Halloween AIP Cookies with AIP Buttercream Frosting

The AIP Dessert you Need!

Is it actually Fall if you’re not eating or drinking something that has “spice” in the name? Of course not. It’s one of the many seasonal traditions, just like raking leaves, layering jackets, and sipping your favorite tea. 

But when you’re on the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) Diet, sometimes that sweet tradition can feel out of reach. Almost everything sitting on the shelves contains extra sugars, preservatives, grains, or a bunch of bad additives that can increase inflammation.

I make this recipe using our AIP Classic Grain-Free Hot Cereal. It has a base of Tiger Nut Flour, which is great for baking, and the coconut adds a wonderful texture! Tiger Nuts aren’t a nut at all; they’re actually a delicious prebiotic superfood tuber. They keep this recipe gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, and nut-free - while still being flavorful! Cookies that are tasty, AIP Paleo and provide lasting energy? It’s not too good to be true, I promise. :)

Despite being older, my kids still love decorating their cookies, so I created naturally-colored AIP frosting. Abby made the cute little ghosts and Adriane and I decorated the candy corns. As you can imagine, we didn’t have any cookies left, but if you do, be sure to freeze them in a single-layer so they don’t stick together!

AIP Pumpkin Spice Cookies

Yields: 8 cookies

Prep Time: 10 mins

Total Time: 1 hour

Ingredients: 

• ¼ c  + 2 tbsp cassava flour
• ¼ c AIP Classic Grain Free Hot Cereal
• ¼ c arrowroot starch
• ¼ tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¼ c palm shortening 
• ¼ c maple syrup
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon 
• ⅛ tsp ground clove
• ⅛ tsp ground ginger 

Instructions for the cookies: 

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Combine the dry ingredients for your AIP cookies into a small bowl, then quickly mix together with a fork to remove any lumps and evenly distribute the spices.
3. Cream together room-temperature palm shortening, maple syrup, and vanilla extract.
4. Using a spatula, gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, one third at a time. 
5. Use your hands to form the dough into a ball and place it into the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. A chilled dough will be much easier to shape later!
6. Pull a roughly 2 tbsp-sized piece from the dough ball and roll into a small ball, then flatten the dough to about ½ inch thick. If the dough sticks, sprinkle a little cassava flour on your preparation surface. Use whatever cookie cutter you prefer to create your shape.
   
   
7. Continue this process until all your cookies are formed, then place them on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. 
8. Bake for 11-14 minutes, or until the edges of your cookies are golden brown. 
9. Allow to cool completely before icing. 

AIP “Buttercream” Frosting

Ingredients:

• ¾ c palm shortening
• ¼ c canned coconut milk (or coconut butter) 
• ¼ c maple syrup
• 2 tbsp tapioca starch
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• Pinch of sea salt (optional)
• ¼ + ⅛ tsp turmeric powder (optional)
• ⅛ tsp ground ginger (optional)

Instructions: 

1. “Cream” together palm shortening and maple syrup until smooth.
2. Slowly add in the coconut milk and tapioca starch.
3. “Cream” until you have a light, creamy consistency, similar to traditional buttercream.
4. Add in the vanilla extract and sea salt.
5. Allow to sit for 10 mins in the refrigerator or freezer to help the buttercream “set.”
6. If you’re decorating your cookies like me, separate out the frosting into three bowls, each with roughly 2 tbsp of frosting for the yellow and the orange colors and the rest remains white. 
7. In one bowl, mix ¼ tsp ground turmeric + ⅛ tsp ground ginger for the orange color
8. In the other bowl, mix ⅛ tsp ground turmeric for the yellow color.
9. Serve immediately or freeze in a single-layer. 

If you’ve ever baked AIP anything before, you know it can be a little tricky to get the texture right so I have a few tips that will hopefully help! 

I found that the AIP frosting gave these cookies a really nice soft-baked texture. And it actually tasted like buttercream! I loved being able to enjoy that melt-in-your-mouth frosting texture again. I used turmeric and ginger as natural food coloring because they pair really well with the spices in the cookies. I’ve also read that goji berries work great as a natural orange food color. You could simply mix the goji berry orange with additional white frosting to achieve yellow.

One tricky thing about the turmeric is that using too much can cause the fat in the frosting to separate, so I wouldn’t recommend using more than ¼ tsp. If you plan to make more orange frosting, I would try the goji berry method which can be found here: Natural Food Coloring.
I personally like my sweets to have the right balance with salt but I know for some it can be too much. I recommend trying the cookie dough first and if that feels salty enough for your liking, I would omit it from the frosting. 

Also, I know from personal experience that it’s easy to get tired of coconut on AIP so if you’re looking for a coconut-free version, you could easily substitute tiger nut flour or additional cassava flour for the AIP Classic cereal.

For the icing, I recommend substituting coconut milk with additional palm shortening.

I hope you will enjoy these. Please leave me any comments below or email me your creations to zora@wildzora.com 

Love, Zora 

Interested in our AIP Classic Cereal by itself?