Is there anything better than a Girl Scout Thin Mints cookie?
NO, you might say – except well, yes, duh – a whole BOX of Thin Mint cookies!
I LOVE Thin Mint cookies. I was a girl scout as a kid, and would sell cookies, and these would always sell the best. No wonder they’ve been around so long!
Thin Mint cookies are so delicate and minty and they just melt in your mouth.
I think they’re so yummy because you get a double dose of chocolate and mint. The cookies are made of chocolate and mint, and the glossy coating is also made of chocolate and mint. Mmmmmm.
They’re typically sold here in Minnesota in the winter months, like January to March, which makes them super popular at that time. I know people who will freeze their cookies when they buy them, so they last longer (though I don’t know they can resist them being in the house).
I’ve tried other similar cookies – ALDI makes a good imitation Thin Mint cookie, for example.
But have you ever tried making them yourself? Did you know that you can?
Here I’ve put together a recipe to make them yourself ANYTIME of year. It uses simple ingredients, and you can melt the chocolate coating easily in the microwave.
This is great to make for:
- Gifts
- Holiday cookie baking
- Cookie exchange parties – you’ll be the hit of the party!
- Anytime!
Homemade Girl Scout Thin Mints
Quantity: Makes about 55 1-3/4 inch cookies
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooling time: 2 hours
Baking time: 8 minutes per batch (depending on the size of cookie sheets)
Ingredients
Mint Chocolate Cookies:
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup sugar, granulated
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 1 – 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Mint Chocolate coating:
- 14 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
Utensils:
- Sift
- Whisk or hand mixer
- Mixing bowls
- Cookie sheets
- Parchment paper
- Rolling pin
- Cooling racks
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350°.
In a large bowl, blend the butter and sugar together with a whisk until creamy. Add in the egg, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract.
In a separate large bowl, sift together your flour, and cocoa powder. Stir together.
Slowly add the flour and cocoa powder mixture to the wet mixture, and mix together.
Next, add in the baking powder and salt.
Place a large sheet of parchment paper on a flat surface.
Divide half of the cookie dough onto the parchment paper. (By only using half of your dough, you’ll be able to fit it all on your parchment paper.)
Place another piece of parchment paper on top of the dough and roll it out until 1/4 inch thin.
Repeat the last 3 steps for the other half of the dough.
Refrigerate the dough for at least two hours. Continue to keep the dough in between the parchment paper.
After the dough has cooled in the fridge, remove one flat piece at a time and use a 1- 3/4 to 2-inch round cookie cutter to cut out about 20 cookies.
Transfer the cookie dough to a cookie sheet. Give each cookie just a little bit of room to expand. (Since your cookies are so small, and they don’t expand much in the oven, you can place as many on a cookie sheet as you’d like.)
Bake cookies for 8 minutes or until fully cooked.
Remove from the oven, and transfer to a cooling rack. Allow them to fully cool.
Once your cookies have cooled, prepare the melted chocolate coating.
Pour the chocolate chips into a medium size microwave safe bowl. Microwave the chocolate chips at 30 second intervals until fully melted, stirring between each 30 seconds.
Once melted, add the peppermint oil and vegetable oil.
Dip the cooled cookies in the melted chocolate. Be sure to fully submerge them (it helps to use a fork). Then lay them on a clean piece of parchment paper.
Allow cookies to harden and cool.
Now enjoy!
Tips for making the cookies
The dough must be cold in order to hold its shape for the chocolate coating. Be sure to refrigerate it for at least 2 hours.
The vegetable oil is what gives the cookies its shiny coating.
You can freeze the cookies for up to 3 months in an airtight container. Refrigerate the same way for up to 2 weeks. They’re good at air temperature for up to a week.
You can store the dough in the freezer. Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, put it in a freezer bag, and then freeze it for up to 3 months. Before baking, first allow it to thaw in the fridge overnight, then let it sit out for about an hour at room temperature.
Print the recipe here
Homemade Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
Mint Chocolate Cookies
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup sugar granulated
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp peppermint extract
- 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp salt
Mint Chocolate Coating
- 14 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
Instructions
Mint Chocolate Cookies
- Preheat oven to 350°.
- In a large bowl, blend the butter and sugar together with a whisk until creamy. Add in the egg, vanilla extract, and peppermint extract.
- In a separate large bowl, sift together your flour, and cocoa powder. Stir together.
- Slowly add the flour and cocoa powder mixture to the wet mixture, and mix together.
- Next, add in the baking powder and salt.
- Place a large sheet of parchment paper on a flat surface.
- Divide half of the cookie dough onto the parchment paper. (By only using half of your dough, you’ll be able to fit it all on your parchment paper.)
- Place another piece of parchment paper on top of the dough and roll it out until 1/4 inch thin.
- Repeat the last 3 steps for the other half of the dough.
- Refrigerate the dough for at least two hours. Continue to keep the dough in between the parchment paper.
- After the dough has cooled in the fridge, remove one flat piece at a time and use a 1- 3/4 to 2-inch round cookie cutter to cut out about 20 cookies.
- Transfer the cookie dough to a cookie sheet. Give each cookie just a little bit of room to expand. (Since your cookies are so small, and they don’t expand much in the oven, you can place as many on a cookie sheet as you’d like.)
- Bake cookies for 8 minutes or until fully cooked.
- Remove from the oven, and transfer to a cooling rack. Allow them to fully cool.
Melted Chocolate Coating
- Once your cookies have cooled, prepare the melted chocolate coating.
- Pour the chocolate chips into a medium size microwave safe bowl. Microwave the chocolate chips at 30 second intervals until fully melted, stirring between each 30 seconds.
- Once melted, add the peppermint oil and vegetable oil.
The Final Steps!
- Dip the cooled cookies in the melted chocolate. Be sure to fully submerge them (it helps to use a fork). Then lay them on a clean piece of parchment paper.
- Allow cookies to harden and cool.
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