Gluten Free Blueberry Streusel Cookies

These Gluten-Free Blueberry Streusel Cookies might be the easiest cookie recipe on my website. They are a delightful cross between a gluten-free tart and a cookie, featuring a buttery almond shortbread crust, juicy blueberries, and a delicious streusel topping. Baked in a muffin tin, these no-chill cookies come together in just 30 minutes.

Inspired by the Raspberry Crumble Cookies sold at Costco, this recipe is quick, easy, and versatile.

Recipe Ingredient Notes

Gluten Free Flour: This gluten free blueberry streusel cookie recipe is very forgiving. I have tried it with Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 and King Arthur Measure for Measure Gluten Free Flour. Both flours did work great but the cookies made with King Arthur Measure for Measure were less crumbly after a day or two being stored.

Almond Flour: I love adding Almond Flour to this recipe. It not only gives the cookies a delicious flavor but it also has a higher fat content compared to regular flour. This helps keep the cookies moist and prevents it from becoming too dry or brittle.

Blueberries: I prefer using fresh blueberries since frozen blueberries can contain too much liquid making the bottoms of the blueberry streusel cookies soggy.

Butter: The key ingredient of these streusel cookies is definitely the butter. I like to use a European Style Butter here. European-style butter contains a higher percentage of butterfat (82-85% or more), while American-style butter usually has around 80%. European-style butter is also churned longer, resulting in a creamier and smoother texture. Of course, good ol' fashioned American Butter will work just fine here as well. Dairy Free Butter can be used instead of regular unsalted butter in this easy cookie recipe.

Blueberry Cookies Streusel Dough

The dough for these blueberry cookies comes together quickly. I use a stand mixer to make the dough. The butter should be at room temperature, around 65F. You should see an indent if you nudge the softened butter with your finger. But the butter should not feel like you can poke right through it. The key is not to overmix the cookie dough. It should look like chunky streusel.

1. In a small bowl combine the gluten free flour, almond flour and kosher salt. Whisk the ingredients together and set aside.
2. Add the room temperature butter, granulated sugar, vanilla extract and the zest of a medium lemon to the bowl of a stand mixer or large mixing bowl.
3. Using the paddle attachement, cream the ingredients together at a medium speed for 2-3 minutes until they become light and fluffy. Halfway through the creaming process, remember to pause and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
4. Add the dry ingredients and at a low speed mix the ingredients until a coarse streusel forms.

How to assemble and bake Blueberry Cookies

To bake the Gluten Free Blueberry Streusel Cookies you will need a standard muffin pan. If you like you can use muffin liners (especially if your muffin tin is well loved and you worry about the cookies sticking to the pan).

1. Preheat the oven to 350F and arrange the wire racks in the oven in the middle.
2. Portion about 2 Tablespoons of gluten free shortbread dough into each well. I like to use a Medium Cookie Scoop for this. It's okay if they aren't all the same amount. Just make sure to have plenty of streusel left to top the cookies.
3. With clean hands or the back of a small spoon press the mixture into bottom and a bit up the sides of the muffin tin to shape them into a small, shallow bowls.

4. Top the cookie dough with some fresh blueberries, about a small hand full of 7-8 blueberries. If you like, grate some additional lemon zest over the berries.
5. Top each cookie with the remaning streusel. It's okay if some of the berries are peaking through it.

5. Bake the Gluten Free Blueberry Crumbl Cookies at 350F for 22-24 minutes. The little cookies/tarts are ready when the edges of the shortbread is just about to be golden brown. The cookie will appear very soft. If your be
6. Carefully remove the muffin pan from the oven and place on a cooling rack.
7. Allow the cookies to cool for 5-10 minutes before carefully running a butterknife around the edges. This will help reducing the risk of them sticking to the tin.
8. If you are patient enough, cool the blueberry cookies for at least 30 minutes in the muffin pan before carefully removing them with a small butter knife or off set spatula. The cookies are ready to come out from the pan when the bottom of the muffin tin is cool. If you baked the cookies in muffin papers, carefully remove them as soon as they feel firm and set up.
9. Dust the blueberry cookies with some powdered sugar and serve.

Storage & Freezing

Store any leftover gluten free blueberry cookies in an airtight container and store them at room temperature for 3-4 days. If it’s hot and humid in your kitchen I recommend storing it in an airtight container in the fridge. Cakes containing fresh fruit tend to spoil quickly. Allow for it to come to room temperature before serving.

To freeze the blueberry cookies make sure they are fully cooled. Place them in an airtight container and freeze them up to one month. When ready to eat them, allow them to thaw at room temperature. If you like you can slighly reheat them at 300F in the oven before serving.

Variations of Streusel Cookies

These streusel cookie recipe is a great base recipe to have on hand. Feel free to replace the blueberries with other seasonal fruit like diced strawberries, a few halved cherries, diced up peaches or even apricots.

You can also replace the fresh fruit in these blueberry cookies with jam (seedless raspberry jam is used in the original Costco Raspberry Crumble Cookies). Make sure the jam is not too runny.

Note about Salt in my Recipes

I use Diamond Kosher Crystal Salt in all of my recipes unless otherwise stated. If use use a different brand or kind of salt in your kitchen please adjust accordingly since some salts can be saltier. If you use Morton’s Kosher Salt please be aware that their salt granules are smaller in size, denser, and crunchier and twice as salty.

Baking in grams

I share my recipes in grams and by weight since baking by weight is the most accurate way to bake. Digital Scales are very affordable and easy to use. You can purchase them on Amazon for less than a set of measuring cups. For small amounts under 10 grams, I like to use this Precision Pocket Scale. Measuring cups are very inaccurate which can cause significant errors when it comes to gluten-free baking or baking in general. Especially since I bake with gluten-free flours which weigh differently than “regular” flours. I do provide some ingredients like spices and leavening agents in measuring spoons. To learn more about Baking with a digital scale, make sure to check out my post about Baking by weight.

Note about Ovens and Oven Temperatures

All my recipes are tested and developed with a conventional oven. I always bake my baked goods on the rack placed in the MIDDLE of my oven. This way the heat coming from the bottom will not burn my baked goods.

If you are baking with convection (fan-forced), please adjust the recipes accordingly. Convection oven can cause baked goods to dry out quickly and still be raw inside. Since takes at least 15-20 minutes for a standard American Oven to be fully preheated. I highly recommend investing in an Oven Thermometer.

Substitutions and Modifications

Any dietary or ingredient modifications/substitutions to this recipe may alter the end result in appearance and taste. I test my recipes several times as published in this post and The Gluten Free Austrian Blog is not responsible for the outcome of any recipe you find on our website.