These gluten free chestnut cookies take advantage of that rich chestnut flavor. If you have ever wondered what to do with roasted chestnuts, why not try a fun roasted chestnuts recipe?
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Winter is all about warm fires and roasting chestnuts. I can hear that chestnut roasting song in my mind. If you love the winter and holidays as much as we do, you will want to check out my best gluten free holiday cookie recipes!!
Chestnuts are one of the least used ingredients in baking. I don’t know why; they add a sweet, nutty flavor to baked goods like these cookies. Their distinctive sweet flavor is hard to forget. Note that you don’t want to eat them raw because they are somewhat bitter!
This was a second try for me. last time they were a bit dry and land. This time I used French vacuum packed whole chestnuts. Made a world of difference. Very tasty….quick and easy to do. Used King Arthur Measure For Measure.”
john r., blog comment
Allergen Information:
These homemade roasted chestnut cookies are gluten-free, oat-free, and soy-free. You can also make them dairy-free by using dairy-free butter. NOTE: Chestnuts are considered nuts and unsafe for those with a nut allergy.
Make them egg-free!
This morning we went for a walk and found chestnuts across street. Came back home, roast them, found this recipe and voila! Learned xanthan gum’s sub is an egg white. Also melted a sneaker bar for the chocolate.
Nancy L. Pinterest User
Where to find roasted chestnuts:
I am so happy to have found the little boxes of roasted chestnuts at our local Trader Joe’s. Have you seen them in the refrigerated section? Trust me, these are so much easier than roasting your own chestnuts. Trader Joe’s also sells unroasted chestnuts in their produce section.
A local Japanese grocery store, Mitsuwa, sells fresh and roasted chestnuts. (Just in case you like your chestnuts freshly roasted and don’t want to do the work.)
How to roast chestnuts in an oven:
If you decide you do want to roast your chestnuts, this is the easiest way:
- Preheat your oven to 400º F.
- Get your chestnuts out of the bag.
- Take a sharp knife and slice a + at the top of each chestnut. This is SUPER important so that the steam can be released during cooking. Exploding chestnuts can be dangerous and messy!
- Bake with the + side up on a
cookie sheet for 30 minutes.
How to roast chestnuts over a fire:
This is for the brave at heart. You will need a special basket to roast your chestnuts in. I have this vegetable grilling basket that I like to use.
- Preheat your grill (or start a campfire, fire in a fire pit, or another safe fire.)
- You will want to use a sharp knife and slice a + at the top of each chestnut, as described above.
- Put the chestnuts into the grill basket.
- Cook until the chestnuts start to open around the + sign.
Here is what the packaging looks like if you want to buy the pre-roasted chestnuts at Trader Joe’s:
Honestly, the chestnuts are pretty ugly in their little vacuum-packed bag…so I didn’t photograph them closely. I first became addicted to roasted chestnuts at our local Japanese grocery, Mistuwa. A small stand is in front of the store to buy freshly roasted chestnuts. The line was always long, but it was worth the wait.
The beauty of these gluten free chestnut cookies is their flavor. These cookies are delicious, or dip the bottoms in some dark chocolate!
Ingredient Notes:
For the full list of ingredients and amounts, please go to the recipe card below.
- Roasted chestnuts – shells removed.
- Gluten free flour blend – I used Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 GF Blend in this recipe, but many other brands should work.
- Xanthan Gum – add if your gluten free flour blend does not contain this ingredient.
- Butter – use vegan butter if you would like these cookies to be dairy-free
- Pure vanilla extract – I do not recommend imitation vanilla.
Step-By-Step Photos and Directions:
Step 1: Prepare your chestnuts using one of the methods above. Next, grind them into small pieces.
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I used my Cuisinart Immersion Blender attachment to grind the chestnuts into a coarse mixture. (This is one of my favorite and most used kitchen gadgets. It whips, grinds, blends, and is easy to clean up!)
You can also use a food processor if you have that. A Vitamix might work; I haven’t tried this method. If you use a Vitamix, you must be careful not to over-grind your chestnuts into a paste.
You can see the ground texture I used for the chestnuts in these cookies.
👀 Sandi Says: It is fine to have some larger chunks of chestnut…it gives the cookies a little texture.
Step 2: Put the dry ingredients into a large bowl and whisk to blend.
Step 3: In a smaller bowl, add the wet ingredients and mix well. Add your liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients.
Step 4: Mix the wet and dry ingredients into a dough mixture like the photo above. Sorry for the dark photo, but I wanted to show you what the dough looks like. As you can see, the dough is on the stiff side.
📢 Sandi says: Every gluten-free flour blend has a different starch-to-grain ratio. The brand of gluten-free flour you use will affect the moisture of the batter. If your cake batter is too runny, add more flour, and if it is too thick, add more liquids.
Read Why Gluten-Free Flour Blends Vary to learn more about this.
Step 5: Use a
Step 6: Optional – Feel free to dip your roasted chestnut cookies in dark chocolate. To do this, melt dark chocolate in a microwave-safe dish. Dip the bottoms of the baked cookies and set them onto wax paper to allow the chocolate to harden.
Frequently Asked Questions:
You can easily make this chestnut cookie recipe dairy-free by substituting vegan butter.
These cookies will be kept for up to 4 days in an airtight container or up to 4 months in the freezer.
Place the cooled cookies into a zip-style freezer bag and place them in the freezer.
More Gluten-Free Cookie Recipes:
To see all of the cookie recipes on my blog, click here for my gluten free cookie recipes.
- Gluten Free Cranberry Shortbread Bars
- Gluten Free Vanillekipferl Cookies
- Gluten Free Nutella Stuffed Linzer Tart Cookies
Love This Recipe?
If you made and enjoyed this recipe, I would be incredibly grateful if you could leave a comment below. Please include which flour blend you used. This will help others know this recipe is delicious. Thank you!
Gluten Free Chestnut Cookies
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Preheat oven to 350º F.
- In a grinder or food processor, grind 3/4 cup ground roasted chestnuts to medium texture blend. Add them to a large mixing bowl.
- Add 1 cup gluten free flour blend and 1/2 cup cane sugar to large the dry ingredients and whisk to blend.
- In a small bowl, add 1/2 cup unsalted butter (partially melted), 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, and 1 large egg. Use a wire whisk to whip the wet ingredients.
- Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix well.
- Drop by scoop onto a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes until done. Baking time can vary depending on the size of the cookies.
- Remove the cookies from the oven and slide the cookies on the parchment paper onto a cooling rack.
- Optional, dip the bottom into chocolate. I used this Wilton chocolate.
Nutrition
Notes
- I tested this recipe with Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 gluten free blend. Other blends should also work.
- If your flour blend has no binder added, add 3/4 teaspoon of xanthan gum.
- Use a Cuisinart, food processor, or Vitamix to grind your roasted chestnuts into a fine grind.
- These cookies will keep fresh for up to 4 days in an airtight container or for up to 4 months in the freezer.
Nutritional Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!
This post was updated from a 12/2015 post
I enjoyed the flavor of these cookies, and they were very easy to make. I used Bob’s Red Mill (Unbleached, All Purpose) Flour, brown sugar, and fresh chestnuts from Italy via Trader Joe’s that I roasted and ground. The final cookie was dipped in Baker’s German’s Sweet (48%cacao) Chocolate. For the next batch, I may cut back the butter slightly, add a touch of baking powder to help them rise a little bit, and switch to milk chocolate for dipping.
Hi Lynda, I am so glad you loved these cookies. I just saw chestnuts at our market and have been planning to roast a pan full of chestnuts soon.
The flavor of these was good, but the texture was strange. I think I needed less butter with my gluten-free flour mixture. I’ll try again.
Hi Christy, did you use already roasted refrigerated chestnuts, or freshly roasted?
This was a second try for me. last time they were a bit dry and land. This time I used French vacuum packed whole chestnuts. Made a world of difference. Very tasty….quick and easy to do. Used King Arthur Measure For Measure.
Thank you so much. I tend to get the vacuum packed chestnuts at Trader Joe’s. They are definitely softer and better than freshly roasted for some reason.
I made these cookies to use up some roasted chestnuts we had from Christmas. They are quite good, and go together quickly. I used Ghiradelli dark chocolate to dip them in which complemented the flavor of the cookie very well.
I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe, Deb. Thank you so much for coming back to let me know!
This looks delicious Is there anything that can replace the xanthan gum?
Thanks,
Angela
Hi Angela, you could try guar gum or some psyllium husk. I haven’t tested these but they usually perform in a similar way.
How would I modify this recipe if I wanted to use regular all purpose flour instead of gluten free?
Hi Lisa, I haven’t used wheat flour in about 10 years so I am not 100% sure but I see no reason regular flour wouldn’t work.
I have chestnut flour. Can I use that instead? I adore chestnuts. Thank you!
Hi Alene, I am not sure that chestnut flour would work the same as ground chestnuts because the ground chestnuts are moist and the flour is dry and absorbs more liquid. I do have a delicious chestnut flour scone recipe. If you try the flour in cookies, please let us know how it turns out.
I lost my chestnut Cooke recipe. So happy to find this one. And gluten free as well. Thanks!
I am so glad you are going to try this recipe :-).
Either I’m really tired or it’s just not written on the recipe…how many cookies does this recipe make? TFS!!!
Hi Laura, when I make this recipe, I get 16 cookies. It will depend on how big you like to make your cookies 🙂 Have a great weekend. Sandi
Hi Sandi,
I made these a few times now because my family and friends love them so much!!! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe
Wow Laura, thank you so much for taking the time to let me know. My family loves them too!
These were delicious. i always try a new Christmas cookie every year hope my friends love them as much as me.
I am so glad you liked these Charly. I also love new cookies and when I saw the roasted chestnuts, I had to try something new. Thank you so much for your kind words. Sandi