If you love cookies, these gluten free pfeffernusse cookies will soon become one of your favorites :-). Crunchy, with a hint of spice, these German holiday cookies make a delicious treat all year long. If you are looking for more gluten free cookie recipes, check out all of my gluten free holiday cookies.
Thank you readers
Three years ago, I started this blog for fun; to try to help people who were gluten free. When we were originally diagnosed, there wasn’t much information out there and I wanted to make sure others could find delicious recipes to enjoy.”
Over the past two years, my blog has grown so much and I am truly grateful for all of my readers. (For my cookie fans, my kids asked me to tell you to try two of their favorites: Gluten Free Nutella Stuffed Linzer Cookies and these Gluten Free Russian Tea Cookies.
I am so excited for this holiday season. Cookies are my thing, as you can probably tell from all of the cookie recipes on my blog. The holidays are an excuse to make cookies more often :-).
You will love how this recipe came to be. I was at fencing class with my son when I got an urgent text message from Mr. Fearless Dining. It was a photo of a box of regular pfeffernusse cookies and a note, “please make this gluten free for me soon.”
Pfeffernusse Cookies
Pfeffernusse are a popular cookie in Germany, the Netherlands, and Denmark.
My husband’s family is from Germany and his grandmother used to bake homemade pfeffernusse cookies during the holidays. Since going gluten free, he hasn’t really thought about this cookie…until he was grocery shopping with our daughter a few days ago.
Seeing the box of cookies triggered his memories and I knew I had to create a gluten free version for him. One bite of this gluten free pfeffernusse cookie and I think you will be hooked too.
It is pretty hard to resist when he asked so nicely :-).
Want to see more gluten free cookie recipes? Click here to see all cookie recipes on this site.
Did you know you can also use this recipe to make amazing Gluten Free Cookie Mix? Just layer it in a mason jar for easy gift giving!
Shopping List:
- Gluten free flour blend, (*Note, my flour blend has xanthan gum included. If yours doesn’t, add 1 teaspoon.)
- Almond flour
- Cinnamon
- Allspice
- Nutmeg
- Cloves
- Baking soda
- Butter
- Brown sugar
- Molasses
- Egg
- Vanilla
- Powdered sugar, for dusting after the cookies have cooled
How to make gluten free pfeffernusse cookies:
In a bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients. Hint: You may need to chop up a bit of the almond flour like you can see in this picture.
How do you store almond flour so it doesn’t get rancid?
I store my almond flour in the refrigerator to prevent it from going rancid. This cold makes the almond flour bunch up a bit sometimes.
Whisk together the wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Next, pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix well.
How to make the perfectly shaped cookies
Use a cookie scoop to make your cookie balls. I used to drop the cookies onto the cookie sheet with a spoon, but my son really likes when the cookies are all uniform and “pretty” so I now use a cookie scoop.
How long do you bake pfeffernusse?
Bake your cookies for 8-10 minutes. You don’t want to over-bake them and have them get too hard. Once the cookies have baked, you will want to roll them in powdered sugar.
This cookie recipe is perfect for a holiday party, or even a cookie exchange party. Although these gluten free pfeffernusse cookies remind me of Christmas, they are a delicious cookie to bake all year round! Here are my favorite gluten free cookies to make for a cookie exchange party.
Can you make these gluten free pfeffernusse cookies dairy-free?
You can make them dairy-free by using palm shortening, or coconut oil. It will change the texture a little bit, but the flavor is still great!
If you want to create a delicious German dinner to enjoy before you eat these cookies, check out my Gluten Free Schnitzel recipe! This recipe also includes a recipe for German potato salad that is delicious with the schnitzel!
More Delicious Gluten Free Cookie Recipes To Try!
- Gluten Free Ginger Cookies
- Gluten Free Austrian Vanillekipferl Cookies
- Gluten Free Roasted Chestnut Cookies
- Swiss Brunsli Cookies
Things You Need To Make This Recipe:
- A cookie scoop makes sure all of your cookies are perfectly the same size.
- Almond flour adds a little protein to balance out the sugar.
Gluten Free Pfeffernusse Cookies
Easy gluten free pfeffernusse cookie recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups gluten free flour blend, (*Note, my flour blend has xanthan gum included. If yours doesn't, add 1 teaspoon.)
- 3/4 cup almond flour
- 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon all spice
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 stick of butter, melted (1/2 cup)
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 tablespoon water
- powdered sugar, for dusting after the cookies have cooled
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl, add all dry ingredients.
- Whisk to blend.
- In a small bowl, add all wet ingredients and mix well.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.
- Mix well.
- Use a cookie scoop to drop dough balls onto a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes until done.
- Remove and move to a cooling rack.
- Allow to cool.
- Drop each cookie into powdered sugar and toss to coat.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 18 Serving Size: gAmount Per Serving: Calories: 78Saturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 23mgSodium: 42mgCarbohydrates: 7.7gFiber: 0.1gSugar: 7.1gProtein: 0.4g
Su
What can I substitute the egg for? Thanks!
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Su, I have never made these without egg. You could try an egg replacer. Let me know how it goes.
Aviva
I just made a batch, and they turned out great! I’m at altitude, so I used a scant 1/2 tsp of baking soda, amped up the spices, and they’re delicious.
Sandi Gaertner
I am so glad you liked these Aviva. I appreciate your coming back to let me know 🙂
Ang
Have you ever frozen these? Do you think they would be ok to freeze? Thanks!
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Ang. They freeze really well, but hold off on the powdered sugar until you thaw them out. Otherwise the sugar gets odd when it defrosts. Thank you so much!
Ang
Thanks! I was thinking the powdered sugar wouldn’t do well. They turned out SO good! Love all the spices in every bite! My kiddos enjoyed them too. We will be freezing the rest for the big Christmas with my family!I did put the butter in when it wasn’t entirely melted. The wet ingredients ended up too cold and separated but I popped it in the microwave for 30 seconds and all was good! Thanks for this awesome recipe!
Sandi Gaertner
I am so glad your family liked them Ang. You made my day 🙂
Debra C.
How delicious! I love that your hubby came home with the request also. Very fun and what a treat! These cookies look delicious!
Sandi Gaertner
LOL, he can be a bit pushy when it is about a dessert 🙂
Pam
These look so beautiful and delicious. And, thank you for the great tutorial. Your photos are awesome!
Sandi Gaertner
Thank you so much Pam 🙂
Katie D
I’ve never been able to try these cookies because I haven’t seen a GF version. It’s so perfect that you have one! My niece is GF too and I’m sure she’ll love these for the holidays 🙂
Sandi Gaertner
Awesome Katie, I hope she likes them 🙂
Monica | Nourish & Fete
These look beautiful, and it’s so lovely that you were able – and willing – to recreate these for your husband! We will most likely head to at least one Christmas market in Germany this year, and I’ll definitely keep an eye out for these! Yum!
Sandi Gaertner
LOL, he really loved these cookies. We love the Christmas market in Munchen…enjoy your trip 🙂
Helen of Fuss Free Flavours
I love all the different traditions there are from other countries and cultures. These cookies sound wonderful, and so lovely to make for the Christmas period. A little bite of deliciousness.
Sandi Gaertner
So do I Helen…it makes the holidays even more special 🙂
Savita @ ChefDeHome
This is the best time to enjoy cookies! Gluten free, even better. Thanks for sharing, Sandi.
Sandi Gaertner
I am so glad you like this recipe Savita, I appreciate your stopping by 🙂
Marilyn
Hi, Thanks for this wonderful recipe. My son takes a german language class that has a student and a teacher that can not have gluten.. Every week parents bring snacks. Last week someone brought really delicious chocolate chip cookies but the two could not have any. I felt so bad. I found this recipe to make especially for them AND THEY BOTH LOVED IT!!! I loved the recipe so much I made a regular flour batch just for my family and it was still amazing.
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Marilyn, I am so glad you and your son made these for the class! Your story made my day 🙂 I can’t tell you how often it is my kids who can’t eat something brought for the class. Thank you!!
Sand
My mother used to make this cookie every Christmas, I have tried to make her version gf with no luck. What did base ypur version on…a recipe that you used to make and just substituted the flour??? I make mom’s every year for my brother and my husband and it kills me not to be able to eat tehm.
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Sand, my father in law is German and I sort of modified a recipe he had. I think you will like this gluten free version very much 🙂
Janette
Good Morning Sandi,
Thank you so much for sharing your lovely recipe. Aimee noted that she is allergic to almonds – this is an allergy we have in common. Thus, when making these cookies, I omitted the almond flour and only used a GF flour (the brand name = GF Jules – at gfjules.com) as per the recipe and only added 1/8 cup of extra flour to the recipe. One note, they took a few minutes longer to cook than noted in the recipe – not sure of the chemistry or maybe was just my oven. These cookies came out beautifully and were incredibly tasty – just the right amount of spice which isn’t overwhelming. A nice moist cookie that isn’t hard and crumbly like a gingerbread cookie can be.
Again, many thanks for sharing so many wonderful recipes. Your site is a treasure trove of yummy stuff! Going to try the chocolate mint crinkles later today. 🙂
Sandi Gaertner
Wow Janette, Thank you so much for letting us know how you modified this recipe to remove the almond. This will help a lot of readers 🙂 Have a wonderful holiday. Sandi
Aimee
Hi. I am allergic to almonds, what other flour would you recommend? Thank you so very much.
Sandi Gaertner
Hi Aimee, Almond flour doesn’t absorb much liquid, so feel free to use more gluten free flour blend but maybe try 1/4 cup of the flour blend first. If it is pretty runny, add a little more to get a good ratio. Thanks for writing. If you do come up with a good % regular flour to substitute, please come back and let us know because it would help a lot of readers 🙂
chrisgharmon
I’ve never heard of Pfeffernusse cookies before! I’m sure I would love them though!
Sandi Gaertner
I hope you get a chance to try them soon 🙂
Tina Hobbs
I’ve made an assortment of cookies but not these. I’m looking forward to making them with my family this year. A cup of Starbucks coffee would be most enjoyable with them. Thanks for the opportunity to win the gift card and for sharing your recipe.
Lynn | The Road to Honey
I think it is absolutely adorable that your hubby sent you the text requesting these beauties. I bet he was thrilled when you were able to whip up a gluten free version. They look absolutely divine.
Sandi Gaertner
Thank you so much Lynn….he is pretty sweet.
Colette
Oh how festive! I had not heard of pfeffernusse, but I must try them!
Sandi Gaertner
I hope you like them Colette 🙂
Heather
Beautiful! I have homemade macadamia flour in the fridge right now, and think it’d add a special richness to these. Thanks!
Cindy (Vegetarian Mamma)
These look great! I love how easy they are! I know my kids would love to help me make these!
Sandi Gaertner
Thank you Cindy…you trust your kids with a bowl of powdered sugar?? I am not that brave LOL.