back in the oven at any time.
Also, I use the convection setting, so you could probably go to 300 degrees F. Sorry – I always forget to mention that.
Ohh, that must have been it. Already made a new batch. Much better texture and just as tasty. Thanks!
I also made a new batch: used almond extract and no spices. Then put a dab of homemade jam in the center of each one. Turned out just perfectly. This is a great starter recipe that I can turn into so many different things! Thank you!
Thanks. Evelyne, you bake more often than I do.
Perfect timing! Love your recipes! Was thinking of trying a new recipe and here it is! Bake cookies and breads 3x/wk.
they sound fabulous can’t wait to try them!