Gluten-Free Vegan Flourless Iced Cut-Out Cookies

Make your own homemade cut-out sugar cookies with my easy and healthy Gluten-Free Vegan Flourless Iced Cut-Out Cookies recipe that's made with clean ingredients and no butter, eggs, white sugar, white flour or unnatural food coloring!

A long time ago, like a really long time ago, I used to be a loyal patron to a local cookie shop called "The Cookie Bouquet" where they had decorated iced sugar cookies the size of your hand.

And I ate A LOT of those cookies.

I could never pass up those pastel-colored cookies because they were just so beautiful.

I'm still drawn to cut-out cookies that are decorated pretty, so I came up with my own version that I could enjoy with my healthier Gluten-Free Vegan Flourless Iced Cut-Out Cookie recipe.

I really wouldn't call these "sugar" cookies because they are naturally sweetened with maple syrup and aren't near as sweet as "sugar" cookies, but they are iced cut-out cookies. 

They're based off my Gluten-Free Vegan Thyme and Garlic Crackers recipe, but instead of making a savory dough, I altered the recipe a little bit to make it a sweet, dessert-type dough.

The BEST Vegan Cut-Out Sugar Cookie Recipe

Why is this the BEST vegan cut-out sugar cookie recipe?

Well, there are numerous reasons and I'll tell you why.

• No white flour 
• No white sugar
• No butter
• No eggs
• No corn syrup
• No mixer needed
• No need to refrigerate + chill the dough
• 100% natural + organic coloring used for the icing. You don't have to settle for sketchy artificial food colors just to enjoy a pretty cookie

Are These Gluten-Free Vegan Iced Cut-Out Cookies Healthy?

In my opinion, yes!

Let's look at the ingredient list for store-bought cookies as a comparison.

I'm sure the official "Cookie Bouquet" recipe is proprietary information and can't be found online, so we'll use a store-bought cookie ingredient list instead:

S.A.D. (Standard American Diet) Walmart Frosted Sugar Cookies:

Ingredients:  Sugar, Enriched Bleached Flour (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Margarine (Palm Oil, Water, Soybean Oil, Salt, Mono And Diglycerides, Calcium Disodium EDTA [Preservative], Artificial Flavor, Annatto Extract [Color], Vitamin A Palmitate), Eggs, Water, Contains 2% Or Less Of: Cornstarch, Palm Kernel Oil, Palm Oil, Leavening (Baking Soda, Sodium Aluminum Sulfate, Monocalcium Phosphate), Modified Food Starch, Polysorbate 60, Soy Lecithin (Emulsifier), Nonfat Milk, Confectioner's Glaze, Natural And Artificial Flavors, Sodium Propionate (Preservative), Blue 1 Lake, Carnauba Wax, Red 3, Yellow 5 Lake, Yellow 6 Lake.

A store-bought version contains white sugar, bleached white flour, margarine?!, preservatives, multiple food colorings and GMO ingredients (soy lecithin, soybean oil, cornstarch).

And they are not vegan (eggs, non-fat milk) or gluten-free (bleached wheat flour).

My healthier version is both vegan and gluten-free, is naturally sweetened with maple syrup, and uses an organic, natural food coloring (organic pitaya powder).

Do these Gluten-Free Vegan Flourless Iced Cut-Out Cookies Contain "Vegan Butter"?

No - no vegan butter or any type of butter at all, just a tablespoon of 100% pure avocado oil!

You may already know this, but most vegan cut-out or sugar cookies contain "vegan butter" as an ingredient.

One great thing about this recipe is you don't need "vegan butter" to make them!

While vegan butter is a good transition food for a new vegan, it's not a "real food" and is highly processed.

Most contain soy and/or canola oil, so if you are looking to avoid either of those, just make sure you look at the ingredient label.

Are These Iced Cut-Out Cookies Gluten-Free?

Yes! My recipe is 100% gluten-free!

However, most vegan cut-out cookie or sugar cookie recipes use white flour as an ingredient, making them not gluten-free.

My cookies are perfect if you need a vegan and gluten-free recipe.

What Ingredients Do I Need To Make This Recipe?

This recipe is made with clean, real food ingredients that are nutrient-dense.

Try to buy organic ingredients whenever possible.

• Almond Flour
• Maple Syrup
• Ground Flax Seeds
• Filtered/Purified Water
• 100% Pure Avocado Oil
• 100% Pure Vanilla Extract
• Vegan Powdered Sugar 
• Almonds (Almond Milk)
• Pitaya Powder
• Baking Powder
• Himalayan Pink Salt

Make sure you visit my "5 Fast Facts of Nutrient-Dense Foods" to see the nutritional benefits of the ingredients I used in this recipe!

Do I Need A Special Cookie Cutter To Make These Ice Cut-Out Cookies?

Not at all!

You can use whatever cookie cutter you have on hand, one for a special occasion or holiday or even a basic circle one like I used.

In fact, you can even make these cut-out cookies without a cookie cutter.

You can use the top of a cup or glass or even the outer ring of a mason jar lid.

Just keep in mind the size of your cookie cutter will determine how many cookies you can make with a single recipe batch.

For example, I used a 2-inch round cookie cutter and was able to make 14 small cookies.

I've also used this recipe to make a little larger tulip cookies and it only made about 6, because the cookie cutter was larger.

What Kind of Healthy Toppings Can I Use On My Cookies?

• Powdered Sugar: I'm not a big fan of powdered sugar and you can probably count on one hand how many recipes I have on my website using it because I prefer natural sweeteners like organic maple syrup and organic Medjool dates.  But for a special occasion or treat, I will use organic vegan powdered sugar and only this brand because it's made vegan sugar (meaning it's made without animal bone char to whiten it).
• Icing Coloring: I looked and looked and couldn't find a "natural" food coloring I was happy with, even the ones that are "naturally" colored because they all contained other ingredients I prefer not to use or recommend. So I colored my icing with 100% organic pitaya powder - nothing else - to get the beautiful fuchsia color.
• Toppings: Same thing with the icing coloring - I tried to find "natural" sprinkles but I couldn't find any I was happy with or felt good about recommending, so I topped my cookies with real food like sliced almonds, hemp seeds, chia seeds, shredded coconut, etc. And here's some great news - they taste delicious even without a topping so don't worry if you don't want to use a topping!

Want More Healthy Vegan and Gluten-Free Flourless Cookie Recipes?

Check out these:

• Gluten-Free Vegan Flourless Chocolate Peanut Butter Thumbprint Cookies
• Gluten-Free Vegan Flourless Fudgy Chocolate Avocado Cookies
• Gluten-Free Vegan Flourless Chocolate Chip Banana Walnut Cookies
• or my CLEAN DESSERTS No-Bake Dessert Cookbook with 72 vegan + gluten-free recipes made with real food ingredients!

Did You Make My Gluten-Free Vegan Flourless Iced Cut-Out Cookies Recipe?

I'd love to hear about it! Please give it a rating and leave a comment below...it would make my day! 🙂

Continue to Content

Gluten-Free Vegan Flourless Iced Cut-Out Cookies

Yield: 14 small cookies

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 17 minutes

Total Time: 27 minutes

Make your own homemade cut-out cookies with my easy and healthy Gluten-Free Vegan Flourless Iced Cut-Out Cookies recipe that's made with clean ingredients and no butter, eggs or white flour! { Vegan | Gluten-Free | Dairy-Free | Egg-Free | Soy-Free | Flourless | Grain-Free | Paleo-Friendly | Lectin-Free* | Medical Medium* }

Print

Ingredients

For the flax egg

• [1 tablespoon organic ground flax seeds]
• [2 tablespoons filtered/purified water]

For the cookies

• [2 cups almond flour]
• [1/4 cup organic maple syrup]
• [1 tablespoon 100% pure avocado oil]
• [1 teaspoon organic pure vanilla extract]
• [1 teaspoon baking powder]
• [1/2 teaspoon Himalayan pink salt]

For the icing

• 1/4 cup organic vegan powdered sugar
• [2 teaspoons homemade almond milk]
• 1/2 teaspoon organic pitaya powder

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.

Prepare the flax egg:

1. Add the ingredients for the flax egg to a small bowl and whisk together. Set aside while you work on the rest of the recipe.

Prepare the cookies:

1. Add the ingredients for the cookies to a medium-sized bowl.
2. Re-whisk the flax egg and add it to the bowl with the cookie ingredients.
3. Combine everything together with a fork, mashing the ingredients together so they are evenly distributed.
4. Remove the mixture from the mixing bowl with your hands and form a large ball.
5. Transfer the cookie mixture onto a flat surface or countertop.
6. Place an additional piece of parchment paper on top of the ball of the cookie mixture and using a rolling pin, roll it out into a 7 x 9 square.
7. Using a 2-inch round cookie cutter, cut out 14 small cookies from the rolled out cookie mixture and place them onto the prepared cookie sheet.
8. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 15-17 minutes, or until the edges are golden.
9. Allow to cool completely before removing from the cookie sheet.

Prepare the icing:

1. Add all the ingredients for the icing to a small bowl and stir together until the mixture is smooth.
2. After the cookies have completely cooled, take one cookie at a time and dip it upside down into the icing mixture.
3. Optional: Sprinkle healthy toppings onto the icing like chia seeds, hemp seeds, sliced almonds, cacao nibs, shredded coconut, etc.
4. Place the iced cookies onto a cooling rack or onto a plate for the icing to firm.
5. Store in an air-tight BPA-free container.
6. Enjoy!

Notes

*Lectin-Free + Medical Medium: Omit the icing due to the powdered sugar

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 14 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 128Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 91mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 2gSugar: 6gProtein: 3g

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist's advice.

Karielyn Tillman

Hi, I'm Karielyn! I'm the published cookbook author of CLEAN DESSERTS and content creator of The Healthy Family and Home™ website since 2012. I specialize in creating easy, healthy plant-based and Medical Medium® compliant recipes that are gluten-free + vegan and made with clean, real food ingredients that you can feel good about eating.