Passion Fruit Cookies, Gluten Free

This may sound strange to some, but as a young child I didn’t really enjoy sweets that much. As I got older, my sweet tooth got bigger. However, I still have a deep appreciation for tangy flavours. This is especially true on hot summer days when I just want a light, sweet snack that won’t leave me feeling stuffed and heavy.

If you’re looking for a treat that’s slightly sweet, tangy, and very flavourful, these cookies are just what you need! I made the dough entirely with oat flour. Thus they are both gluten free as well as rich in nutrients like protein, iron, and fiber.

Note: Oats are naturally gluten free, however, sometimes they can get contaminated during processing or packaging. If you cannot tolerate gluten, I recommend you buy oats and oat flour that are certified gluten free.

You only need simple ingredients that you likely already have at home. They include:

• oat flour
• butter
• sugar
• egg
• vanilla extract
• and for the glaze, passion fruit puree

After making the dough I refrigerated it twice. Once for 30 minutes right after making it, and a second time for 30 minutes after rolling it out and cutting it into shapes. Don’t skip these refrigeration steps because they are important.

By placing the dough in the fridge before baking, the butter cools and solidifies. When you bake the cookies, they spread less because it takes longer for the butter to begin melting. They also maintain a soft, crumbly texture. If you bake the room temperature dough, the butter is softer which means moisture will evaporate quickly in the oven and the cookies would become crispier and brittle.

For the glaze you only need two ingredients: passion fruit purée and icing sugar. You can buy frozen passionfruit purée (I have used this one) online. If you’d rather make it yourself at home, cut some passion fruits in half, pass the contents through a sieve to remove the seeds. Collect the juice and set it aside for making the glaze. Regardless if you purchase the puree or you make it yourself, I’d like to add that passion fruits are not sweet. They are fruity-floral in flavour, but quite sour. I have seen many negative reviews from customers who thought they purchased a bad product because the purée wasn’t sweet.

After glazing my cookies, I also sprinkled some cocoa nibs while the glaze was still wet. This step is optional. But if you don’t have cocoa nibs and find your cookies looking a little too plain, you could also sprinkle chocolate shavings or toasted sesame seeds.

See more cookie recipes here.

And the recipe for deliciously tangy, gluten free passion fruit cookies:

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Passion Fruit Cookies, Gluten Free

Servings 16 cookies

Author spicyoats.com

Ingredients

For the cookies:

• 2 cups (200 g/ 7 oz.) oat flour
• 1 stick (115 g/ 4 oz.) unsalted butter, room temperature
• ½ cup (60 g/ 2 oz.) icing sugar
• 1 medium egg, room temperature
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• pinch of salt
• 2-3 tbsp. oat flour for dusting the work surface

For the glaze:

• 1 ¾ cups (200 g/ 7 oz.) icing sugar
• 4-5 tbsp. passion fruit purée

Optional:

• 1-2 tbsp. cocoa nibs

Instructions

For the cookies:

• Sift the oat flour into a bowl. Add the salt and whisk them well together.
• In a large bowl, add the butter, and icing sugar. Using a stand mixer at low speed, or a wooden spoon, beat together the butter and sugar to a creamy and fluffy consistency. Add the egg and vanilla extract, and mix them in.
• Slowly add the flour into the mixer bowl and continue mixing until well incorporated, forming a soft dough. Gently flatten the dough to about 25 mm (1 inch) thickness. Then wrap it in plastic wrap and place it in the fridge for 30 minutes.
• On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough 6 mm (¼ inch) thick. Using a cookie cutter, cut out shapes, re-rolling the scraps until all the dough is used.
• Place the cookies 25 mm (1 inch) apart on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate them for 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 180 °C (350°F).
• Take the baking tray from the fridge and place it directly into the pre-heated oven. Bake for 14-16 minutes. Remove the tray from the oven and allow the cookies to cool on the tray for 10 minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.
• Note: Using a cookie cutter of 63 mm (2.5 inches) in size will result in 16 cookies. The number of cookies will differ with the size of the cookie cutter. Baking times may also differ with the size of the cookie cutter.

For the glaze:

• Add the icing sugar into a medium bowl. Add the passion fruit purée one tbsp. at a time. Mix well after each addition. Stop adding passion fruit purée once the glaze reaches a desired consistency. Dip cookies into the glaze.

Optional:

• Sprinkle cocoa nibs over the glazed cookies (optional).