Paleo sugar cookies seem like a sort of oxymoron, since sugar isn’t paleo. But I love to play with natural sugar replacements and paleo ingredients to paleo-fy conventional recipes, like I did with these cassava flour sugar cookies. Below, you’ll find an updated version of that recipe.
Why cassava?
It turns out cassava flour is my absolute favorite paleo flour, and here’s why:
- it more closely mimics all-purpose flour than anything else I’ve tried
- it is free from inflammatory proteins
- it is a good source of resistant starch, which feeds the good bacteria in your gut
- it’s totally grain- and gluten-free
- it contains minerals like calcium, manganese, and iron
- it’s a good source of fiber
- it’s a good source of carbohydrates
Now, cassava is not a good choice if you’re on the GAPS diet or other low-carb or keto diet. It’s not low carb, and it is starchy. However, it’s a much better choice than wheat or even gluten-free flours.
Plus, if you’re a Veggie Tales fan, it might bring back fond memories of Cassie Cassava.
So, paleo sugar cookies…
They are basically the single best way to please a little boy on a strict diet. Trust me on this. Food = love in a little boy’s (or big boy’s) heart.
I recently sat on a panel for mamas with nutrition questions. One great question was “how do you fill up hungry boys on a gluten free diet?”
I mentioned potatoes and rice (which are great fillers without introducing a lot of allergenic proteins, at least for most of us. If you’re allergic to rice like my friend Paula… I’m so sorry. I love a side of rice now and again.).
I should’ve mentioned these paleo sugar cookies and cassava flour. Or maybe not, because the way my boys eat them, you’d think they never get full. These disappear in no time flat at my house. The end.
But cassava is a great way to fill out a gluten-free diet, especially with recipes like Cassava Flour Buttermilk Biscuits, or, of course, these paleo sugar cookies.
These cookies are perfect for every holiday, so grab some cassava flour, some cookie cutters, and this insane organic frosting (or grab my recipe for paleo buttercream frosting with protein and probiotics here) and get to baking. They are quick and easy to make, I promise.
Oh, and if your kids LOVE colored frosting without the red dye meltdown, grab these natural food colors.
Are you a visual person? Enjoy the video below before you check out the recipe!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups cassava flour
- 3/4 cup maple sugar
- 2/3 cup room temerature ghee or butter
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- Optional natural food coloring like this
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350*.
- In a large bowl, beat the ghee on high with a hand mixer, until creamy.
- Add the maple sugar, and baking soda and beat once more until combined, scraping the sides to mix well.
- Beat in the egg and vanilla.
- Add the flour and mix with a rubber spatula until mostly combined, then finish mixing with the hand mixer.
- Place a large piece of parchment paper on the counter and place the ball of dough on it.
- Flatten it out and place another piece of parchment paper on top, then carefully roll it out to 1/4" thickness with a rolling pin. Don't press too hard or the parchment paper will stick. Remove top piece of parchment.
- Use cookie cutters to cut out festive shapes, then carefully transfer them to a parchment-lined baking sheet with a spatula.
- Space cookies 1-2" apart before baking on the top rack for 10-12 minutes, until edges become lightly golden.
- Meanwhile, repeat cookie cutting process with remaining dough by combining dough scraps into a ball and rolling it back out. Bake remaining cookies.
- Allow cookies to cool before transferring them to a serving dish. Frost with vanilla buttercream frosting for best results.