I have been following a wheat-free diet for quite some time now. Often, a wheat-free diet is labeled as a gluten-free diet; however, gluten is not found only in wheat flour. It is present in many grains. In simple terms, gluten is a protein that acts as a binding agent. If you have been advised for medical reasons to follow a wheat-free diet, it is commonly understood as a gluten-free diet, but they are not the same. Your body may react differently to foods made with wheat flour, which is why you choose to avoid it.
And then if you have a sweet tooth and crave cakes, cookies, muffins, and brownies, you know how challenging it can be to find alternatives when using different types of flour. When I tried baking with alternative flours, the results never tasted quite the same as when I used regular flour. I struggled with the distinct taste of gluten-free baked goods and wasn’t satisfied with the outcome. After several trials and brainstorming sessions, I finally developed recipes that not only meet my expectations but also taste remarkably close to those made with traditional flour. This experience has been a significant learning curve for me, and I am happy to have created something new and useful for the future.
This cookie recipe is the first in the series. If you’ve never made Chai Masala Cookies before, now is the perfect time to give it a try, especially with the holidays approaching. Baking during this season is a wonderful way to please the senses. This recipe is not only free from wheat flour, but it also uses nutritious ingredients that taste and smell great. The cookies exceeded my expectations; the aroma of the freshly ground spices and the perfect bite each time make this recipe a keeper in your collection of cookie recipes. Bake them in batches to enjoy yourself or to gift to your loved ones!
I would love to hear about your experience with the recipe, so if you try it, please leave a comment. 🙂
Gluten-free Chai Masala Cookies
An aromatic and addictive eggless, gluten-free cookie recipe that is nutritious. Perfect for holiday baking; make a batch and enjoy with your loved ones.
Ingredients
- ½ cup / 47g- Oats flour (read notes)
- ½ cup / 75g- Jowar flour / Sorghum flour
- 2 tbsp- Powdered almonds
- ¼ cup / 50g- Caster sugar or Powdered Sugar (brown/white)
- ½ cup / 75g- Unsalted Butter
- ¼ tsp- Salt
For Chai Masala
- 3- Green Cardamoms
- 4- Cloves
- 1/8 tsp- Nutmeg powder
- ¼ tbsp- Cinnamon powder
- 1 tsp- Dry ginger powder/Sonth
Instructions
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Before I started, all the ingredients were at room temperature.
Making a powder from toasted almonds
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You can toast ½ cup almonds on the stovetop or in an air fryer, as I did. If using an air fryer, preheat it to 180 degrees C and toast the almonds for 2-3 minutes, as they turn one shade darker know that they're toasted. Make sure to stop the air fryer once in-between to toss the almonds. Once they are toasted, transfer the hot nuts to a bowl and let them cool completely at room temperature before grinding.
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To grind the almonds, add the cooled nuts to a food processor or mixer grinder and pulse until you achieve a powdery consistency. Be careful not to run the mixer for too long, as this can cause the almond powder to become sticky.
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Use 2 tbsp of almond powder as the recipe suggests, and store the remaining powdered almonds in an airtight container for later use.
Making the cookie dough
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Make a powder of cloves and green cardamoms (use the seeds only) by using the mortar & pestle.
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In a bowl, add oats flour, jowar flour, powdered almonds, salt, and the spice powders, mix well, and keep aside.
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In another bowl, whisk the butter and sugar together until smooth and fluffy.
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Add the flour mixture to the butter-sugar mix, and start mixing with your fingers to form the cookie dough.
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Take small portions of dough, about the size of a walnut, shape them into rounds and transfer them to a paper lined baking tray or pan, arrange them 1” apart from each other.
Baking in Air Fryer
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For the Air Fryer baking, I arranged the cookies in a baking paper lined round cake pan.
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I could accommodate 7 cookies at a time in the cake pan.
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Bake the cookies at 160 degrees C for 8-10 minutes in a preheated Air Fryer.
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When using an air fryer to bake cookies in batches, it’s important to monitor them closely. The interior temperature can increase slightly if the air fryer runs for a longer duration, and this can vary between different air fryer brands. From my experience, I’ve found it helpful to check the cookies after the first 5-6 minutes when preparing the second batch. Regardless of the timing suggested in a recipe, this precaution has proven useful for me. Baking in an air fryer is much quicker, which is why I frequently use it for various baked goods.
Baking in the oven
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Preheat the oven at 175 degrees C.
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Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes, or until the bottom edges of the cookies start to appear brown in colour.
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The cookies will be soft after baking, but they will be hardened when cool. Let the cookies cool down for 2-3 minutes on the baking tray itself. Then shift them onto a cooling rack and leave there until they cool completely.
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Store the cookies in an airtight container. Consume them within 7-10 days.
Recipe Notes
Use oats flour made from rolled oats only for this recipe.
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