Get ready to forget all about those traditional heavy Christmas cookies with these healthy Christmas cookie recipes!
My mama shows she loves through food and there is no better time to show love than during the holidays. Growing up the holiday season meant cookies baked just about every weekend after Thanksgiving (if not also during the week). It meant good smelling candles, a warm home and always yummy food.
My mama makes some of the best holiday cookies but as I have gotten older, I have wanted to use more wholesome ingredients than she traditionally used. That has been my dilemma for the past three or four years now. How do I make the types of cookies I grew up loving with ingredients that I would prefer and turn them into healthy Christmas cookie recipes?
This post is the result of my searching. I have found an excellent gingerbread recipe that I love and a few new healthy Christmas cookie recipes to add to our holiday collection. And while they still not be something you want to eat every day, they are still healthier than your traditional Christmas cookies.
4 Healthy Christmas Cookie Recipes
Gingerbread Cookies
These gingerbread cookies are some of the best gingerbread that I have ever tasted. They have real grated ginger, white whole wheat flour and coconut oil which adds a certain sweetness to the cookie. The dough is easy to work with, keeps well in the refrigerator and makes a batch of about 24-30 cookies. Totally worth a try! I like to frost them with a peppermint buttercream frosting made with ½ a stick of butter, 2 cups of powdered cane sugar, almond milk and peppermint extract.
Vegan Thumbprint Cookies
These vegan thumbprint cookies are new to my list this year but I am excited to given them a go! Angela Liddon of Oh She Glows mixed up this recipe and worked out all the kinks so we can enjoy a simple, healthy cookie without any complicated techniques or strange ingredients. The only ingredient I was unfamiliar with was the ground kamut flour but I am confident that I will be able to find it at my local grocery store. And hey, I can handle using a single *new* ingredient!
This recipe calls for:
- 3/4 cup + 2/3 cup stone-ground kamut flour
- 1/2 cup walnuts, finely crushed or processed in food processor
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp pure maple syrup
- 2 tbsp brown rice syrup
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp pure almond extract
- 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
- 3 tbsp almond milk
- Approx 1/3 cup strawberry jam
- 1/2 cup pecans, crushed or processed
Directions: Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment
- In a large bowl mix up flour, crushed walnuts, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt and whisk until combined.
- In a separate bowl, combine the wet ingredients: maple syrup, melted coconut oil, vanilla, almond extract, brown rice syrup, and almond milk. Stir well.
- Add wet mixture to dry mixture and stir until just combined.
- Roll the dough into balls. Lightly dip your fingers in a cup of water, tap off excess, and then roll the ball in your wet fingers. Now roll the ball in the pecans. Place the ball onto the baking sheet.
- With your thumb and finger press a large well into the center of each ball (but don’t go all the way through!) and shape it with your fingers, pinching the edges as you go around. Fix any cracks that may form in the dough with your fingers.
- Fill the hole with a generous amount of jam- about 1/2-1 tsp. Place cookies about 1 inch apart.
Peanut Butter Kiss Cookies
Now, my mother’s peanut butter kiss cookies are my dad’s favorite, so I’m not sure he would welcome a new version. I on the other hand, am dying to find a comparable recipe so that I can enjoy these much beloved cookies on the holidays! This version is vegan and is made with coconut sugar. YAY! The benefit of using coconut sugar is that it has a lower glycemic index, meaning that it won’t make your blood sugar spike. Instead, you’ll feel satisfied longer so your cookies will last longer and your waistline will thank you!
Almond and Cinnamon Holiday Stars
The best thing about these cookies? They’re made with only seven ingredients! These Almond cookies are made with almond flour which makes them taste rich and sweet. A single batch will yield 30 small two-bite cookies.
Ingredients:
- 1 ¾ c ground almonds or almond flour
- ¾ c coconut sugar
- 1 TBSP ground chia seeds
- 2 TBSP cold water
- 2 TBSP maple syrup
- 3 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Directions:
- Grind the almonds into a flour if you are using whole almonds.
- Place the ground chia seeds and the water into a small bowl. Whisk together with a fork and set aside to thicken for about 10 minutes.
- Place the coconut sugar, ground almonds, cinnamon and vanilla powder into a food processor or big bowl.
- Add the chia-mix and maple syrup and combine everything for about 30 seconds until a sticky dough forms. If the dough is crumbly, and not sticky, add a teaspoon of cold water.
- Pre-heat the oven to 320 degrees fahrenheit.
- Roll the dough out between two pieces of baking paper. Make sure not to roll it out too thin – it should be around 5 mm thick. Using star shaped cutters, cut out about 30 stars.
- Place the cinnamon stars on a baking tray lined with baking paper and bake for 8-10 minutes until golden brown. Let the cookies cool for a few minutes until transferring them to a cooling rack.
These healthy Christmas cookie recipes are on my list of baking “to-dos” this holiday season. What’s on your list? Do you have healthier versions of traditional holiday cookies?
