Homemade Samoas Girl Scout Cookies
These Homemade Samoas Cookies combine buttery shortbread, gooey caramel, toasted coconut, and rich chocolate for a perfect balance of sweet, chewy, and crunchy. Just like the Girl Scout classic, but made fresh in your kitchen!
- Prep Time: 12 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 2 minutes (including chilling)
- Yield: 24 cookies
- Category: Dessert, Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
½ cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon salt
2 cups shredded sweetened coconut
15 oz soft caramels (store-bought or homemade)
3 tablespoons milk or heavy cream
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Beat butter and sugar until creamy, then mix in vanilla.
- Gradually add flour and salt, mixing until dough forms.
- Roll dough to ¼-inch thickness and cut circles about 2 inches wide. Use a smaller cutter to cut a hole in each center.
- Place cookies on baking sheet and bake 10–12 minutes until lightly golden. Cool completely.
- Spread shredded coconut on a baking sheet and toast for 5–7 minutes, stirring occasionally until golden. Watch carefully to avoid burning.
- Combine caramels, milk or cream, and salt in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat in 30-second intervals, stirring until smooth.
- Mix toasted coconut into melted caramel. Spread caramel-coconut mixture on cooled cookies and let set for 5–10 minutes.
- Melt chocolate chips in the microwave in 30-second bursts, stirring until smooth.
- Dip cookie bottoms into melted chocolate and place on parchment paper. Drizzle remaining chocolate over tops using a spoon or piping bag.
- Let cookies set at room temperature or in the fridge until chocolate hardens. Store in an airtight container up to one week.
Notes
Use a gluten-free flour blend for a gluten-free version.
Use homemade shortbread or pre-made cookies for convenience.
Swap caramel for dulce de leche or butterscotch sauce.
Add a pinch of sea salt on caramel for a salted caramel twist.
Substitute dark chocolate for semi-sweet for a richer taste.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 180
- Sugar: 14g
- Sodium: 90mg
- Fat: 9g
- Saturated Fat: 5g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 22g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 2g
- Cholesterol: 20mg
