Hello!

My favourite holiday cookie recipe is gluten free black sesame short bread with candied ginger. I cannot eat gluten for health reasons, but actually rice flour makes shortbread with a superior crunch even if you have no trouble with wheat.

Here is a link to the recipe with photos...

https://bigsislittledish.wordpress.com/2012/12/12/black-sesame-shortbread-with-candied-ginger-gluten-free-travels-in-taiwan/

Here is the recipe...

BLACK SESAME AND CANDIED GINGER SHORTBREAD (GLUTEN-FREE)

Makes 16 cookies

1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
3/4 cups white rice flour (mochi flour would work too)
1/2 cup arrowroot starch
1/8 cup tapioca starch
pinch of salt (don’t skip this!)
1/4 cup black sesame seeds
1/4 teaspoon ground dry ginger
Candied ginger for topping

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees. Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Add the rice flour, arrowroot starch, tapioca starch, salt, sesame seeds and dry ginger. I used my hand to combine the dough and continued working it until it was glossy, pliable and every crumb had been gathered into the ball. Divide the ball of dough in two. Divide the two balls into four lumps each. Divide each lump in half to make 16,even sized cookies total. Roll each of the 16 lumps into little balls and place, evenly spaced on a lined cookie sheet.
Using a wet fork, compress each cookie to flatten them and make a lines on the top. Thinly slice the candied ginger and carefully place a strip of it into each of the long depressions made by the fork. I was skeptical that the ginger would stay put, but they did!
Bake the cookies for 20-25 minutes or until they look a bit golden on the bottom edge. Allow the cookies to cool before eating them! If fact these ones really taste better after having a day to mellow and blend.