Need a quick and easy grain-free holiday cookie recipe? Check out this Grain Free Chocolate Cookie Recipe with Peppermint. These cookies are also Paleo, refined sugar free and can easily be made vegan (just swap out the egg for a vegan egg replacer).
I used to love the Peppermint Joe-Joe’s at Trader Joe’s (like peppermint Oreos but without as much of the junk). But since going gluten-free we haven’t found anything in store. So we made our own gluten free chocolate cookie recipe with candy cane bits and WOW! They are yummy. My kids loved eating these and requested we leave these out for Santa on Christmas Eve.
Now I tried a batch with whole cane sugar and it came out well too, but I will say the honey gave it a deeper, molasses-like flavor and the texture was a bit chewier. These cookies are pure bliss and make a wonderful DIY food gift for family and friends – just pack them in wide-mouth Mason glass jars for a rustic look.
Where to Get Kitchen Pantry Essentials
I get my other kitchen pantry supplies like sea salt, black pepper, spices,
coconut oil, and other essentials either on Amazon or my local health food store usually. But then I got a Thrive membership. If you don’t already have one – it’s awesome! It’s like Whole Foods meets Costco. Bob’s Red Mill baking soda
, for instance, is about $3 at my local health food store and $6 on Amazon. But it’s only $2.03 (YES!) on Thrive Market. Great deal right? And the raw honey?! Don’t even get me started how much that costs at the health food store. But on Thrive Market it’s just $5.45 for a 10.5 oz jar of raw honey.
Sign up for a Thrive Market membership and get an extra 20% off your first 3 orders!


- 1 cup organic creamy almond butter (either salted or unsalted works)
- 1/2 cup raw or organic honey or coconut sugar
- 1 pastured or organic egg or replacer such as Ener-G
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp organic vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 4 tbsp all-natural peppermint candy crushed
-
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease cookie sheet with butter or parchment paper.
-
Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
-
Form tablespoon-sized balls and pat down to about 1/4-inch thickness. Lay out on cookie sheet.
-
Bake for 8-10 min. Let cool and enjoy.
p.s. Looking for tips to transition to a real food or healthy gluten-free lifestyle? Check out my free Real Food Guide email course and e-book.
FREE real food guide
Eat healthier in just 7 days with my real food guide and email course. You'll learn how easy it is to go gluten-free and still enjoy the foods that you love.
Hi there Tracey! I’m allergic to almonds (along with walnuts and pecans), so I was wondering if there was an alternative to almond butter that I could use? These sound delish but obviously the almond butter content means I can’t eat them. Thanks in advance.
Great question! I have a great gluten free cookie recipe with lemons. Remove the lemon juice/extract and replace with cocoa powder. You can do this recipe with honey instead of sugar too. I’d start with 1/2 cup cocoa powder and add up to 1/4 cup if needed. The lemon recipe makes about 36 cookies, whereas the original peppermint cookies yield about 24. So the revised lemon recipe would likely need more cocoa powder. Give it a try and tell me how you like it. Thanks!
You could also use SunButter (made from sunflower seeds). It’s an easy sub for nut butters!
I don’t see cocoa powder in the recipe. How much do you use?
You’re right. My mistake. 1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder. I’m adding it in now.
Not seeing the chocolate in these chocolate cookies??
You’re right. My mistake. 1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder. I’m adding it in now.
these look great! are they supposed to have any cocoa powder in them? thanks for sharing this! can’t wait to try it out! 🙂
You’re right. My mistake. 1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder. I’m adding it in now.
Is there supposed to be cocoa powder in these?
You’re right. My mistake. 1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder. I’m adding it in now.