Gluten Free Speculoos Cookies
Ingredients
2 cups (280 g) all-purpose gluten-free flour blend
1 teaspoon xanthan gum (omit if your blend already contains it)
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
1/2 cup (109 g) packed light brown sugar
8 tablespoons (96 g) vegetable shortening
1 tablespoon (21 g) honey
1/4 cup water, at room temperature
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line rimmed baking sheets with unbleached parchment paper and set aside.
In a large bowl, place the flour blend, xanthan gum, cinnamon, salt, baking soda and granulated sugar, and whisk to combine well. Add the brown sugar, and whisk once more to combine, working to break up any lumps in the brown sugar. Add the shortening, honey and water, and mix to combine then knead with your hands to bring the dough together.
Divide the dough into two equal portions and roll each between two sheets of unbleached parchment paper into a rectangle between 1/8 inch and 1/4 inch thick. Place the rolled out dough on a flat surface and place in the freezer until firm but not frozen (about 10 minutes). Cut out 2 1/2 inch ovals out of the dough and place about 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake the dough until golden brown and mostly firm to the touch (7 to 10 minutes, depending upon size and thickness). Because of the high sugar content, the cookies will burn quickly once fully baked, so watch carefully beginning at 7 minutes. To get a feel for how quickly they will bake, make your first batch in the oven a small one and adjust the baking time appropriately.
Allow the cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. They will crisp as they cool.