She Strengthens

Craving Girl Scout Thin Mints All Year Round? We’ve Got You Covered!

Are you tired of waiting for the annual Girl Scout cookie sale to get your Thin Mint fix? Look no further! Our recipe combines the perfect blend of dark chocolate and semisweet coating to create a delicious treat that’s available 365 days a year.

What You’ll Need

Before we dive into the recipe, make sure you have the following special equipment:

• A good kitchen scale
• A chocolate tempering thermometer

Choosing the Right Ingredients

For this recipe, we recommend using peppermint oil for its pure, minty flavor. You can find peppermint oil at most nutrition stores or online. When it comes to chocolate, professional pastry chefs swear by couverture chocolate, which contains more cocoa butter than regular chocolate. We used El Rey 58.5 percent dark chocolate Discos, available at specialty grocery stores or online.

Tips for Tempering Chocolate

Tempering chocolate can be a bit finicky, but with these tips, you’ll be a pro in no time:

• Work in a room with a temperature between 65°F and 70°F for optimal results.
• Avoid tempering chocolate on hot or extremely cold days.
• Have all your ingredients ready to go, as tempered chocolate only stays in temper for a short time.

Make-Ahead Magic

The cookies can be baked up to 24 hours in advance and stored in an airtight container until ready to coat.

Let’s Get Baking!

For the Cookies:

• 1 large egg yolk
• 1/2 teaspoon peppermint oil
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks), chilled and cut into small pieces

For the Coating:

• 2 pounds semisweet chocolate couverture, separated into 1 (24-ounce) portion and 1 (8-ounce) portion
• Ice

Instructions

Making the Cookies

1. Whisk together the egg yolk, peppermint oil, and vanilla extract in a small bowl.
2. Combine the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, and salt in a food processor and pulse until well combined.
3. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles sand.
4. Add the yolk mixture and pulse until the dough forms into a ball.
5. Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface and roll into 2 logs, each about 1 1/2 inches in diameter.
6. Wrap the logs in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
7. Heat the oven to 350°F and arrange a rack in the middle.
8. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and bake the cookies until the edges are firm but the tops are still soft, about 9 to 11 minutes.
9. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Tempering the Chocolate

1. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and prepare an ice water bath.
2. Melt 24 ounces of the chocolate couverture in a dry, heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water.
3. Remove the bowl from the saucepan and add the remaining 8 ounces chocolate.
4. Stir until the chocolate has cooled to 80°F.
5. Place the bowl over the ice water bath to speed up the cooling process.
6. Once cooled, return the bowl to the saucepan and stir until the chocolate reaches 88°F.
7. Remove from heat and test the chocolate to ensure it’s properly tempered.

Coating the Cookies

1. Spoon the tempered chocolate over a cookie and set on a wire rack to set.
2. Repeat until all the cookies have been coated.
3. Let sit at room temperature until completely set, about 20 minutes.
4. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 week or in the freezer for up to 1 month.

Enjoy your delicious homemade Thin Mints all year round!