Keto Gingerbread Cookies

• Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and line two cookie baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
• If you are vegan and don't want to use an egg, add chia seed and water in a small bowl. Stir. Set aside 10 minutes until it forms a gel.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients: almond flour, erythritol, and spices.
• Add the beaten egg (or chia seed gel if keto vegan), melted coconut oil, molasses (optional!), and vanilla extract.
• Combine with a spatula first, then use your hands and knead the dough until it comes together.
• Divide the dough into two balls of the same size. Wrap each ball tightly into plastic wrap, roughly flatten them into a thick disc and refrigerate both discs for 1 hour.
• Remove the dough discs from the fridge, unwrap one disc and place it in the center of two parchment paper pieces.
• Roll out the dough into a 1/2 inch thickness (for thicker cookies) or 1/4 inch thick (for thinner cookies).
• Use a gingerbread man cookie cutter shape to cut out cookies - I made 6 cookies in each half-disc of dough, so 12 in total. My tip: use a small knife or spatula to lift the shaped cookie and transfer it onto the prepared baking cookie sheets. 
• Gather up the leftover dough into a ball and re-roll to form more cookies. You should be able to shape 12 large gingerbread cookies with the entire recipe, depending on your cookie cutter size.
• Bake your cookies for 12-14 minutes max or until the border are golden brown.
• Remove from the oven, cool down 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then gently transfer into a cooling rack. I recommend using a spatula that you slide under each cookie to transfer them gently. They will look soft, and that is ok! They will firm up with time. Cool them down for at least 20 minutes. Be patient; the cookies will get very crunchy with time! Trust me, after a few hours. You won't believe how crunchy and flavorsome they get!  The gingerbread flavor will also enhance after 24 hours.
• Store up to 2 weeks in a cookie jar, in the pantry.

Keto royal icing

• Combine sugar-free icing powder with almond milk and guar gum until it forms a white paste. 
• Use a piping bag to pipe shapes on the cookies. 
• Dry at room temperature. It can take up to 48 hours for the decorations to harden.