Gluten Free Thin Mint Cookies ~ because nobody should have to miss out on America’s favorite cookie ~ and this copy cat Girl Scout Cookie is even better than the original!
My Homemade Thin Mints is one of the most visited posts on my blog.
That doesn’t surprise me at all, it’s such a rush to know you can recreate the most popular Girl Scout cookie right in the privacy of your own kitchen, with your own ingredients, any time you feel like it. Using your own ingredients is key — did you know that, at least these days, the Girl Scout Thin Mints contain no butter or chocolate at all — they’re made with vegetable oil, shortening, and high fructose corn syrup. Oh, and a touch of artificial flavor. I’ll take my version, thanks. And now even gluten free eaters can get in on the action with these amazing gluten free Thin Mint cookies.
The inspiration for gluten free Thin Mint cookies
It was one of my readers! Kelly said she made my regular Homemade Thin Mints with gluten free flour and they turned out fantastic, so I tried it for myself and I agree ~ thanks Kelly! These cookies are made exactly like my originals, except that I replaced the flour with a gluten free mix. Mine is from Bob’s Red Mill I’m happy to report that the difference is minimal. The gluten free version has a little bit less crunch due to the lack of gluten, but some people might actually prefer that, and I didn’t think it made much of a difference either way.
The dough comes together easily and after a quick chill, rolls out to a 1/8 inch thickness on a floured board. You can make the cookies ahead of time if you like.
For me the true beauty of a Thin Mint is in the pepperminty chocolate coating, and it’s here that the homemade version outshines the mass produced a hundred to one.
Using your own chocolate makes such a big difference, and really just about any chocolate you use to coat your cookies is going to be higher quality than what is on the mass produced cookies. That’s just one of the perks of doing it yourself 🙂 You can use chocolate chips or baking chocolate. I found baking chocolate (aka Baker’s Chocolate squares) works best if you want a smooth even coating. if you just love chocolate and like a thick layer on your cookies, chocolate chips work fine too.
Special note — The Girl Scouts is a wonderful organization and I support them wholeheartedly ~ I recommend buying up lots of their cookies this month ~ but focus on the Trefoils and the Samoas…we’ve got the Thin Mint Cookies covered 😉
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Gluten Free Thin Mint Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup confectioner’s sugar, sifted
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
- 1 1/2 cups gluten free flour, I used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Baking Mix
Chocolate coating
- 16 ounces dark or semi-sweet chocolate, either baking chocolate or chocolate chips (if using the baking squares, cut them into very small pieces before melting)
- 1 tsp vegetable or coconut oil
- 1/2 — 3/4 tsp peppermint flavoring oil, to taste (be sure to use an OIL BASED product, not a water based flavoring)
Instructions
- Set oven to 350F
- Cream the butter and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer until fluffy. Beat in the salt, vanilla, and cocoa powder.
- Blend in the flour and combine until fully mixed.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured board and bring together into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and put in the freezer for 15 minutes. Don’t leave it in longer than 15 minutes or it will be too stiff to roll out.
- Roll out the dough on a floured surface to about 1/8 — 1/4 inch, depending on how thick you like your cookies. Keep the dough moving on the board to prevent sticking. Cut out cookies with a 2″ cookie cutter. Place on an unreleased cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes.
- Cool the cookies completely on a rack before coating.
- Melt the chocolate and vegetable oil in a microwave safe bowl for one minute. Remove and stir to melt. Add another 30 seconds if necessary. Stir until the chocolate is smooth and silky. Sometimes it helps to let the hot chocolate sit for a minute to completely melt all the little lumps. Add the peppermint oil and stir again. If the chocolate seems too thick, add a touch more vegetable oil and microwave another 15 seconds.
- Dip each cookie into the chocolate head first, then flip, and remove using a fork to balance the cookie. Gently rap the handle of the fork against the side of the bowl several times to let the excess chocolate drip off. Set the cookies on a parchment lined surface to firm up. I like to set them in the fridge to completely harden.
- Store the cookies in the refrigerator for best flavor.
Notes
- I used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Baking Mix for this recipe. If you can’t find it at your supermarket, you can buy it on Amazon, HERE.
- Make sure your butter is truly at room temperature, if your butter is too cool your dough will not come together as it should.
- When melting chocolate, make sure all your bowls and implements are completely dry, even a little bit of water can cause the chocolate to ‘seize’ up and become a solid mass. Heat the chocolate gently and slowly until it melts and is thin enough to coat the cookies. You can use milk chocolate if you prefer.
- I like to melt the chocolate coating in 2 batches, that way if you get crumbs in the chocolate you can transition to a clean batch for the rest of the cookies.
- It is important to find peppermint oil or an extract that is oil based. Water, as I just mentioned, will make chocolate seize up. I used McCormick’s Peppermint Extract which does have a tiny amount of water in it, but it works for me. You can find food grade peppermint oil in large craft stores, cooking stores, and online HERE.
- Thin Mints are best eaten cold, so keep them in the fridge. Some people like them frozen, too.
Nutrition
I don’t understand the 1 cup 8 oz or 2 sticks of butter. They are not the same measurement by a lot…..
In the US these measurements are correct.
No it’s not, I’m in the US and one stick of butter is equal to 8 tablespoons. 8 TB = 1/2 cup. So it should say 2 sticks butter OR 1 cup of butter. That would be equal.
I’m not sure what the issue is here, the recipe calls for 1 cup of butter.
You edited the recipe! You had added parentheses after 1 cup. It used to read:
1 cup 8 oz, or two sticks unsalted butter
and now you edited it after my comment to read what it reads now:
1 cup (8 ounces, or 2 sticks)
You could have just admitted your blunder instead of changing it and making it seem like we don’t know what we are talking about.
The recipe card that I’ve recently switched to removes those comments, and I didn’t realize it, sorry for the confusion.
I wonder how coconut oil would do instead of butter in the dough? Have you ever tried?
I haven’t tried that Sharin. I know technically you can do it, but I’m not sure what changes that would make in the cookie.
These look amazing! I cannot believe that they are gluten free!! Thanks for sharing
You had my attention at Thin Mint Cookies…but you had my heart at Gluten Free! XO
WOW these look amazing! I pinned so I can give them a try later 🙂
These won’t last long in my house. 🙂
They didn’t in ours, Christine 😉
No offense to Girl Scouts, but your thin mint cookies are much better! Real Butter and cocoa is what cookies should be made with! Pinning to try later!
🙂
Yeah they’re good but girl scouts are good too
Must try this recipe! Looks super tasty! Love your website.
Thanks Josephine 🙂
Nice!
These look amazing! They look just like the real thing!
They’re BETTER than the real thing Shannon 🙂