Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, and lightly spray the parchment with cooking oil to prevent sticking. This ensures the cookies release easily after baking.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the almond flour, tapioca flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, and baking soda. Make sure all the dry ingredients are fully combined and evenly distributed. This step helps ensure the cookies bake evenly and have a consistent texture.

Add the pure maple syrup, melted and cooled coconut oil, and blackstrap molasses to the bowl with the dry ingredients. Stir with a rubber spatula or knead with your hands until a consistent cookie dough ball forms. The dough should feel sticky but hold together easily. Let the dough rest for about 10 minutes so the flours can hydrate—I've found this really helps the dough roll out more smoothly.

Place a large piece of parchment paper on your work surface and set the rested cookie dough ball in the center. Cover the dough with another piece of parchment and roll it out to about 1/4-inch (0.5 cm) thick with a rolling pin. Use a cookie cutter to cut out gingerbread shapes and transfer them to the prepared baking sheet. Gather and re-roll any dough scraps to cut additional cookies. I prefer my gingerbread a bit soft and chewy in the center, so I stick to the 1/4-inch thickness.

Bake the gingerbread cookies at 350°F (180°C) for 8-9 minutes for a soft, chewy texture or 10-11 minutes for darker, crispier cookies. Keep an eye on them—they should be golden brown. Once baked, allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for about 10 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

After the cookies have cooled completely on the rack, decorate with your favorite vegan royal icing if desired. Cooling fully before decorating ensures the icing won’t melt or run, resulting in beautiful cookies. Sometimes I like to sprinkle a touch of cinnamon on top for extra warmth.