A killer addition to any Christmas cookie tray: the classic Thumbprint Cookie! These Thumbprint Cookies are grain-free and vegan, making them the perfect healthy cookies for everyone.
Are you all about cookies during Christmastime?
I guess, that’s sort of a trick question, cause I’m about cookies all the time 😉
Although certain Christmas cookies and treats have a special place in my heart. Thumbprint Cookies surprisingly weren’t one of them as I grew up!
But, over the last couple of years I’ve fallen in love with them and I’ve decided that they will be a new tradition for our own little family now. 🙂
I like to have a plethora of cookie recipes up my sleeves, from sugar and butter-laden to lightly sweetened and vegan, so I have good recipes for whatever the occasion calls for.
These soft Thumbprint Cookies are gluten-free, grain-free (with almond flour), dairy-free and vegan (with coconut oil, maple syrup and a flax egg) and can be made paleo if you use chia seed jam in the center!
Super flexible, and a pretty healthy cookie, this easy recipe is one you’ll need in your back pocket too for Christmas or any Holiday parties!
Here’s the details for sweet cookie success…
First, when you make your flax egg be sure to give it a few minutes to set so that it can become jelly-like and properly imitate your egg.
I use the flax egg in this recipe as a binder for the cookie as well as a binder for the walnuts to stick to the cookies themselves! I love using flax eggs as a substitute for regular eggs, I think they’re an easy substitute and really flexible.
Can’t have almond butter? What else can you use?
I’d recommend cashew butter or sun butter. Any nut butter that has the same consistency as almond butter and still has a neutral flavor will work well in this recipe.
Can I use honey instead of maple syrup? Or other sweeteners?
Yes, you can use honey but then they won’t be entirely vegan. You could also use white sugar (instead 1/4 cup) but I wouldn’t recommend other sugar substitutes.
Could I use another type of gluten-free flour instead?
If your looking for a gluten-free Thumbprint Cookie recipe with all purpose gluten-free flour, then check out my classic recipe, Hazelnut Snickerdoodle Thumbprint Cookies, or Lemon Strawberry Thumbprint Cookies.
I wouldn’t recommend trying to use other gluten-free flours in place of the almond flour because they may behave differently in the batter and not work.
What jam do you recommend?
Any jam you like! I used my homemade blackberry jam, from the blackberries from our garden! It was fantastic. Blackberry, raspberry, strawberry… whatever flavor you like most.
Keep in mind for a paleo (and healthier) cookie you can fill these with chia seed jam too.
Made with almond flour, lightly sweetened with maple syrup, rolled in nuts, and filled with sweet jam, these soft, classic cookies are always a winner!
Need other Christmas Cookies to drool over? Check out my gluten-free Snickerdoodle Cookies, Soft Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies, Peanut Butter Cookies, Mexican Hot Cocoa Cookies, and Chocolate Peppermint Breakfast Cookies!
- 1 tbsp flax seed, ground
- 3 tbsp room temperature/warm water
- 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted (or butter)
- 1/4 cup almond butter
- 3 tbsp maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1/2 cup walnuts, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup jam (your favorite flavor!)
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To begin, add your ground flax and water to a small bowl and set aside, to form your flax egg. After a few minutes the mixture should turn jelly-like, almost like an egg white.
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Preheat your oven to 350 and line a pan with parchment paper.
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In a large bowl, add your coconut oil, almond butter, maple syrup, and vanilla and whisk them together. Add one tablespoon of your flax egg and your almond flour to the bowl and stir together, till you have one consistent cookie dough batter.
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To another small bowl add your chopped walnuts. Create an assembly line with your flax egg bowl first, walnut bowl next, and then cookie pan.
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Scoop your cookie dough, then roll each cookie in the rest of the flax egg gently, then roll it in the chopped walnuts, and then place it on your pan. Continue till all cookies have been rolled, and are evenly spaced apart on your pan.
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Gently push your thumb in the center of each cookie, carefully creating the "thumbprint." If the sides of your cookies collapse, gently push them back together again.
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Using a 1/2 teaspoon, scoop jam into the thumb-printed center of each cookie, filling it entirely with jam (being careful not to overflow it with jam) until each cookie is filled.
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Bake in the oven for 15-17 minutes, or till the edges of the cookies are set and feel firm to touch.
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Let cool entirely then devour!
These cookies taste best within the first 2-3 days. After that they will begin to soften, and I recommend storing them in the fridge after that.
Can I use 1 egg instead of flax seeds?
Hi Connie. Yes. Instead of using 1 tablespoon of flax egg (in step #3) add your egg yolk to the batter. Then, whisk your egg white till frothy. You’ll dip your cookies in the egg white prior to rolling them in walnuts. I hope this helps!
I’ll be trying this. Are the walnuts optional?
Hi there, yes you can make them without the walnuts. Then you would not dip them in the flax egg or walnuts. Enjoy!