Gluten Free Chocolate Ripple Biscuits
One of my lovely followers reached out to ask if I could create a gluten-free Chocolate Ripple Biscuit so that her celiac grandson wouldn’t miss out on Christmas dessert. That was all the motivation needed to get into the kitchen and start testing. Arnott’s discontinued them in early 2025 due to low sales, but don’t fear, Bec is here! You can make my version yourself, and they’re easy.
These biscuits are designed with ingredients that are easy to find in Australian supermarkets and that work well for gluten-free bakers, whether you’re coeliac, gluten-intolerant or just baking for someone who is. The dough is simple to bring together, and you can bake it a little thicker for dunking with a cuppa or flatter and crisper for a chocolate ripple cake.
Suggested substitutions
- Gluten-free flour: Any good-quality gluten-free plain flour blend will work. If it already contains xanthan gum, you may be able to omit or reduce the extra xanthan, as many blends include around 1/4 tsp per 120 g flour for structure.
- Cocoa powder: Use regular unsweetened cocoa; Dutch-processed will give a slightly deeper flavour and colour, but both work.
- Sugar: Caster sugar helps the biscuits spread and set with a fine texture; you could swap for regular white sugar if needed, but they may be a touch grainier.
- Golden syrup: This adds flavour and helps with chew and colour; you could use light corn syrup or maple syrup, but the flavour will be a little different.
- Butter: Use real butter for the best flavour; a good quality dairy-free block can work if you need the biscuits to be dairy-free as well.
Additional information
These biscuits are naturally egg, dairy, and cocoa-rich, so they feel like a proper treat while still being an accessible gluten-free option. The xanthan gum helps mimic some of the structure and chew you’d usually get from gluten, which means they hold up well in layered desserts like chocolate ripple cake.
Because they’re made with a gluten-free flour blend, the fibre and protein content will depend on the brand you use; some blends include whole grains or legumes, which can give a slight nutritional boost compared to basic white wheat flour. As always, if you’re baking for someone coeliac, double-check every ingredient is labelled gluten-free and processed in a gluten-free facility.
Why do they have ripples?
What the markings actually do
- Help the biscuit stay flat: Patterns, ridges and “docking” marks allow steam to escape in the oven, so the biscuit doesn’t puff up too much.
- Give a crisp, even texture: The extra surface area and tiny channels help heat move through the biscuit more evenly, which is important for a firm, sliceable texture in desserts like Chocolate Ripple Cake.
- Help the cream grip: All those ridges give whipped cream something to cling to, which helps the layers hold together when you stack and cover them for a chocolate ripple cake.
Why the ripples are important for a Chocolate Ripple Cake
- Chocolate Ripple Biscuits were adopted (and marketed) as the perfect base for the classic Chocolate Ripple Cake, where they’re stacked with cream and chilled until cake-like. For that to work, the biscuit needs to be:
- Flat and relatively uniform, so it stacks neatly and slices well.
- Able to soften predictably in cream while still holding its shape, which is where the crisp, ridged design really helps.
- So, while the markings are part of the iconic look, they’re really a clever bit of biscuit engineering to make sure the biscuit bakes, stacks and slices just the way it should.
Chocolate ripple with markings
Frequently Asked Questions
I haven’t tested it, but I can’t see why you couldn’t swap the butter for a good quality dairy-free block (not a soft spread) and get similar results. Plant-based “butter” blocks with around 80% fat tend to behave most like regular butter in biscuits.
Caster sugar helps with spread and crispness, so changing it will affect the texture. You could experiment with coconut sugar or fine raw sugar, but expect a slightly different crumb and flavour.
Xanthan gum is a key ingredient in gluten-free baking because it binds ingredients, improves shape and texture, and helps retain moisture, so baked goods don’t crumble as much. Many gluten-free flour blends already include some xanthan gum; if yours has xanthan gum on the ingredient list, it may still need more, so I would go ahead and add the 1/4 tsp. Each GF flour is created differently, so we can’t tell how much they’ve added. We want them to hold together and be crunchy, though.
Yes, you can freeze unbaked dough portions on a tray, then bag them up and bake from frozen, adding a couple of minutes to the bake time. Baked biscuits also freeze well and are handy to have on hand for quick chocolate ripple cake or cheesecake bases.
Stored in an airtight container in a cool, dry place, these biscuits should keep well for about a week. For longer storage, freeze and thaw as needed. Pop them in a hot oven for a few minutes if they need crisping up again.
Gluten Free Chocolate Ripple Biscuits
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becs-table.com.auEquipment
- 1 Thermomix (optional)
- 1 Thermomix or Stand Mixer optional
Ingredients
- 300 g gluten free plain flour I used Aldi White Mill and added xanthan gum
- 60 g cocoa powder
- 200 g caster sugar
- 5 g baking powder
- 1/4 tsp xanthan gum
- 3 g flaked salt
- 150 g butter cold, cut into small cubes
- 1 large egg
- 80 g golden syrup
- 1 tsp vanilla
Instructions
Thermomix method
- Preheat the oven to 170 °C fan.
- Weigh the gluten free plain flour, cocoa powder, caster sugar, baking powder, xanthan gum and flaked salt into the Thermomix bowl.
- Blitz 5 seconds/speed 7 to combine and aerate. This helps distribute the xanthan gum evenly, which improves the texture of gluten free bakes.
- Add the cold cubed butter to the bowl.
- With the MC in place, mix 10 seconds/speed 6, or until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
- Weigh in the golden syrup, add the egg and vanilla.
- Mix 5 seconds/speed 5.
- Scrape down the bowl, then set to knead for 30 seconds. The dough should start clumping together but not become sticky.
- Remove the dough from the bowl and briefly bring it together with your hands. Portion into 25–30 g balls, depending on what you’re using them for.
- Place onto a lined baking tray and gently press to your desired thickness. For chocolate ripple cake, press them fairly flat and wide so they stack neatly.
- Once at temperature, bake on the centre shelf for about 15 minutes for crisp biscuits. Do not use silicone mats or trays if you want crunch.
- When they come out of the oven, they’ll be soft. Leave on the trays until completely cold before moving, as gluten-free biscuits firm up as they cool. Xanthan gum helps them hold together once cooled by binding moisture and giving structure.
Conventional method (food processor or mixer)
- Preheat the oven to 170 °C fan.
- Combine dry ingredients
- In a large bowl, whisk together the gluten free flour, cocoa powder, caster sugar, baking powder, xanthan gum and flaked salt.
– Rub or process in butter
- Food processor: Add cold cubed butter and pulse until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs.
- By hand or stand mixer: Rub the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingertips, or use the paddle attachment on low speed until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
– Add wet ingredients
- Lightly beat the egg with the golden syrup and vanilla.
- Pour into the dry mix and stir or mix on low until it starts to clump together.
- Gently bring the dough together with your hands; avoid overmixing so the biscuits stay tender.
– Shape and bake
- Roll into 25–30 g balls and arrange on lined trays.
- Flatten gently with your fingers or use a fork to create ripples.
- Bake at 170 °C fan for around 15 minutes, or until set around the edges and slightly soft in the centre.
- Cool completely on the trays before transferring to a container.
- For chocolate ripple cake: Aim for thinner, flatter biscuits so they soften nicely when layered with cream, like traditional Chocolate Ripple Cake recipes. For everyday bikkies, you can leave them a little thicker for extra crunch.
Tell us what you think!
Have you been missing chocolate ripple cake or cheesecake bases since going gluten-free? This recipe was created to bring those favourites back to the table, so it would be lovely to hear how it turns out for you. If you get a chance to try them, we’d love you to pop back and leave a comment, share your tweaks, or tell us what dessert you used them in.
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I made these a couple of days ago. I didn’t make them gluten free. They are absolutely delicious. Thanks Bec.
Great, Jean. I’ve not made them with plain flour yet. Must do that. Thank you so much for leaving a comment. All comments help people decide whether to try them or not.
Making these for my grandson’s birthday next week. All the kids have requested them. Thank you Bec for creating this fabuous recipe!
Hi Bernadette,
Thank you so much for trusting me to come up with a recipe for you and your grandson. I’m so pleased it’s worked well for you.
They work so well Bec. I prefer them to the regular biscuits. You’d never know they were gluten free! 😊
I agree, and I think my grandsons feel the same way.😂 They’ve managed to polish off two batches since I started the recipe developement.
If I don’t need to make these gluten-free, could I sub regular flour and leave out the xanthan gum? Thanks!
Hey Tanya,
I can’t see why not. I haven’t tested it myself, but give it a shot. The GF flour will help dry them out a bit more, which helps make them crunchy. If you try it, let me know how it goes. I can give you some tips to help make them even crunchier if you they’re too soft for you, but I may have to do a bit of testing myself.
So excited to see this in your newsletter today Bec! The GF community has been mourning the loss of the choc ripple, can’t wait to try making my own. Thank you!
Awesome Anne-Marie. Let me konw what you think of them when you get the chance to try them. 😉