Gluten Free Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies

5 from 1 vote

Indulge in these Gluten Free Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies; fudgy chocolate cookies with melted chocolate and gooey, toasted marshmallows on top. Try to keep your hands off these!

Hi there! I’m Brielle from Breezy Bakes and I coudn’t be more ecstatic to share a tried and true, downright easy Gluten Free Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies recipe with you all today. If you thought baking gluten free was expensive, finicky, or plain old ick…these cookies will put those judgments to shame. Trust me.

Well, they say dreams do come true and I was skeptical up until today. I’ve been running this gluten free food blog of mine over at Breezy Bakes for about four years now and have many times wondered if any of my recipes have actually ever been seen. Welcome to the insecurities of a food blogger’s life! Haha!

When Cade and Carrian approached me to contribute a gluten free recipe to their site…let’s just say there may have been some squeals of utter delight. It’s like winning a gold medal in the blogging business. And I’m gonna wear this medal loud and proud.

WHAT IS GLUTEN FREE?

You may be asking yourself, “What is gluten free anyway???”

It’s just as it sounds, a strict diet avoiding gluten. Gluten is a protein that exists in wheat, barley, or rye. When we hear the term “gluten free”, we mainly think of avoiding bread. While that is true, there are many other products that are produced with gluten including: cereal, pasta, tortillas, crackers, soy sauce, cookies, muffins, pancakes…you name it.

And so unless us gluten free peeps want to shun ourselves into a corner of munching on rice cakes, we find ways to adapt. Many, if not all, mainstream recipes can be adapted to a gluten free version with very little to absolutely no difference in taste or texture. You just have to find the right recipes and the right flours to produce optimal results.

WHAT SUBSTITUTIONS DO I MAKE WHEN BAKING GLUTEN FREE?

Unless you are baking bread (which is an entire beast in itself), most gluten free adaptations just require substituting gluten free flour for regular all-purpose wheat flour. That’s right. It’s as easy as that. There are so many all-purpose gluten free flours on the market nowadays that your local grocery store is bound to carry at least one brand.

Along with substituting the flour in a 1:1 ratio, I tend to also increase the amount of leavening agent in any kind of recipe where I expect a rise. If your regular muffin recipe calls for 2 teaspoons of baking powder, consider adding 2 1/2 teaspoons. Gluten is the protein that gives our baked goods structure as they’re baking, so without that gluten, it needs a little more encouragement to rise.

Don’t worry about increasing the leavening agent for cookies, brownies, or other goodies that don’t need those fluffy air pockets.

WHAT GLUTEN FREE FLOURS DO YOU RECOMMEND?

I’ve tried many gluten free flours and have found a few that I enjoy:

Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Baking Flour – I use this flour for my favorite pie crust recipe and it comes out great. It has a very subtle flavor and isn’t too gritty. It’s also not overly heavy on the xanthan gum which means your baked goods don’t come out too chewy. However, avoid their gluten free all-purpose baking flour. It has an unpleasant bitter aftertaste.
Cup 4 Cup – I absolutely love this flour for cookies, brownies, and pancakes. It makes for a batter that is easy to work with, especially with my cutout sugar cookies. It’s high in starches so the color is very light and reminiscent of regular white flour. This flour does create a bit of “chew” in your baked goods, so I avoid it for use in cakes, muffins, and quick breads.
King Arthur Gluten Free All-Purpose Flour – Although I prefer to make my own flour blend when baking cakes, muffins, or quick breads, I will use King Arthur when I’m in a bind. I like this flour because it doesn’t contain any xanthan gum, which gives you the ability to add your own amount. You really only need about 1/4 to a 1/2 teaspoon per 2 cups of flour. Most flour blends contain a greater percentage of xanthan gum and therefore your baked goods can become chewy or gummy. My advice is to invest in a package of xanthan gum and keep it in your freezer for when it’s needed. Xanthan gum can last for quite some time!
I have also had decent results with Pamela’s products, Better Batter, and Arrowhead Mills. I would steer clear from generic grocery store brands, and I found that the gluten free Pillsbury mix was too gritty for my taste.

TIPS FOR BAKING GLUTEN FREE:

Let your batter sit: Gluten free batter takes a while to absorb moisture. It’s tempting to add more flour to your batter when baking gluten free, but resist and give that batter 10 mins to sit. You will be surprised to see that it thickens up. Give it another stir before baking and you’re good to go.
Bake a tester: I always bake a tester mini muffin or single cookie before I waste an entire batch of batter. It only takes about 12 minutes to bake a mini muffin and it’s worth your time. If your muffins are too flat, add a bit more baking powder or 2-3 tablespoons of flour. That should fix the problem.
Chill your cookie dough: It really helps gluten free cookies hold their shape if the dough is chilled. Otherwise the batter tends to spread and you end up with flat, crispy cookies.
Cool COMPLETELY: I know it’s hard to resist, but for optimal texture, you must allow your gluten free goods to cool completely. There is a change in texture that occurs as the goodies cool. If you eat them straight out of the oven, muffins will seem gummy and cookies will fall apart. Once they’re cooled, muffins are light and airy and cookies hold together with the perfect amount of chew.
Plastic wrap and parchment paper: When baking things that need to be rolled out, such as sugar cookies and pie crusts, to avoid adding too much flour it is helpful to use plastic wrap and parchment paper for rolling. Dust the parchment paper or plastic wrap with a little flour, add your dough on top with another sprinkling of flour, and then place another layer of parchment or plastic wrap on top. Roll just as you would otherwise. It makes transferring those pie crusts a breeze too!

LET’S TALK Gluten Free CHOCOLATE MARSHMALLOW COOKIES!

With all that being said, it’s time to talk cookies. These Gluten Free Chocolate Marshmallow Cookies are the perfect starter cookies not only to impress yourself with your newfound gluten free baking skills, but to blow your friends and family out of the water. I’m telling you, these gluten free chocolate cookies are magical!

Think of a perfectly fudgy, chewy chocolate cookie topped with a spoonful of melted chocolate and then popped back in the oven to get all warm and toasty with a pillow of marshmallows. Forget camping. You can have all the campfire flavor in the luxury of your own kitchen!

Gluten Free Double Chocolate Cookies with Toasted Marshmallows

These gluten free cookies have a rich chocolate flavor from the combination of cocoa powder and melted chocolate in the batter. You’ll be lucky if the batter even makes it to the oven. I know I am with all my cookie dough lovers in this house. Even with the rich chocolate flavor of the cookies, who doesn’t need an extra punch of chocolate?! Adding a spoonful of melted chocolate on top of the cooled cookies gives them just the flare they need.

You can either pop these gluten free chocolate marshmallow cookies back in the oven under the broiler to toast the marshmallows or use a kitchen torch to slightly char the marshmallows. Both techniques work fabulous!

Let me know if you have any questions with your gluten free baking. I’d be happy to offer additional advice. And please come visit over at Breezy Bakes. The more friends, the merrier!