If you’re getting in the mood to make holiday cookies, these Gluten-Free Cream Cheese Cookies will be just what you want to see today!
Gluten-Free Cream Cheese Cookies from Iris Higgins. Shown as drop cookies made with granulated white sugar on the left and a stack of piped cookies made with coconut/palm sugar on the right.
I was first introduced to this recipe when my friend Iris (formerly The Daily Dietribe and now Iris Higgins) shared it for our Home for the Holidays, Gluten-Free Style event long ago.
Everyone participating in that event—both bloggers and readers—shared what the holidays meant to them. Participating bloggers shared their favorite holiday recipes and in conjunction with our beloved gluten-free resources and overall food community, I got to give away some fabulous prizes. The event was a treat in every way!
It’s an honor to be bringing these Gluten-Free Cream Cheese Cookies from Iris to the forefront once again today.
When Iris published this recipe on her original site for our event, she shared:
My grandma always made cream cheese cookies for Christmas. For those of you who have never had a cream cheese cookie, they’re soft and buttery and have just a hint of that sour cream cheese flavor. I wish I could describe them for you better, but that’s the best I can do. Suffice it to say, if you’ve never had a cream cheese cookie, you’re missing out. But now you don’t have to!
These cookies taste remarkably similar to my grandma’s, and are free from gluten, dairy, eggs and soy. They can also be made without refined sugars. I made them a few times with different types of sugar, and I’ll admit I preferred the cookies made with refined sugar … they tasted more like my grandma’s cookies.
But I also loved the cookies made with coconut palm sugar. Coconut palm sugar has a deep flavor with molasses undertones, but while I love the texture and flavor of those cookies, the palm sugar has a tendency to overwhelm the more subtle flavors of the cream cheese. So if you want a “cream cheese cookie,” I would use regular sugar or perhaps something like xylitol. But if you like to use coconut palm sugar and just want a tasty cookie, go ahead and use palm sugar.
As you’ll see in both the photos and the recipe, you can either make these cookies as drop cookies or you can use a piping bag to give that finished cookie press look. Because as Iris notes the sweetener you decide to use changes the flavor profile, you may decide to serve two variations at the same time. I think that would be fun, especially if you go for the two different presentations as she did. Drop cookies using granulated sugar and piped cookies using coconut palm sugar. Or vice versa.
More from Iris Higgins and Home for the Holidays
~ 11 Favorite Gluten-Free Recipes from Iris Higgins
~ 30 Gluten-Free Christmas Cookies That You’ll Want to Make Right Now (Part 1 of My Three-Part Series)
~ Candy Cane Ice Cream with Chocolate Chunks
~ Gluten-Free Cream Cheese Cut-Out Cookies
~ Gluten-Free Cinnamon Bun Cake with Glaze (try Egg Nog Glaze during Christmas)
~ Gluten-Free French Bread (Vegan)
~ Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Pie with Double Chocolate Crust
~ Gluten-Free Shortbread Squares
Gluten-Free Cream Cheese Cookies Recipe (Dairy Free, Soy Free, Vegan)
Gluten-Free Cream Cheese Cookies. Shown as drop cookies made with granulated white sugar.
Gluten-Free Cream Cheese Cookies (Dairy Free, Vegan)
Iris said: "For those of you who have never had a cream cheese cookie, they're soft and buttery and have just a hint of that sour cream cheese flavor. I wish I could describe them for you better, but that's the best I can do. Suffice it to say, if you've never had a cream cheese cookie, you're missing out. But now you don't have to!"
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw cashews, soaked in water 4 hours to overnight
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1/2 cup Spectrum Organic Palm Shortening
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar* (see notes)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- zest of one medium lemon
- 1/3 cup coconut flour (40 grams)
- 1/3 cup white rice flour (52 grams)
- 1/3 cup tapioca starch (40 grams)
- 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons psyllium whole husks** (see notes)
- 6 tablespoons boiling water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease two cookie sheets.
- Rinse and drain the cashews, then blend them in a food processor for about 30 seconds. Add the apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, shortening, sugar, vanilla, and lemon zest. Blend until smooth.
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the coconut flour, white rice flour, tapioca starch, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.
- Pour boiling water over psyllium husks in a small bowl, whisking the whole time to prevent clumping. Pour quickly into the food processor and blend. Add the flour mixture and blend until smooth, scraping down the sides if necessary.
- Drop by the scant tablespoon onto the cookie sheet about 2 inches apart or use a piping bag to shape cookies. Bake for 12 minutes. Let cool on the cookie sheet. They'll be softer when warm and need to cool completely before they can be moved. Makes 24 cookies (or more depending on the size of your cookies),
Notes
- *You can use any granulated sugar in this recipe, such as regular refined cane sugar or coconut palm sugar. Coconut palm sugar will darken the cookies to a caramel color, as shown in some of the photos above. The palm sugar also gives them a caramel undertone in flavor, much like brown sugar does. If you prefer the white color of traditional cream cheese cookies, you can use any white granulated sugar or sugar substitute, such as cane sugar or xylitol. Regular white table sugar will make them taste more like the cream cheese cookies you remember. Your choice ... they're delicious both ways!
- **Psyllium Whole Husks are different from psyllium husk powder. Make sure to purchase the whole husks, which can usually be found in your grocery store or drug store in the supplement aisle. The brand I buy is Yerba Prima. I would have tried these with ground chia seeds as well, but I ran out. I suspect that they would work fine with 2 tablespoons of GROUND chia seeds, but without testing that option I can't say for sure.
Originally published December 12, 2011; updated December 2, 2025.
Micki Furr says
Hi! Can this recipe for gluten-free cream cheese cookies be made without the cashews?? I am highly allergic to tree nuts (but not to coconut). Is there something else I can use as a replacement for the cashews?
Shirley Braden says
Hi, Micki–It looks like you’re new here. Welcome to gfe! 🙂 This recipe was designed for those who can’t do dairy and eggs but can do nuts and want the cream cheese flavor and texture. I’d have to reverse engineer this recipe to figure out the “regular” version but here’s a great Gluten-Free Cream Cheese Cookie recipe from my friend Sandi at Fearless Dining if you can use the “regular” ingredients that she uses. She makes hers fancy by adding sprinkles but you could skip those if you like. Also, your question reminded me that I also have a Gluten-Free Cream Cheese Cut-Out Cookie recipe from Iris as well so I added that link to my post. Just wanted to mention that in case it sounds appealing! There are no nuts in that recipe.
Thanks for stopping by and commenting!
Shirley