Gluten Free Sugar Cookies
Author: 
Recipe type: Dessert
Serves: Makes ~2 dozen cookies
 
These cookies are not only gluten free, but also perfect if you must avoid dairy. Although you could substitute butter or margarine, I highly recommend Earth Balance buttery sticks... they're a fantastic gluten free, dairy free substitute, contain no artificial dyes, and are also non-GMO!
Ingredients
  • 1 and 1/2 sticks Earth Balance buttery sticks
  • 3/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract (not imitation; McCormick brand is gluten free)
  • 1 large egg
  • 4 tsp almond milk (or other milk of your choice)
  • 1 3/4 cup gluten free multipurpose flour* (King Arthur Flour Company preferred)
  • 1/4 cup sweet white rice flour* (plus more for rolling)
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • sugar for decorating
Instructions
  1. Thoroughly cream buttery sticks and sugar.
  2. Add egg to creamed mixture and beat until light and fluffy.
  3. Add almond milk and vanilla extract to creamed mixture and mix well.
  4. Sift together dry ingredients and blend into the creamed mixture. Chill at least one hour (I usually make this dough in the morning, for baking that evening).
  5. Generously sprinkle sweet rice flour on a sheet of waxed paper. Remove one-third of the refrigerated dough, sprinkle with rice flour, and cover with another piece of wax paper. Roll dough between waxed paper to ~1/8 inch thickness.
  6. Cut in desired shapes with cutters, sprinkle with sugar, and bake on greased cookie sheet at 375 degrees for 6-8 minutes.
  7. Remove from pan to wire rack and cool.
Notes
I can't vouch for how well these cookies will turn out with any other gluten free multipurpose flour mix besides King Arthur Flour Company's*. KAF gluten free flours are truly superior, without any of the bitter flavors or gritty texture characteristic of many GF blends. In addition, I've noticed that KAF flour absorbs much more moisture than others, so using another flour blend may require that you experiment with the amount of milk or butter sticks.
Recipe by Mother of a Hubbard at http://www.motherofahubbard.com/gluten-free-sugar-cookies/