Gingerbread Cookies:

1. Into a big bowl, sift the gluten-free flour, powdered sugar, cacao powder, Christmas Spice Blend, and baking soda.
2. Pour in the honey, add the eggs, and dark rum.
3. Stir with a spoon combining everything together. When it starts coming together knead it with your hands until dough forms. If needed, you can knead the dough on a clean flat surface in stead. The dough will be sticky because of the honey but it shouldn’t be overly wet and still look like cookie dough. If needed add a teaspoon of flour.
4. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and place into the fridge to chill overnight or for at least a few hours. It keeps in the fridge for 1-3 days before baking.
5. When ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a baking sheet with baking paper. The dough stays soft in the fridge so you can roll it out right away.
6. Dust a clean flat surface with some of the gluten-free flour. Take half of the dough, place it on the floured surface and flip so both sides are covered. Rub all sides lightly with the flour to make sure it doesn’t stick. Place the rest of the dough back into the fridge.
7. Roll the dough out to about 4-5 mm thick carefully flipping and dusting with flour while rolling out until you get desired thickness.
8. Cut out your desired shapes and transfer them to the prepared baking sheet using an offset spatula.
9. Bake the cookies for about 15 minutes or until golden. The time will depend on the size of your cookies. Keep an eye on them so they don’t burn.
10. Immediately after taking them out of the oven, using a pastry brush, lightly brush them with the egg and let cool and dry on the hot baking sheet. When cool, transfer to a flat surface to cool completely. Repeat until you use up all the dough.
11. Store the cookies in a closed container at room temperature until ready to decorate.

Royal icing:

1. Sift the powdered sugar into a big bowl, add the tapioca starch, the egg white, and the lemon juice.
2. Mix with a spoon until it’s all well combined and smooth. If the mixture is too thin, add more powdered sugar. If it’s too thick, add a tiny squeeze of lemon juice. You always need less liquid than you think.
3. If not ready to use immediately, cover the bowl with a wet towel so it doesn’t dry out.
4. When ready to decorate, add the icing into a plastic bag (½ - ¾ of the icing is enough, leave the rest in the bowl covered if needed later). Twist the bag to secure and cut off a tiny piece of the tip. Decorate your cookies as desired and let dry for a few hours before storing them.
5. These cookies keep well in a cool dark place (not the fridge) or room temperature for up to a month.