It’s Girl Scout cookie season and just because I work at an organic bakery does not mean I am above Girl Scout cookies. Girl Scout cookies are delicious! I started Girl Scouts when I was six years old. I was in a small troop in my hometown of San Marino, California. There were maybe 8 girls in my troop and the leader was my good friends mom. I loved going to “meetings" after school, and the troop house was just behind my elementary school’s playground. After school on meeting days, I would run through the playground and hop the stone wall to get to the house. It always smelled of fresh wood and snacks.
I stayed in Girl Scouts all the way until high school. I loved learning new skills, camping, earning badges, being with my girlfriends, and eating cookies. But, I was shy as a little girl and selling Girl Scout cookies was not a strength of mine. I hated going door to door with a wagon of cookies and interrupting families to ask if they wanted to buy them. The prizes and badges are what enticed me, but not enough to up my selling game. I usually just sent the order sheet with my mom to her work, haha. But, my how things change! Walk into the bakery and I will sell you all the cookies now!
Since becoming gluten intolerant I haven’t been able to eat Girl Scout cookies. They do have one gluten free option, but my favorite will always be the Samoa! My combination of being pregnant right now and also being really tired is really what inspired this recipe. I wanted to enjoy Samoas, but with little effort. So this recipe is not a “copycat” Samoa, meaning it doesn’t taste exactly like a Girl Scout Samoa. I’ve added a few ingredients to boost its nutritional value as a cookie. Such as, I used Date’s rather than corn syrup to get that chewy texture. Rather than the bottom of this cookie being a shortbread cookie I have simply added oats to the cookie itself. This is also what makes it a NO BAKE cookie that kids can easily help with! And, they are also much quicker to make and then eat. You simply dump all the ingredients into a high powered blender or food processor, mix, scoop, freeze, and dip in chocolate. Yum! Maybe next year, when I have a little more energy and time I will create my own true version of a Samoa cookie that is gluten free.
No Bake Samoas
Makes 18
8 ounces (1 1/2 cups) organic dates (about 12 to 18 dates)
100 grams (1 cup) organic oats
85 grams (1 cup) organic unsweetened finely shredded coconut
1/4 cup (57 grams) organic salted butter, melted
113 grams (1/2 cup) Caramel Sauce (find recipe here)
10 grams (2 teaspoons) organic cane sugar
1 teaspoon organic vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
170 grams (6 ounces) dark chocolate for dipping and drizzling
Method
Soak Dates for 20 to 30 minutes in hot water. Remove the pits.
Add all ingredients into a blender or food processor. Pulse until all dates are blended and it comes together as a dough. You will still have oats and coconut pieces, it shouldn’t be perfectly smooth. It has texture to it.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Using a small cookie scoop (.3 ounce cookie scoop or 1 tablespoon), scoop out 18 cookies onto the prepared cookie sheet. Flatten the cookies to 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick. Using the end of a wooden spoon or a chopstick, you can poke a hole in the middle. Freeze for 45 minutes to an hour, until firm.
In a double boiler, melt the dark chocolate. Dip the bottom of the cookies into the chocolate. Place back on the parchment paper or on a cooling/drying rack. Continue until all cookies are dipped. Using a spoon or pastry bag drizzle the extra chocolate on the tops of each cookie.
Store in an air tight container in the fridge for up to a week. You can also store them in the freezer for about 3 months.
Gluten Free - Use gluten free oats.
High Altitude - Follow the recipe as noted.
Did you make this recipe? Make sure to tag @dessertdorganic on Instagram!