Snappy buttery cookies hug a creamy chocolate ganache in these delicious Sandwich Cookies that are Nut Free, Gluten Free, Sugar Free, and Dairy Free. These are one of my favorites, and they’re worth the little bit of extra time spent rolling out and assembling.
I love a good sandwich cookie. The combination of a snappy butter cookie and a creamy center is just unbeatable. This recipe does require a bit of chill time (only 15 minutes, though) plus making a ganache (which takes 5 minutes total) and some quick assembly (spread ganache, make sandwich, done). The cookies look fancy, but really, they’re pretty quick to put together. And definitely worth the effort.
These Sandwich Cookies are an homage to the Principe cookies only my recipe makes them Gluten Free, Nut Free, Sugar Free, and Dairy Free. Principe cookies hold a cherished place in my heart, and I’ll tell you why.
The summer I turned 21, I went to Madrid, Spain, for a month to study Spanish. Which I did. But, to be completely honest, I probably spent more time dancing all night with friends in clubs and eating Principe cookies. My diet that summer mostly consisted of croquetas (fried ham and cheese sticks), rice and tuna (what I cooked in the super tiny shared apartment kitchen), and Principe cookies. It’s not a diet that I could pull off today, but it was fun for a month back in those heady days of youth when I could stay awake past 10 pm.
I hope that you’ll enjoy these Sandwich Cookies as much as I do. Please let me know how they turn out for you in the comments.
Why You’ll LOVE this Recipe:
- Gluten Free
- Sugar Free
- Dairy Free
- Nut Free
- Low FODMAP
- Low Cholesterol
Ingredients for Gluten Free Sugar Free Sandwich Cookies:
- Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour
- cornstarch
- baking powder
- kosher salt
- Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks
- egg yolks
- vanilla extract
- maple syrup
- cold water
- coconut milk, full fat
- chocolate chips
Notes on Ingredients:
Cornstarch – Cornstarch is the magic ingredient that makes these cookies crispier and snappier.
Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks – Make sure your shortening is cold, straight out of the fridge. Making these cookies is more like making pie crust. We want it “short” which mean that the butter isn’t creamed and fluffy. We want the cookies to snap and to have a deep buttery flavor.
Egg yolks – Using just the egg yolks instead of a whole egg means that we’re getting the fat and moisture from the eggs so that the cookies maintain the perfect tenderness while still being snappy. The egg yolks also help with the color, so that the cookies really look golden and buttery.
Cold water – Instead of using another source of moisture, we want water here (just like in a pie crust) so that the steam from the water and from the shortening creates some thin layers within the cookies which makes the cookies snappy (in a pie crust, the result would be a “flaky” crust).
Chocolate Chips – There are lots of great Sugar Free Chocolate Chips on the market nowadays. I love Hu Keto Chocolate Chips, because they have no sugar alcohols so they’re Low FODMAP. I also like Lily’s Dark Chocolate Baking Chips and the Bake Believe Dark Chocolate Chips.
How to Make Gluten Free Sugar Free Sandwich Cookies From Scratch
Make the Cookie Dough
Combine the dry ingredients first. In a small bowl, whisk together the Gluten Free Flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt.
Take your Earth Balance straight out of the fridge (you want it to be cold). Chop the Earth Balance into small chunks. Add to the dry ingredients, and use your fingers to rub the Earth Balance into the flour until the mixture looks like wet sand. This is very much like the technique used for making pie dough.
Add the egg yolks, maple syrup, and vanilla. Mix until incorporated. I just used my hands – you could use a spoon, but I like being able to squeeze the dough to help it to combine well.
Now, you need to add the water. There are a lot of factors that can affect how much water you will need including the weather and your geographic location, so we’re going to add the water ONE TABLESPOON AT A TIME. It is so easy to just add more water if needed – it is NOT easy to deal with a dough that is too wet. So. Adding one tablespoon at a time and mixing until the water is completely incorporated, add 6-8 tablespoons of cold water until the mixture holds together. Use your hands to mix the dough after each addition of cold water. Your cookie dough should feel like dough, not like a mud pie. You don’t want it to be slippery and sloppy. It should feel like something the could be rolled out into cookies.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes. I have found that gluten free doughs just don’t need as much time in the fridge as regular doughs with gluten. For one, we’re not trying to “relax the gluten” and “prevent gluten development”, because there is NO gluten. Also, if gluten free dough gets too cold and hard, it’s really difficult to roll out. I found that 15 minutes is perfect.
Roll Out the Cookies
Preheat oven to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with Silpat mats or parchment paper.
Take the cookie dough out of the fridge. Roll out the cookie dough between two sheets of parchment paper until about 2 cm thick. You want the dough to be thin but not so thin that you can’t move the cut-out cookies from the parchment paper to the baking tray. Sprinkle gluten free flour under and on top of the dough before rolling out to prevent sticking.
Use a 2 inch round crenellated cutter to cut out the cookies. Transfer them to the prepared baking sheets.
Bake the Cookies
Bake for 10-12 minutes. The cookies will be quite pale, but the edges should be turning golden.
Allow the cookies to cool completely before assembling the Sandwich Cookies.
Make the Chocolate Sandwich Filling
The chocolate filling is just a quick ganache. First, measure the chocolate chips into a bowl.
Shake the can of coconut milk well to combine the cream and the liquid. Measure the coconut milk into a microwaveable bowl. Heat the coconut milk in the microwave for 45 seconds.
Pour the heated coconut milk over the chocolate chips. Let sit for 5 minutes, then stir until smooth. Let sit for 15 minutes to cool and thicken so that it’s easier to spread.
Assemble the Sandwich Cookies
Once the cookies are completely cool and the chocolate filling has cooled enough to become spreadable, you’re ready to assemble the Sandwich Cookies.
Spread one cookie with chocolate filling and then place another cookie on top and press gently to form a sandwich cookie. Repeat until all cookies have been used up.
Place sandwich cookies in the refrigerator for at least 10 minutes to allow the filling to set up.
Store sandwich cookies in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
More Yummy Nut Free & Gluten Free Recipes
Gluten Free Nut Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
Gluten Free Nut Free Vanilla Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting
Gluten Free Belgian Waffles with Yeast – Nut Free
Gluten Free Cinnamon Thins Cookies – Nut Free
Gluten Free Sugar Free Sandwich Cookies – Nut Free Dairy Free
Ingredients
- 250 g Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour
- 120 g cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks, 1 stick, cold
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 4 teaspoon maple syrup
- 6-8 tablespoon cold water
Chocolate Filling
- 75 ml coconut milk, full fat
- 70 g chocolate chips
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the Gluten Free Flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt.
- Chop the Earth Balance into small chunks. Add to the dry ingredients, and use your fingers to rub the Earth Balance into the flour until the mixture looks like wet sand.
- Add the egg yolks, maple syrup, and vanilla. Mix until incorporated.
- Adding one tablespoon at a time and mixing until the water is completely incorporated, add 6-8 tablespoons of cold water until the mixture holds together. Use your hands to mix the dough after each addition of cold water.
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with Silpat mats or parchment paper.
- Roll out the cookie dough between two sheets of parchment paper until about 2 cm thick. You want the dough to be thin but not so thin that you can’t move the cut-out cookies from the parchment paper to the baking tray. Sprinkle gluten free flour under and on top of the dough before rolling out to prevent sticking.
- Use a 2 inch round crenellated cutter to cut out the cookies. Transfer them to the prepared baking sheets.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes. The cookies will be quite pale, but the edges should be turning golden.
- Allow cookies to cool completely.
- Meanwhile, make the chocolate filling. Measure the chocolate chips into a bowl.
- Shake the can of coconut milk well to combine the cream and the liquid. Measure the coconut milk into a microwaveable bowl. Heat the coconut milk in the microwave for 45 seconds.
- Pour the heated coconut milk over the chocolate chips. Let sit for 5 minutes, then stir until smooth. Let sit for 15minutes to cool and thicken so that it’s easier to spread.
- Assemble the sandwich cookies once the cookies are completely cool and the chocolate filling has cooled enough to become spreadable.
- Spread one cookie with chocolate filling and then place another cookie on top and press gently to form a sandwich cookie. Repeat until all cookies have been used up.
- Place sandwich cookies in the refrigerator for at least 10 minutes to allow the filling to set up.
- Store sandwich cookies in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
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