Gluten free vanilla wafers?! The mere mention of a recipe like this popular one gets people talking. These cookies bring back such wonderful memories, and the thought of having them again, gluten free, ignites a fire of excitement for kids and all of us kids at heart.
How long has it been since you’ve had a vanilla wafer? As a celiac cookbook author creating gluten-free recipes, it’s often a challenge to devise recipes that are close to the original wheat versions, because I can’t conduct a taste test!
So when I set about to create a knock-off ‘Nilla Wafer, I had to line up some gluten-eating taste testers.
It might seem like making homemade “Nilla” knock-offs would be difficult, but it’s really not! The dough comes together easily when using my gfJules Flour — the light, airy flour works great in these cookies so there’s no grit, no nasty aftertaste and the taste really shines through.
Then after it gets nice and cold, just transfer the dough to a piping bag or other plastic bag with a corner cut out and squeeze!
With big smiles, full mouths and nodding heads, my family (and all the gluten-eating taste testers) gave this gluten free Vanilla Wafer recipe recipe a thumbs up!
I hope your family enjoys them as much as ours has!
To see more delicious gluten-free cookie recipes, search my RECIPES for “cookie” or for a particular type of cookie you might crave. Also grab a copy of my popular Gluten Free Cookie e-book With over 26 pages of gluten-free cookie baking tips and recipes, it’s a cookie resource you’ll definitely want to have.
To see the Virtual Gluten Free Cookie Exchange where this recipe was first published, hop to my post for links to all 18 GF cookies shared, and don’t forget to check the Gluten Free Cookie Swap on Facebook. So many delicious gluten-free cookie recipes, so little time!
Now, on to the recipe you’ve been waiting for: Gluten Free Vanilla Wafers!
Gluten Free Vanilla Wafer Recipe
Made with my gfJules Gluten Free Flour, no one would ever know these light and clean-tasting cookies were gluten free. They're the perfect thing to fix any Nilla Wafer craving, and they'll be the icing on your Banana Cream Pie ... so to speak!
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter or non-dairy alternative (e.g. Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks)
- 1 cup granulated cane sugar
- 1/8 tsp. sea salt
- 1 large egg white (or alternative like aquafaba)
- 1 Tbs. pure vanilla extract (or lemon zest for a lemon version of this cookie)
- 1 Tbs. milk (dairy or non-dairy)
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1 1/3 cup + 1 Tbs. gfJules™ All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour (192 grams)
Instructions
Beat together the butter, sugar and salt for 4-5 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add egg white (or aquafaba), vanilla and milk, mixing until integrated. Slowly add the gfJules Flour and baking powder, beating until totally combined.
Refrigerate for two hours or until cold.
Preheat oven to 350°F (static) or 325°F (convection).
Scoop dough into a piping bag with a large icing tip or a plastic bag with a one-inch corner cut out.
Evenly squeeze dough out onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, forming rounds approximately ¾-inch wide, spaced 1 inch apart.
Bake for approximately 13 – 14 minutes, or until edges are lightly browned.
Nutrition Information
Yield 50 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 34Total Fat 2gSaturated Fat 1gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 1gCholesterol 9mgSodium 32mgCarbohydrates 4gFiber 0gSugar 4gProtein 0g
Please keep in mind that nutrition information provided is per serving, which may vary. While we have taken care to provide you with the most accurate nutritional values possible, please note that this information may differ significantly depending on the exact ingredients and brands that you choose to use to make this recipe. Additionally, where options are given for ingredients, the resulting calculation may include all ingredient options instead of only one per line, skewing the totals significantly.
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My favorite is rum/whiskey balls. Yum!
Oh my! I haven’t had those in so long!!! I need to find a great recipe for those and make them again!
~jules
I love baking Regina (seeded) cookies. I take an old Italian recipe book from my grandmother and convert it to gf.
Fantastic, Paula! I love those old recipes that we can convert to GF to bring back memories!
~jules
My favorite cookie recipe is my grandmother cut outs Apeas
My favorite, before I went gluten free, was Paradise Bakery’s Ginger Molasses cookie. Now, I don’t have a favorite, but hopefully will after this year!
Yes, Chris! That’s the spirit! There are so many great cookie recipes in this cookie exchange. You should also have a look at my equivalent of a ginger molasses cookie – it just might be that new favorite!!!
~jules
My favorite will always be gingerbread. 🙂
Not sure why, but it wouldn’t let me leave an independent blog comment….so I’m tacking on to another one 🙂
My favorite is still chocolate chip cookies.
Got it, Kate! Not sure why the comments were being weird, but you’re in!
~jules
I look forward to trying these! One good thing is that I already have everything so I can try them this weekend!!! Thanks for sharing
My favorite holiday cookies are snickerdoodle cookies.
MMmm. Yum! I love snickerdoodles, too! Have you tried my GF recipe for snickerdoodles yet?
~jules
Vanilla wafers can be crushed and used for a pie crust
Indeed, Bonnie! That’s an excellent use for them – or for the broken ones. Eat the rest. 🙂
~jules
Thanks for the recipe! My dad makes banana pudding and I would love to add this! I love to make baklava and german stollen cookies! They have nuts, raisins, dried fruits and would be great gluten free!
Sounds wonderful, Seyma!
~jules
I love gingerbread cookies
Mmmm – one of my favorites, Diana!
~jules
My favorite holiday cookie is a gingerbread cookie, now that I found the virtual cookie swap I have a recipe I can try!
YES! There are loads of great recipes shared in this Swap, Windy! Here’s my gingerbread cookie recipe, as well, and I also have an easy gingerbread mix if you’d ever like to try that! And don’t forget to check out the Gluten Free Cookie Swap on Facebook!
vanilla wafers are my husbands FAVE! must give this a try. thanks, Jules!
You’re welcome, Sarah! I know you’ll love this recipe!
~jules
I can’t believe how absolutely perfect those look Jules! I want to reach right into my screen and grab one to go with my tea 🙂
Oooooh! With tea! What a marvelous idea, Alisa!!!
~jules
it used to be my grandmas cookie strips, I would love to try to convert the recipe to gf!
Intriguing! What are cookie strips, Julie?!? Have you tried just using her recipe with my gfJules Gluten Free All Purpose Flour? In most recipes it’s a seamless transition!
~jules
Any chance your grandma’s “cookie strips” were my mother-in-law’s “split seconds?”
a sugar cookie dough shaped into a rectangle, make trough down middle and fill with jam, then bake??
Yum, North – that sounds fantastic! I’ve never heard of “split seconds,” but I sure like the sound of them!
~jules
They actually look better than the original! 🙂
Ah, you’re so sweet Elle! 😉
~jules
Love thumbprints! Great childhood memories.
Gotta love cookie memories, Leslie!
~jules
My favorite to make is the thumbprint cookies with a butter frosting. My grandmother always made them when I was growing up, and with the new cup by cup flours, I can make them gluten free for me!
Life is sweet again!
~jules