Homemade Vegan Thin Mint Cookies

Hell. Yes.

I was a Girl Scout when I was younger, but not for very long, I only made it as far as a Brownie. I don't know why I didn't stay in but I do know that I loved the cookies. You don't need to be a Girl Scout to know that Thin Mints are probably the most popular cookie in their lineup. I can say without a doubt that they were my favorite cookie ever, with Mint Milanos being a very close second. I used to love when coworkers would pimp their little girl's troops by getting you and every other person in the office to buy a box or four. Most people would stock up on their favorites, buying a few boxes and keeping them in the freezer to keep the freshness. And coincidentally, Thin Mints just so happen to be better frozen. Even better are the adorable little girls peddling their goods outside of local grocery stores. How can you resist? You can't. Unless you are a vegan because the cookies aren't. At least the good flavors aren't anyways. There are rumors of a few Girl Scout Cookies being vegan but it's never something I looked into much because I already know the only 2 flavors I like aren't, and frankly, that sucks. Well, sucked...

Fear not fellow vegans, gone are the days of drooling over those boxes of chocolate minty goodness that you know contain animal products, as well as a bunch of other crap because there are tried and true recipes you can make at home! Not only are they homemade AND vegan(which makes them awesome already), they are delicious, they remind me EXACTLY of their non-vegan counterparts and you don't have to worry about things like high fructose corn syrup or possible hydrogenated oils (if those are things you worry about). In addition to all of those pretty sweet(heh) things I just pointed out, they are incredibly easy to make. From the time you start making the cookies to the time you actually get to sit down and enjoy one does take awhile, but that is only because of the cooling and chocolate setting time.

For my first time making them I used the recipe over at Chef Chloe's site. This recipe produces perfect replicas of the cookies we used to love. I will make this recipe again, probably multiple times, but I have a few others floating around as well as one I have been writing down ideas for that I have yet to test out. One day there will be an original Vegan Food Rocks Thin Mint Recipe! I know you are excited. I am too.

I have never used a food processor to make cookie dough, or any other type of dough, I usually stick to my trusty stand mixer but I really didn't want to fuck these up so I went with what Chloe said. I was surprised at how easily and quickly the dough came together. Once it was all mixed up I gave it a few kneads with my hands, the dough kind of reminded me of play dough. A play dough you would want to eat.

I used a measuring spoon to scoop out heaping teaspoonfuls and then smooshed them down into little patties. Once I have my own recipe all worked out it will be more of a rollable dough so you can cut out perfect circles or fun little shapes if that is your kind thing. Because this dough was so malleable, keeping a circle shape was pretty easy and they didn't come out too deformed looking.I ended up with almost 4 dozen!

Of course I had to sample one a few to make sure they were coming out the way I was really hoping. I started getting nervous because the cookies seemed really crispy on the edges and really chewy in the middle. This of course was due to my lack of patience and trying a cookie before letting it cool properly. So I set all the cookies out to cool and headed out to do some shopping with my mom. Fast forward a few hours to when I returned home and got to taste test a few more, my nervousness went away and my excitement really starting growing because they tasted just like the originals!

Now it was time to dip them into the luscious chocolate mint coating. I had no more errands to run so I had to resist temptation to try them before they were ready. I put them in the fridge and walked away. Well, not completely walked away... I didn't sample anymore until they were fully set but I did keep going back to check on them.

While they were chilling out and getting firm in the fridge I started cleaning up. I had a good amount of leftover melted chocolate coating but didn't have anything worthy of its perfection so I was just going to dump it. I know, I know... I was standing over the trash barrel about to scoop it in when a light bulb went off in my head and I realized I could just freeze it and save it for future dipping or to use as shaved or chopped mint chocolate in other baking endeavors! I am so glad I thought of  it before I wasted a single drop. I poured it into a circular cookie cutter on top of parchment paper and held the cutter down with a plate so none of the chocolate could seep out underneath.

Once they were fully set and I finally got to try the finished product I was blown away at how amazing these cookies really are. Everything about them reminds me of days gone by when I would bust open a box and hide them in the freezer from the family my brother or a significant other for fear of them getting inhaled and I would be left with none until next cookie season. Now that I know I can crank out at least 4 dozen in one afternoon I will be more than happy to share my cookies with everyone!

Sometimes I try to avoid giving my brother anything I've made for fear of his snarky vegan comments. No matter how good something is, he often won't admit it, so when I caught him going back repeatedly for more cookies last night he said "These are actually pretty good" which means 'These cookies are delicious and I can't stop stuffing my face.' So half assed compliments from my brother are always more than welcome because I know he won't ever admit he 'loves' something vegan, even if his own sister made it =)