Thank you for reading Good Taste, your weekly menu for eating deliciously in the Bay Area. Today, we’re arming you with all the details on how to get Girl Scout Cookies, plus a few ways to take them to the next level.
Girl Scout Cookies have been available to order online for a few weeks and in-person sales will start in the Bay Area on Valentine’s Day (Feb. 14). Use the Cookie Finder to see where troops will be selling in your area. I purchased a few boxes online to get a jump on the season and offer some suggestions of what to do with various flavors once you get them.
If you’re a traditionalist who goes for options like Thin Mints and Samoas, you may already be in the habit of throwing some right in the freezer. I recommend doing this not only because chilled cookies are awesome, but finding a frozen sleeve of them long after you think they’re all gone and the season is done is the best feeling that I would like you to also get a chance to experience.
New to the crew this year is Adventurefuls, which look like chewy brownie cookies with caramel creme and sea salt on the boxes, but are more Thin Mints-esque in thickness and texture in real life. They’re already difficult to procure — many online sales have them marked as delivery-only — but they’d be another good candidate to freeze, or use as ice cream sandwich bases.
The lightly glazed Lemon-Ups cookies are a new personal favorite, and not just because they’re almost twice the size of some of the other flavors. Of the four boxes I bought, it’s the one I’m not sharing with anyone else. Get your own Lemon-Ups!
Of all the Girl Scout Cookie varieties, the Lemon-Ups will hold up the best to additional toppings. For instance, they make for instantly fancy appetizers when topped with a little bit of honey goat cheese from Sonoma’s Laura Chenel and a little sprig of fresh basil. Yeah, I went there.
I’m also a big fan of Do-Si-Dos, the oatmeal and peanut butter sandwich cookies, but feel they could use a little bit more filling. Luckily, it’s easy to separate the cookies and add more—I used the crunchy peanut butter and black sesame filling that I made a few days earlier for tang yuan dumplings for Lunar New Year.
You can make some by adding half a container of peanut butter, a couple tablespoons of cane sugar (which stays crunchy), a curl of coconut oil and a few spoonfuls of black sesame seeds to a pot on the stove on low heat until it’s all melted and incorporated together. Chill for about an hour before scooping some for your cookies.
I’m sure I’m far from the first to think about making actual s’mores out of the Girl Scout S’mores sandwich cookies, but can confirm that this is a very good idea indeed. I put three Dandies vegan mini marshmallows on a skewer, quickly burned them on my stove, and threw them in between two cookies. I’m not allowing myself to eat any more of these lovely concoctions, but highly suggest you try it.
Scout more fun food finds at Tamara’s site California Eating.
