homemade somoas

it's that time of year...

thin mints, somoas, tagalongs...

i can't say no!

(from my girl scout/brownie days...LOL!)

so, this weekend, with the help of a dear friend,

i tried to recreate my two favorite girl scout cookies at home.

let me say this: these cookies were a lot of work.

and while they did taste super good,

and had all the right flavors of the originals,

they weren't the same.

the consistency was slightly different.

the ratio of chocolate to cookie to caramel to coconut wasn't just right.

but it was a valiant effort.

 AND a crowd pleaser :)

i would definitely make them again.

cookie ingredients

1 cup butter (softened)
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
up to 2 tablespoons milk

directions

1. preheat your oven to 350 degrees

2. cream together the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl

3. slowly mix in the flour, baking powder and salt,

 adding the milk only as needed to keep dough together in a soft ball.

(add more flour if dough becomes too liquefied)

4. roll out the dough in small batches.

(try rolling it between two sheets of parchment paper if it becomes sticky)

(this dough gets pretty sticky. try adding a touch of flour as needed)

5. use a round cookie cutter to make 1 ½ inch rounds

and a large hole straw to cut a small hole in the middle of the cookie.

6. repeat until the dough is completely used up.

7. place on a baking sheet and pop into the oven for 10-12 minutes

or until bottoms and edges are a light golden brown.

8. allow cookies to cool for a few minutes after removing them from the oven.

once the are firm, relocate them to a wire cooling rack and allow to cool completely.

 

topping ingredients3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
12-ounces good-quality chewy caramels
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons milk
8 ounces dark or semisweet chocolate

directions

1. preheat oven to 300º F

2. spread coconut on a baking sheet and place into the oven for 20 minutes,

stirring every 5 minutes to create an even golden brown color.

(pay very close attention because browning will

occur very quickly once coconut begins to cook)

(the smell of this coconut baking in your kitchen alone

might be worth baking these cookies. AMAZING!)

3. cool the coconut on a baking sheet, stirring occasionally.

4. unwrap packaged caramels and place in a microwave-safe bowl with milk and salt.

5. cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stopping every 30 seconds

to stir caramel mixture to help it melt evenly.

6. when caramel reaches a smooth texture,

fold in the toasted coconut gently with a spatula.

7. using a spoon or other spreading utensil,

spread 2-3 tablespoons of topping mixture on cooled cookies.

(Reheat caramel in the microwave if it becomes too firm to spread)

(this gets super sticky and tedious. just stick with it!) :)

8. while the topping sets, melt chocolate

9. dip the base of each cookie in the melted chocolate

and place on a piece of parchment paper.

11. transfer any remaining chocolate into a ziplock bag with a small hole cut in the corner

12. drizzle the cookies with the left over chocolate.

13. let all chocolate completely cool before enjoying!

x