Paleo & AIP Snickerdoodles (egg-free, nut-free, dairy-free) (2024)

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These Paleo and AIP Snickerdoodles are a cookie lover’s wish come true … especially if you used to love cookies but limit yourself to only the best occasional desserts now … They taste like the old favorites, but they’re so much healthier.

With just the right combination of ingredients, these crunchy on the outside, soft, tender and chewy in the middle cinnamon classics are egg-free, nut-free and dairy-free … and perfect with your favorite milk or hot drink for a special treat.

Jump to Recipe

These snickerdoodles are like the ones many of us used to eat years ago (that contained white flour and white sugar). Paleo & AIP Snickerdoodles are classic. Crunchy (crispy edges) on the outside, then soft, tender and chewy on the inside, a true pleasure to eat.

Snickerdoodle cookie choices

You have two decisions to make when whipping up these one-bowl cookies.

Firstly: to roll or not to roll the cookie dough balls in cinnamon sugar before baking.

You can see the two options in the two photos above, to the right and below: the top cookie (in the above photo) is just the baked dough; the bottom stack of cookies (in the above photo) has been rolled in cinnamon sugar, which is the more traditional route.

The sugar you use can be sucanat (cane sugar), coconut sugar or maple sugar.

If you want less sugar overall, I can assure you that the top cookie is perfect. (I roll my cookies in cinnamon sugar for holiday parties and special occasions but leave it off for everyday treats.)

Cookie size is your second decision: A 1-1/2 tablespoon cookie scoop (like this one) makes 12 cookies. You can see these above in the stack of 5 cookies or in the photo to the right; they’re smaller and a more classic cookie size.

A 3 tablespoon cookie scoop (this one) makes 6 large cookies, as seen in the topmost photo above and in the photo below (the cookie almost fills my hand). Both elicit happy responses! Both are fun for different reasons. Both bake up beautifully.

And yes, this dough mixes up so fast. Only one bowl is used. And the process takes only 10 minutes.

What flours are used in Paleo & AIP Snickerdoodles

What kind of Paleo and AIP flours are used in this Snickerdoodle recipe to achieve that just-right texture?

1) Tiger nut flour: Tiger nut flour is uniquely suited to egg-free baking, aerating baked goods well in the absence of eggs’ leavening power.

It also has a wonderful flavor (especially if you buy this brand) and texture.

As you may know, tiger nuts make the healthiest of grain-free flours, as tiger nuts are very high in resistant starch (RS), which is an indigestible starch that feeds colon flora, excellent for our gut microbiome. (Tiger nuts have RS Type 1, which is starch bound by indigestible plant cell walls.)

The insoluble fiber in tiger nuts is helpful for those who struggle with constipation. Tiger nuts are also high in monounsaturated fat, similar to olive oil. (source)

“Soaked” option

Perhaps surprisingly, tiger nuts do contain some level of antinutrients, such as phytates, oxalates, saponins and tannins. For those of you who don’t mind one additional easy step, there’s an easy way to reduce antinutrients in baked goods! These cookies already contain a small amount of apple cider vinegar (ACV) which can be used to reduce antinutrients.

See the Recipe Notes below for the “soaked” version of these cookies.

2) Arrowroot is the second flour in these Snickerdoodles.

Arrowroot is extracted from the root of a starchy tuber. It works really well in cookies, creating a great cookie texture on the inside and out.

Despite being a white flour, arrowroot is actually rich in trace minerals because it grows on tidal flats where sea minerals are abundant. Arrowroot also provides the calcium it gets from the sea water. Arrowroot isn’t refined; it is simply the dried and powdered root.

The two flours together are perfect and amazing for making the right texture in this cookie.

So pour yourself a hot cup of herbal coffee, creamy tea or something flowery, and grab your little plate with big cookie. It’s time for cookies and hot treats, one of life’s beautiful pleasures.

Substitutions

I often get questions about subbing ingredients.

As a rule, substitutions don’t work well in egg-free baked goods.

One exception is you can almost always sub one liquid sweetener for another: like maple syrup can be subbed for honey, with just a slight change in the flavor and texture.

However, one flour can not be subbed for another flour in this recipe.

Collagen

Also, I am often asked about my use of collagen.

Collagen contributes to the tender crumb or cake-like texture of some baked goods, (and I prefer having the extra amino acids [protein] with most baked goods to support healthy blood sugar levels).

For those who are new to collagen, it is different than gelatin, and there is no substitution for it in this recipe. But it’s well worth having as a pantry staple.

Cream of tartar

Cream of tartar is a traditional ingredient in snickerdoodle recipes. It adds the signature snickerdoodle tang (as does ACV) as well as lift to the recipe. You can use it or ACV in this recipe, as the ingredient list above indicates.

Learn more about Paleo Baking Substitutions here.

Looking for more great Paleo and AIP baked goods? Here are a few of my favorites that are also very popular on the blog:

• AIP Blueberry Muffins
• AIP Apple Cinnamon Breakfast Muffins
• Banana Breakfast Cookies
• AIP Lemon Blueberry Coffeecake
• Cranberry Muffins
• Strawberry Muffins

Favorite Paleo and AIP tiger nut recipes?

• Tiger Nut Flour Tortillas
• AIP Healthy Chocolate Banana Cookies
• Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies (AIP)
• Tigernut Yogurt
• Tiger Nut Flour Pie Crust
• Blackberry Lemon Cream Pie