Healthy Paleo Snickerdoodles

BySimply Fresh Foodie
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Golden fried chicken nuggets served on a white marble plate, showcasing crispy texture and inviting appeal. Perfect for snacks, kids' meals, or party appetizers, emphasizing fresh, homemade comfort food.

These vegan, gluten free and paleo snickerdoodles sound almost too good to be true. Made with almond flour and applesauce, instead of the usual flour and egg, these cookies taste just as good as the original but are way healthier! 

I was inspired to create this recipe after making Kale Junkie's Pumpkin Snickerdoodles, which are absolutely AMAZING. Seriously, if you haven't made them yet, head over to her site and do that. 

After I baked those, though, I realised that I also wanted to create a more "traditional" snickerdoodle. I changed some of the ingredients around, swapping pumpkin for applesauce and adding cream of tartar for that classic snickerdoodle flavour. 

The result is a cookie that is: 

  • Perfectly chewy
  • Cinnamon-y and sugary
  • Has that subtle snickerdoodle tang
  • Soft and fluffy 

What is In These V/GF/ Paleo Snickerdoodles?

Crispy breaded chicken cutlets and fried fish fillets on a textured cloth with a bowl of seasoned breading on the side, showcasing easy homemade comfort food recipes.
Crispy homemade chicken nuggets stacked in a tower on a kitchen towel, perfect for kids' snacks or family meals, featuring golden, breaded textures.
  • Almond meal: In this recipe, almond meal replaces traditional white flour. You could also use almond flour, but I find almond meal is generally cheaper and gets the job done. It's just ground-up almonds, making it a super healthy flour alternative to use in baked goods. If you're looking to sneak more nuts into your diet, why not do it in the form of cookies, right?
  • Apple sauce: If you're in Australia, this might sound strange. But in the US, Apple sauce is normal snack food, often used in baked goods! The apple sauce in this recipe works as a binder, helping everything stick together. If you don't where to find it at your grocery store, look near the mint sauces/ chutney. I wasn't expecting it to be there, but lo and behold! I guess that's what happens when it's considered to be a meat condiment 😂
  • Maple syrup: Maple syrup is the sweetener here, and brings a great flavour to the cookies. If you'd rather use honey or agave syrup, though, either of those would work well!
  • Vanilla extract: A little vanilla goes a long way in bringing more flavour to these cookies. 
  • Coconut oil: Make sure to use melted coconut oil here, so that it incorporates well into the rest of the dough. You could also swap another neutral oil, such as olive or avocado instead. 
  • Cinnamon: Cinnamon is a KEY component of snickerdoodles, so make sure you don't leave it out. 
  • Salt: A pinch of sea salt works wonders in balancing the flavours. You can omit it if you want, but you really can't taste it. 
  • Baking powder: Baking powder helps these cookies to rise and become fluffy! 
  • Cream of tartar: Cream of tartar is an ingredient typically found in Snickerdoodles. It provides that tangy flavour that underlies the cinnamon sugary sweetness. If you don't like it tangy, or don't have any cream of tartar, you can definitely leave it out. I recommend starting with a small amount, tasting the cookie dough to gauge the flavour as you gradually add it. 
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Crunchy homemade fried chicken nuggets on a white plate, perfect for snacks or meals, featured on Simply Fresh Foodie website.

Soft & Chewy Vegan, Gluten Free and Paleo Snickerdoodles

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  • Total Time: 50 minutes
  • Yield: 12 cookies 1x
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Description

These soft snickerdoodles are vegan, gluten free and paleo! They're so soft and chewy, you'll love them just as much as the classic cookies

Ingredients

Units Scale

Wet Ingredients

  • ¼ cup apple sauce
  • ¼ cup maple syrup
  • 3 tbsp melted coconut oil
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Dry Ingredients

  • 2 cups almond meal
  • 1-2 teaspoon cream of tartare (optional)
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 pinch sea salt

For Rolling

  • ¼ cup coconut sugar
  • 1 tsp cinnamon

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 180° C.
  2. In a large bowl, combine all wet ingredients.
  3. Once everything is well-mixed, add dry ingredients and stir until everything is incorporated. Start with only a small amount of cream of tartare, adding more to taste. Some people dislike the tangy flavour, so it's best to start with a pinch and add more.
  4. Let dough cool in the fridge for 30 mins, so that you can roll it.
  5. Meanwhile pour the coconut sugar and cinnamon for rolling onto a plate.
  6. Once dough is cool, form balls with about 2 tablespoon dough per each. Roll each ball in the cinnamon and coconut sugar mix. Place each ball on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
  7. Use the bottom of glass to flatten the cookies to about ½-1 cm thickness. Place in oven and bake until the cookies are set and the bottoms begin to brown, 10-12 minutes.
  8. Let cookies cool on the baking tray to firm up a bit before eating. Enjoy!

Notes

*Recipe adapted from Kale Junkie's Pumpkin Snickerdoodles.

  • Prep Time: 40 minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 minutes
  • Category: Dessert, Snack
  • Cuisine: Australian

Nutrition

  • Calories: 157
  • Fat: 11.3
  • Carbohydrates: 12.3
  • Protein: 3.4

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