“Christmas cookie” is almost synonymous with a crispy, buttery cookie in a fanciful shape, decorated with colored icing and perhaps some candies, too. And right behind that image are gingerbread people with tiny smiling faces and buttons down their “jackets.” You’ll be happy to know that these perennial favorites are easily made using gluten-free ingredients.

Because there’s no gluten to create dough stiff enough to roll, compensations must be made. You’ll find that time is needed to chill the dough well. This allows for the butter, which was softened during the mixing process, to become firm once again. After that occurs, rolling these cookies thin enough to cut out is very easy.

Once the dough is rolled and you’ve used a cutter to create your shape, it’s easier to remove the excess dough rather than trying to move the delicate cookies to the baking sheets. This process is similar to what artists call relief sculpture. What you are doing is pulling out what is not needed to leave what you want. If you roll and cut the cookies on a sheet of waxed paper, all you have to do is invert it onto the cookie sheet.

In addition to cookies made with rolled dough, this chapter also contains other traditional forms, such as thumbprints and biscotti. While no piece of equipment similar to a rolling pin is necessary to make them, they are formed by hand to give them a uniform look.

Note: Unless otherwise noted, use these directions for storing cookies in this chapter: Keep cookies in an airtight container, layered between sheets of waxed paper or parchment, at room temperature for up to 5 days. Cookies that aren’t decorated can be forzoen for up to two months.