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Healthy ginger snaps baked deliciously grain-free and delightfully crispy to enjoy as a snack or tucked into lunchboxes.
My family loves ginger snaps, and the fact that our favorite recipe is made with almond flour makes it all the better as this adds variety to the menu.
A big bonus is that these ginger snaps are so fast to prepare and bake!
I keep a bag of homemade almond flour from sprouted or soaked nuts in the freezer most of the time to make grain-free pizza crusts quick and easy.
Preparation and Substitution Suggestions
If you avoid almonds or are otherwise on a low oxalate diet, I think these cookies would be amazing made with hazelnut flour as a tasty alternative that is low in oxalic acid.
I took my inspiration for this recipe from Nourishing Traditions Cookbook, which suggests sucanat as the sweetener.
After making several batches, I found that date syrup is also delicious and works for those who avoid disaccharide sweeteners to improve digestion.
Another tweak I made is to add an egg. This ensures that the cookies hold together well. There are no eggs in this recipe per my edition of Nourishing Traditions.
Homemade Ginger Snaps
Healthy ginger snaps baked deliciously grain-free and delightfully crispy to enjoy as a snack or tucked into lunchboxes.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups almonds soaked or sprouted, preferably organic
- 1/2 cup butter softened, preferably grassfed
- 1 cup arrowroot flour
- 1 egg preferably pastured
- 1/2 cup sucanat or date syrup
- 1 Tbsp filtered water
- 1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
Instructions
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Pulse crispy or sprouted almonds in a food processor until they are ground into almond flour. It is not necessary for the almond flour to be extremely finely ground as a more coarse texture works well when mixed with the arrowroot powder.
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Blend in remaining ingredients. Form into balls the size of a ping pong ball and arrange on greased, stainless steel cookie sheets (I do not recommend parchment paper as it is coated with hormone-disrupting silicone).
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Bake at 300 °F/ 149 °C for 20 minutes, removing pan from the oven after 5 minutes to press each ball lightly with a fork before baking the remaining amount of time.
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Cool and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Almonds and ginger — wow! Sounds like a match made in heaven. Thanks for sharing it. I really need to cook directly out of my NT more often.
Any chance I could cook these for less time to have a softer gingersnap? LOL I know, it would probably not be considered a true gingersnap but I don’t care for hard cookies and neither does my daughter. I do love the flavor of gingersnaps though!
You can also sub the sucanat with coconut sugar for a really low glycemic alternative.
After your chat with Rami Nagel have you altered your method of making crispy nuts? If so, how? I read in the past that blanched almonds have much less phytic acid and don’t need to be soaked/dried but after reading about Rami’s take on nuts at Cheeseslave I am more confused than ever as to the best procedure! Is it possible to make already ground nut flour more digestible by soaking as with grains?
Nuts are completely different than grains in their preparation. Nuts are soaked in salted water, then drained and dehydrated and then ground into flour (if you desire) whereas grains are ground into flour first and then soaked in water with an acidic medium like whey, lemon juice, or cider vinegar (assuming wheat or spelt).
Just wondering if coconut flour is made the same way as nuts? I’ve been wanting to make my own.
Hi Sarah,
Thanks for sharing this recipe – just one question…..I already have almond flour so how much should I use – thanks. Kim
1 1/2 cups works great.
I share the same concern and question: Where can you find authentic organic raw almonds that haven’t been gassed? I suppose there is a good source on line. If anyone has found such a place please provide website, etc. Thanks 😉
I ship mine in directly from an almond farmer. By bypassing the food distribution system entirely, you can avoid the mandatory pasteurization.
Sarah,
Can you give us some tips on how to find such a person? Also, I am interested in finding a source for clean citrus fruits if you can help with that. Perhaps you have a personal shopping guide posted here somewhere that I haven’t yet seen.
Also, you posted why you decided on the GAPS diet last year as opposed to other options? Was it just the link with WAPF that convinced you? I am wondering if I need to do it …adrenal issues here. Thanks!
I love the blog and am getting reminders and confirmations for our diet. Yours is the best blog I have seen as a fit for our family and I thank you for sharing your work with us.
Hi Beth, we decided on GAPS mostly because I saw Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride speak and spoke to her personally at a Conference in 2007. I had read her books and was very comfortable with her work and research. I found it to be the most likely approach that would give us desired results. And it did! 🙂
Sometimes, finding these sources is just plain luck! Get to know the people in your community who are getting their food off the grid and ideas like this will come your way naturally. There is no phone book for this kind of stuff unfortunately.
Beth, a GREAT place to start finding small farms with the types of products you seek is to subscribe to Wise Traditions Journal from the Weston Price Foundation (westonaprice.org). This quarterly journal has a listing of small farms by state that you can contact directly. This Journal is an invaluable resource in your health journey, in my opinion.
Thank you, Sarah. I did check the new WAPF shopping guide that just arrived, but no luck with the nuts. Lots of other gems, though. I will look in the journal. I forgot about it and cannot imagine why. I appreciate the reply!
Nuts can still be labeled as raw in stores, but by law they aren’t any more. Somebody (some big competitor) decided it’s too risky to eat raw nuts. You CAN get them REALLY raw at farmers’ markets, but since S510 passed, it’s likely it won’t last long. Get raw nuts while you can!
My kids love these topped with pumpkin butter.
Thanks Betheny,
Only I heard that they aren’t REALLY raw….that they are pasturized or something.
You’re absolutely right. Our crazy gov’t makes it illegal to sell TRULY raw almonds. The almonds found in stores (including Sams/Costco) are pasteurized, and worse, usually with chemicals. If you can find Organic Almonds, those are usually steam pasteurized which is certainly preferable. The good news is that you can still legally purchase TRULY RAW almonds directly from the farm. I order mine from Organic Pastured in Cali (I live in Atlanta). They sell for $12 a lb or $50 for 5 lbs and shipping is free. Expensive? Sure. Healthier? Absolutely. Here’s the link. Hope this helps! 🙂
-Jocelyn
Making Crispy Nuts is one part of my 2011 New Year’s resolution. WHERE can I buy reasonably priced RAW nuts ?
I get the best price on raw nuts at Sams club! Like 3 pds of raw Almonds for $11.00
If no Sams club nearby, maybe Costco