Can I Still Bake Regular Christmas Cookies With My Kids?

[Krickett]

Hi - figured I would ask the cooks out there.... I have been recently diagnosed (5 weeks gluten free)... I am wondering if it is still ok for me to bake regular christmas cookies with my kids.... I am not worried about being tempted to lick batter, eat cookies, etc... I was never into cookies/cakes anyway -- so that is not the problem.... I am worried about handling/breathing/being exposed to flour all day..... if I am careful and wash hands regularly and don't touch my face.... do I really have to worry? Also thinking that this is such an enjoyable family tradition... if it does make me sick... would it really set my recovery back that much if I only was exposed to breathing/touching flour...... thank you for being here... I am obviously new this forum and I am finding it very comforting to know that other people have already gone down this path!!! Krickett

[kbtoyssni]

I would not make regular cookies, mostly because of the wheat flour. That stuff gets all over the place - I don't think you can avoid CC if you use wheat flour in your kitchen.

Try altering your old cookie recipes. Here's what I do: replace wheat flour with a gluten-free flour mix (I use the ones in A Gluten Free Gourmet cookbook, if I remember I can try to post the mixes when I get home. Or search for flour mix on this site - I know I've seen some posted). Then add 1tsp xantham gum to make things stick together and maybe 1tsp egg replacer if you have it (not sure what this does, but I always use it anyway).

Most of the time I can't tell the difference between gluten and gluten-free cookies this way. My mum and I did a lot of experimenting with recipes when we first went gluten-free - some weren't as successful as others, but it was fun to try! My only comment is that gluten-free cookies tend to be more runny than gluten cookies.

[rinne]

I think the previous poster's suggestions were excellent.

I hope you can work out a compromise so that you can keep your tradition.

[Glutenfreefamily]

As mentioned above there is no need to make them with gluten, why hurt yourself when you make them gluten free and no one would know the difference?

This is my very favorite recipe for rolled sugar cookies. I brought them to a christmas party and all the cookies (triple batch was gone!) Mine are not runny and they had the lovely bakehouse cookie texture to them crisp on the outside slightly softer on the inside.

Gluten Free Sugar Cookies or Fruit Pizza Base

1

[Glutenfreefamily]

Wanted to add a few more things, make sure they stay well chilled it makes a huge difference in how they roll out. I also use powdered sugar sometimes to help roll them out instead of gluten-free flour as they dont get all floury tasting if you use too much.

[loco-ladi]

those sound like yummy cookies, snagged the recipe to try out later, THX!!!

as for regular flour in a gluten-free kitchen, nope wouldnt recommed it

[Glutenfreefamily]

Your welcome locoladi, You can use butter instead of margarine or egg replacer instead of eggs. My mom likes the butter taste from the real butter but to me margarine tastes very similar they have a rich vanilla flavor due to the pudding and usually I use vanilla frosting on top.

I edited it as I left out what ingredients to cream on accident

[kbabe1968]

NO!!!! Don't do it!!!!

You couldn't pay me enough to bake regular gluten cookies. My husband is dissappointed b/c I usually make a good tray of cookies for his coworkers each year. BUT...I've been really perfecting my gluten-free stuff so they will be just fine! If not, he can buy some.

Not gonna do it!

[sparkles]

Some grocery stores sell frozen cookie shapes at Christmas. I used to buy these when my kids were little. After all, it seemed that the most fun part was decorating the cookies with frosting, etc. for me it eliminated the mess of 3 sets of little hands trying to make the cookie batter and we all had a lot more fun when mom wasn't stressed! Of course, you might have more patience than I did but for my kids, decorating the cookies was always the most fun.

[NorthernElf]

Open Original Shared Link

This is the Gluten Free Girl's website - btw, she has a new book out that is interesting. Some of these recipes aren't "practical" to me - where I live I will never find good quality lemon olive oil, for example. But I have bookmarked some of the recipes to try some holiday baking with my kids. We do Xmas at my parents so I need some treats I can eat safely !

allrecipes.com and recipezaar.com have some gluten free recipes if you search it out, maybe some Xmas ones too !

[lonewolf]

I wouldn't make gluten-filled cookies either. I have 4 kids and even before any of them needed to we made our cookies gluten-free. I won't have wheat flour in the house and haven't for almost 12 years. We make sugar cookies, gingerbread people, Russian teacakes, ginger-molasses cookies, peanut blossoms and spritz cookies. All from regular recipes just substituting gluten-free flour.

I mix up my own flour with 3 C brown rice flour, 1 C potato starch, 1/2 C tapioca starch and 2-1/2 tsp. xanthan gum. (The Russian teacakes take a bit more xanthan gum, so I add an extra 1/2 tsp. to the recipe after I've measured the flour.)

You can still have your traditions and not have to worry about getting sick!

[Juliet]

"where I live I will never find good quality lemon olive oil, for example"

Northern Elf - do you have a Trader Joe's nearby at all? They have a great lemon olive oil!

[bakingbarb]

Hi - figured I would ask the cooks out there.... I have been recently diagnosed (5 weeks gluten free)... I am wondering if it is still ok for me to bake regular christmas cookies with my kids.... I am not worried about being tempted to lick batter, eat cookies, etc... I was never into cookies/cakes anyway -- so that is not the problem.... I am worried about handling/breathing/being exposed to flour all day..... if I am careful and wash hands regularly and don't touch my face.... do I really have to worry? Also thinking that this is such an enjoyable family tradition... if it does make me sick... would it really set my recovery back that much if I only was exposed to breathing/touching flour...... thank you for being here... I am obviously new this forum and I am finding it very comforting to know that other people have already gone down this path!!! Krickett

Hi, I have only been gluten-free since the end of October. I too worried about this so I haven't really done any of that kind of baking for my family. But my daughter is 15 and she loves pizza, well sorta, pizza crust with cheese and nothing else. Kinda spendy to go buy it just for her so I made pizza crust for her the other day and I didn't have any problems. Just washed around the fingernails real well when I was done.

IF you are careful it doens't get everywhere. You can't go through life being afraid of the stuff. Granted I don't want to consume it at all but I refuse to give into not doing what I love ever for the people I love. Touching it doens't make me sick and I doubt it will you either. Try it and find out that is the only way you will know if you can or not.

You have to trust your instincts too.

[jerseyangel]

I have a fantastic gluten free sugar cookie recipe that rolls, bakes and tastes just like traditional Christmas cookies. Let me know if you want me to post it

[bakingbarb]

I have a fantastic gluten free sugar cookie recipe that rolls, bakes and tastes just like traditional Christmas cookies. Let me know if you want me to post it

I would like it. I am debating what to make this year.

My daughter swears she can tell the difference in the stuff I bake now. HUMPH I doubt it, I think it is mental.

Making something like this might fool her?

[bakingbarb]

I wouldn't make gluten-filled cookies either. I have 4 kids and even before any of them needed to we made our cookies gluten-free. I won't have wheat flour in the house and haven't for almost 12 years. We make sugar cookies, gingerbread people, Russian teacakes, ginger-molasses cookies, peanut blossoms and spritz cookies. All from regular recipes just substituting gluten-free flour.

I mix up my own flour with 3 C brown rice flour, 1 C potato starch, 1/2 C tapioca starch and 2-1/2 tsp. xanthan gum. (The Russian teacakes take a bit more xanthan gum, so I add an extra 1/2 tsp. to the recipe after I've measured the flour.)

You can still have your traditions and not have to worry about getting sick!

How do you decide how much xanthan gum the cookies need? You mention the russian teacakes take more but how do you know? I have seen some guidelines but meh! What clues should I be looking for in the baked goods to know if I have enough or too much?

tia

[jerseyangel]

I would like it. I am debating what to make this year.

My daughter swears she can tell the difference in the stuff I bake now. HUMPH I doubt it, I think it is mental.

Making something like this might fool her?

Hi Barb--

With frosting and colored sugar or sprinkles, these taste like the "real thing"

SUGAR COOKIES

1 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups rice flour blend

1 and 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

Cream shortening and sugar--add eggs and vanilla and mix well. Combine dry ingredients and add to creamed mixture and mix well.

Chill dough for an hour, roll and cut as desired. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.

This recipe doubles easily

[blueeyedmanda]

Thanks for posting the sugar cookie recipe Patti, I have been itching to make those cookies and was unsure how they would turn out...Thanks

[kbabe1968]

OH...BTW....try www.landolakes.com They have a recipe for a cut out cookie. Gluten Free. (they have a flour recipe on there that mixes three flours).

My daughter and I made them earlier this year and they were DELICIOUS. A crowd full of gluten eaters ate them up!

They'd be PERFECT for bake and ice Christmas Cookies.

[lonewolf]

How do you decide how much xanthan gum the cookies need? You mention the russian teacakes take more but how do you know? I have seen some guidelines but meh! What clues should I be looking for in the baked goods to know if I have enough or too much?

tia

My normal flour mixture calls for about 1/2 tsp. of xanthan gum per cup of flour. With most cookies, it's just fine. I discovered that Russian Teacakes need a bit more because they "exploded" in the powdered sugar the first time I made them. We nicknamed them "Russian Tea Bombs". I added about 1/2 or 2/3 of a tsp. (sorry, I'm horrible about measuring when I cook and bake) to the flour the next time and they turned out great.

Cookies that are supposed to be crispy or dry tend to need a little more xanthan gum or they'll get crumbly. Cookies that are moist don't need any extra.

So, if your crisp cookies get crumbly, add a bit more xanthan gum. If your moist cookies are too chewy, add a bit less the next time. Sorry I can't be more precise - I do a lot by "feel".

[bakingbarb]

My normal flour mixture calls for about 1/2 tsp. of xanthan gum per cup of flour. With most cookies, it's just fine. I discovered that Russian Teacakes need a bit more because they "exploded" in the powdered sugar the first time I made them. We nicknamed them "Russian Tea Bombs". I added about 1/2 or 2/3 of a tsp. (sorry, I'm horrible about measuring when I cook and bake) to the flour the next time and they turned out great.

Cookies that are supposed to be crispy or dry tend to need a little more xanthan gum or they'll get crumbly. Cookies that are moist don't need any extra.

So, if your crisp cookies get crumbly, add a bit more xanthan gum. If your moist cookies are too chewy, add a bit less the next time. Sorry I can't be more precise - I do a lot by "feel".

That is how I cook and bake too, by feel. There is very rarely that I follow recipes exactly so gluten-free is interesting! LOL

Last night I found a lemon drop cookie recipe and made it gluten-free. My daughter has been asking for lemon cookies so I thought why not. Big thing is I didn't tell her they were gluten-free I told her they were not! She almost ate the whole batch (granted it was small but still). I did try a few and they were good but a bit crumbly. I think it was a little under 2 cups of flour and I used about 3/4 tsp xanthan, so since they were crumbly I should increase the amount? I will remember that.

I am just happy she ate them. Not really sure if she believed me but she ate them!

It was a basic drop sugar cookie recipe with lemon and gluten-free flour. I used half butter and half shortening and kept the dough in the fridge for hours before baking. Falling in love with baking again.

[Sweetfudge]

That is how I cook and bake too, by feel. There is very rarely that I follow recipes exactly so gluten-free is interesting! LOL

Last night I found a lemon drop cookie recipe and made it gluten-free. My daughter has been asking for lemon cookies so I thought why not. Big thing is I didn't tell her they were gluten-free I told her they were not! She almost ate the whole batch (granted it was small but still). I did try a few and they were good but a bit crumbly. I think it was a little under 2 cups of flour and I used about 3/4 tsp xanthan, so since they were crumbly I should increase the amount? I will remember that.

I am just happy she ate them. Not really sure if she believed me but she ate them!

It was a basic drop sugar cookie recipe with lemon and gluten-free flour. I used half butter and half shortening and kept the dough in the fridge for hours before baking. Falling in love with baking again.

mmm those sound good!

[mftnchn]

This is my very favorite recipe for rolled sugar cookies.

Gluten Free Sugar Cookies or Fruit Pizza Base

1

[Ridgewalker]

I can't buy instant pudding mix here in China and can't have the milk that is in it either. Can I make a homemade pudding mix (usually that is cooked) and make it work? I'd love to have something like a sugar cookie that can be decorated.

I'm not sure about the pudding question, but I got a recipe from someone on here that we're in love with. I can't remember who posted it, sorry, I'm awful about that. But it doesn't call for pudding, and turned out great!

They tasted like regular sugar cookies even before we frosted and decorated them. I think the ticket is using real butter.

Butter Cookies

1/2 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1-3/4 all purpose gluten-free baking flour (I used Bette Hagman's blend and added 1 rounded TSP XANTHAN GUM)

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients; gradually add to the creamed mixture. cover and chill for 1 hour or until easy to handle. On a lightly floured surface, roll out to 1/9 in thickness.

Cut with cookie cutters and place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheet.

Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on wire racks.

[pastorjaysonn]

I know that the question has already been answered over and over, but I figured that I would start off my time here (this is my first post) with a little experience myself.

I used to teach preschool as did/does my wife. I was promoted to a different classroom and took over right away. The previous teacher had a "sand table" which is basically a hollow table where you can store different textured things for the children to feel.

Almost right after taking the classroom, I started having attacks and stomache issues and it appeared as if I was always in a state of gluten poisoning. We started looking around the classroom for a source and found that the teacher before me had put pounds and pounds of wheat flour. Just having it in the room with the air holes at the top had me to the point of pure misery.

I recommend staying COMPLETELY clear of gluten! My wife has gone gluten-free too just to prevent any cross contamination!