These easy and delicious Paleo Heart Thumbprint Cookies are the perfect Valentine's day cookies. Soft shortbread cookie is filled with sweet jam in the shape of a heart. They are completely gluten free, dairy free, and nut free, so whoever your Valentine is can enjoy this sweet treat!
You can make these cookies anytime of year, but by imprinting a heart shape, they make the easiest and most adorable heart thumbprint cookies for Valentine's day. If you're not a huge baker, but you want to impress friends, family, or loved ones this Valentine's day, then these gluten free thumbprint cookies are what you should make. They are easy to make and always delicious.
Why These Paleo Heart Thumbprint Cookies are Different:
- No butter: these dairy free thumbprint cookies are made with heart healthy olive oil instead of butter which keeps the shortbread light. It made sound odd to bake with olive oil in a cookie, but it works with these.
- Allergy friendly: these jam thumbprint cookies are grain free, gluten free, dairy free, nut free, soy free, and corn free. They're perfect to bake for the person with food allergies or intolerances or to bring to a Valentine's day event.
- Lower sugar: made with a fraction of the sugar of traditional cookies and sweetened with refined sugar free maple syrup, these healthier cookies are the ultimate Valentine's treat after the sugar overload of the holiday season.
- Easy to make: this thumbprint cookie recipe is easy to make while still looking impressive. Their heart-shaped centers suggest finesse even though we just use our fingers to shape them!
Paleo Heart Thumbprint Cookie Ingredients
- Cassava flour: a great grain free flour alternative to all purpose flour. I find using a mix of flours in paleo baking yields the best texture which is why we also use...
- Tigernut flour: a nut free alternative to almond flour that is also great for grain free baking. Feel free to use almond flour if you tolerate nuts though.
- Tapioca starch: with paleo baking, it's best to use a combination of flours for the best texture. A starch in gluten free desserts provides softness.
- Maple syrup: keeps these healthy cookies refined sugar free.
- Olive oil: provides a light texture.
- Egg: used as a binder.
- Apple cider vinegar: I've found this helps with the texture. I have also forgotten to add it before and the cookies came out fine, so if you don't have any around, still make these!
- Jam or Nutella: raspberry or strawberry jam tastes amazing in these cookies, but your favorite jam will do. You can also never go wrong with some Nutella or chocolate spread.
- Baking powder, vanilla extract, salt: stick to pure vanilla extract for best flavor.
How to Make Heart Thumbprint Cookies
- Preheat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk all the dry ingredients together in a medium bowl.
- Beat together the wet ingredients in a large bowl.
- Add the dry to the wet and mix until just combined.
- Take tablespoon sized balls of cookie dough and roll flat on the prepared baking sheet.
- Use your fingers to imprint a heart shape in the center of each cookie. This works best by pressing your first finger in a diagonal across the cookie then lifting and pressing it along the other diagonal so you get a V shape that looks like a heart. If your fingers are sticking to the dough at all, just put a little flour on your finger before pressing.
- Use a small spoon or even a piping bag to add about a teaspoon of jam or Nutella into the imprint and bake for about 10-12 minutes.
- Be sure not to over bake them as they can dry out quickly. I'm slightly at altitude and 12 minutes is perfect. If you are even higher, check them at 10 minutes. If you are at sea level, they may need 14 minutes. The cookie part should seem just done and JUST beginning to golden.
- Let cookies cool for a couple minutes before removing to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Substitutions and Variations
- Flours: You can use almond flour for the tigernut flour and you can also sub the tapioca starch+cassava flour for gluten free flour. If you don't have tapioca starch, arrowroot starch should also work in a pinch.
- Egg: this recipe should work just fine with your favorite egg replacer for a plant based version, although I have not tested it personally.
- Oil: I have not tested this recipe with another fat, but I do think melted butter or coconut oil would work.
- Jam: I love using raspberry or strawberry for the color, but feel free to use your favorite flavor, Nutella, or even a chocolate nut/seed/granola butter.
- Variations: dust these cookies with some powdered sugar if desired or drizzle with a vanilla icing of choice.
How to Store Paleo Thumbprint Cookies
Store these heart shaped cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days or in the fridge for up to a week.
They don't freeze great once filled, but it is possible. Freeze in can even layer then transfer to a freezer safe container. The jam may be a bit runny when defrosted, but defrost them in the fridge overnight before ready to eat.
FAQ
Although I haven't personally tested it, a vegan egg substitute should work just fine in this recipe. Options include Bob's Red Mill Egg Replacer or even a flax egg.
If you end up with dry and crumbly cookies, there are likely two reasons. The first is that you used too much flour. Make sure to scoop flour into your measuring cup and level it off so you don't end up with too much flour. The other possibility is that you baked the cookies too long. I suggest doing a test bake with 1-2 cookies so you can figure out the perfect baking time for your oven.
The flavor of jam is personal preference, although I suggest strawberry, raspberry, or cherry jam for Valentine's day. It can be hard to find fully paleo jam in stores without refined sugar, although fruit-sweetened options do exist. You can also use a homemade own jam or marmalade.
If you are making these gluten free Valentine's cookies for an event or gift, I suggest making them the night before. With time, the jam bleeds into the cookies so they aren't as pretty.
More Valentine's Day Treats
Raspberry Cheesecake Bars with Brownie Crust (gluten and dairy free)
Gluten Free Raspberry Chocolate Chip Cookies
Gluten Free Vanilla Raspberry Cake with Chocolate Frosting
Gluten Free Strawberry Brownies
Gluten Free Caramel Chocolate Cake
If you bake this cookies for your Valentine, let me know what you thought in the comments below! Leave a rating and review and tag me on social media so I can see your bake.
Gluten Free Thumbprint Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup Tigernut flour or almond flour
- ⅔ cup tapioca starch
- ⅓ cup cassava flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup raspberry or strawberry jam or your favorite jam or Nutella
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F.
- Whisk the dry ingredients together in a small bowl.
- Blend the all wet ingredients, except for the jam, together in a larger bowl.
- Add your dry ingredients to the wet and mix well to combine.
- Scoop tablespoonful amounts of dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Use your thumb or first finger to gently press a heart shaped indent into the dough (See my video on Instagram for a tutorial).
- Fill each cookie crater with jam or Nutella.
- Bake for 12-14 minutes until just beginning to golden.
- Let cool for 10 minutes on cookie sheet before moving to wire rack to finish cooling.
- Enjoy!
Ann Marie says
OMG! They are so cute!
Lemons 'n Lyme says
thank you, they are fun aren't they?!