Makes 8
Ingredients
For the biscuits:
275g (3 cups) ground almonds
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp baking powder
6 dates, pitted
3 tbsp coconut oil, melted
40g (5 tbsp) rice syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg white
For the icing:
80ml (⅓ cup) coconut milk
75g (½ cup) rice or almond milk powder
4 tbsp agave syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
150ml (⅔ cup) coconut oil, melted
1 tbsp lemon juice
Method
1/ Put the almonds, spices, baking powder and dates into a food processor and pulse. Add the coconut oil, rice syrup, vanilla extract and egg white and pulse again until everything comes together to form a ball of dough. Transfer the gingerbread dough to a bowl, cover it with clingfilm (plastic wrap) and chill for 1 hour.
2/ Preheat the oven to 170°C gas mark 3 and line a baking tray (cookie sheet) with baking paper.
3/ Roll out the chilled gingerbread to a thickness of 3mm, and then, using a cookie cutter, cut out little men (or any other shape you fancy) and place them on the prepared baking tray (cookie sheet).
4/ Bake in a preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack.
5/ Next, make the icing by putting all the ingredients, apart from the coconut oil and lemon juice, in a food processor or blender and whizz until smooth. Then add the coconut oil and lemon juice and blend again until combined and silky smooth. Transfer the mixture to a piping bag and chill for 2 hours; the longer in the fridge the better, so that the mixture isn’t too runny and then it’s easy to draw on cute little faces.
6/ When the gingerbread biscuits are completely cool, decorate them however you like – I like to pipe faces and clothes onto our gingerbread men.
Nutritional nugget: Coconut oil and coconut milk are rich in medium-chain-fats, which help ease digestive complaints and lower the risk of developing of Type 2 diabetes.
