Mandy's Gingernut Cookies
Recipe by Mandy Pagano
Recipe originally published on KetovangelistKitchen.com on 12/11/20. It has been lightly edited for re-publication.
These cookies are a huge hit with my son. Now, if you've paid attention at all to this site, that tidbit will indicate to you that they must be pretty darned good because, as I have stated repeatedly, my son is the pickiest human being to ever live.
To me, these cookies are kind of a nice cross between gingerbread and a molasses cookie. They are sturdy enough to cut into shapes and hold up well, but they've got a nice, soft-ish texture inside. I prefer them naked, but my kids both demanded icing so I complied.
You are free to use as much heavy cream as you'd like in the icing to make it as thick or thin as your prefer. My kids aren't patient enough to allow me to get this to piping consistency and make fancy designs, so I use just enough cream to make it spreadable and begin slathering as quickly as humanly possible. If your family is more patient, you can take the time to make them pretty. In my house, I can barely get the icing on before they start disappearing!
[tasty-recipe id="3549"]
Ingredients
For the cookies:
- 4 oz (113 g) pecan meal
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp plain gelatin powder (I use Knox brand)
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp xanthan gum
- pinch sea salt
- 1/2 stick (2 oz/ 57 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 1/2 oz (43 g) Swerve Brown or similar
- 10 drops liquid vanilla stevia
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
For the icing:
- 6 tbsp Confectioner's Swerve, or powdered sweetener of choice
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp heavy cream, or enough to reach desired consistency
Instructions
To make the cookies:
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment.
- In a small bowl, whisk together pecan meal, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, gelatin, xanthan gum, and salt. Set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sweetener until light and fluffy.
- Add the vanilla stevia and cream again on low.
- Add the vanilla and cream again on low.
- Add the egg and cream again on medium until it's well blended.
- Begin beating in the pecan meal mixture in three additions, beating on low in between each addition until the dough is just combined.
- Chill the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- Once the dough is well chilled, remove from the refrigerator and gather it together into a ball with your hands.
- Pat the dough out to about 1/6 of an inch thick. 1/4 inch is a hair too thick and 1/8 was too thin, so shoot for splitting the difference!
- Using a small cookie cutter of choice, cut out shapes and set each one aside carefully. My ginger person is about 3 1-2" in length, and 2 1/4" across the arm span.
- Gather together dough scraps and pat out again to cut more shapes. This should yield about a dozen cookies, depending on how thin you patted out the dough.
- Arrange on the parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes. The center should be set but it's ok if it still looks a little soft.
- Cool on wire racks completely.
To make the icing:
- Combine the powdered Swerve, vanilla, and heavy cream in a small bowl and whisk together, adding more heavy cream if needed, stirring until smooth and to your desired consistency.
- Decorate cookies, as desired, and sprinkle the tops with a little more cinnamon to garnish, if desired.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 113 cal
- Fat: 12.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 8.9 g
- Fiber: 0.8 g
- Sugar Alcohols: 7.2 g
- Net Carbs [total carbs - (fiber + sugar alcohol)] : 0.9 g
- Protein: 1.4 g
