samoa cookies

Does anyone else feel like Girl Scouts season starts earlier each year? I always associate it with the Spring, but my sweet mother-in-law picked me up a couple of boxes in January. 

I haven't bought Girl Scouts cookies through an actual form since I myself wore a patch-ridden brown vest, but I always look forward to my yearly dose of tagalongs, samoas, and thin mints. Speaking of cookie order forms, I can't decide if Girls Scouts selling cookies from a table in front of the grocery store is a sign of laziness or efficiency.

These cookies aren't a homemade version of the samoa cookies, but rather they are a treat inspired by the famous Girl Scout cookie. An homage to samoa. A samoa cookie's big brother. A samoa cookie on crack. These cookies are serious. 

Chopped pieces of samoa cookies are added to the base of my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, then they are coated with a toasted coconut caramel layer and drizzled with chocolate. Samoa cookies inside a samoa cookie, people. 

I wish that you could feel the weight of these cookies. They are heavy. They hold a lot of decadence, though, so naturally their weight should reflect that. Remember, I said that these cookies are serious. Seriously delicious.

Yes, they're a bit more labor intensive than your typical cookie, but who doesn't like a jazzed up cookie every now and then? These cookies are still fabulous sans coconut caramel topping, so no excuses- get creative with this year's girl scout cookies!

Samoa Cookies

• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup Samoa cookies, chopped
• 1 & 1/2 cups shredded coconut
• 1 bag caramels, unwrapped
• 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• In bowl of standing mixer, beat butter and sugars together until light and fluffy
• In a separate bowl, whisk together baking soda, cornstarch, salt, and all-purpose four; set aside
• Add egg and vanilla to sugar mixture, and mix until combined
• Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, and mix until just combined
• Stir in samoa cookies
• Drop rounded tablespoons onto cookie sheets and bake for 10 minutes
• Allow cookies to cool on cookie sheet before removing to cooling rack
• While cookies cool, decrease oven temperature to 300
• Spread coconut onto greased or lined cookie tray and bake 5 minutes; remove from oven to turn coconut and bake another 5 minutes; turn once last time and bake another 5 minutes until coconut is golden; cool coconut
• Once cookies and coconut are cool, heat caramel in a microwave safe bowl for 45 seconds; remove to stir and add a splash of milk or water; heat for another 30 seconds and stir until smooth and melted
• Gently fold in toasted coconut and coat thoroughly 
• Grease a spoon and your fingers* to drop dollops of coconut careful mixture onto tops of cookies; smear to cover cookies (Caution: the mixture will be hot!)
• Once you have topped your cookies with the coconut caramel mixture, melt chocolate and drizzle onto cookies*; allow chocolate to set
• Store in airtight container
• Enjoy!

*Notes: I wet my fingers to spread the coconut caramel mixture; I melted chocolate in a microwave then transferred to a sandwich bag and snipped a bottom corner to better control drizzling

Source The Domestic Rebel