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Thin Mints are a popular Girl Scout cookie made of a thin, round wafer with dark cocoa and peppermint oil, covered in dark chocolate. They are versatile as both a snack and baking ingredient and account for over 25% of Girl Scout cookie sales. Homemade versions are difficult to replicate.
There are actually two separate entities commonly referred to as mints. One is a soft mint flavored candy disk covered in chocolate and the other is a hard chocolate covered cookie flavored with mint oil and dark cocoa. Candies called Thin Mints are primarily made by Haviland, a division of the Necco candy company. Thin Mints Dark Chocolate Cookies, however, are produced by various bakeries licensed by Girl Scouts of the United States, Inc.
Many Americans are familiar with the annual Girl Scout Fundraising Sale of America’s Girl Scout Cookies. These cookie tins have become almost iconic, from peanut butter tagalongs to coconut caramel Samoas. While it wasn’t officially introduced as the Girl Scout cookie until 1951, the Thin Mints brand alone accounts for more than 25 percent of total sales.
Thin Mints start out as a thin, round cookie wafer made with a blend of dark cocoa and pure peppermint oil. The biscuits are baked in industrial ovens and then left to cool before being wrapped in a thin layer of dark chocolate. The finished Thin Mints are packaged in distinctive boxes that reflect many aspects of the Girl Scouts organization. Each box generally contains two bags of cookies, although the actual cookie count can vary from year to year based on economic conditions.
Thin Mints’ popularity may be in part due to their versatility as both snack cookies and baking ingredients. Crumbled mints are popular toppings for ice cream and other desserts, while whole mints are especially popular when accompanied by a glass of iced milk or hot tea. For many consumers, Thin Mints are the quintessential Girl Scout cookies, largely unchanged since 1951. It’s not unusual for Girl Scout cookie customers to order a box of Thin Mints first, then decide between the remaining varieties.
There are several recipes available for homemade versions of Thin Mints, though the original formula has proven notoriously difficult to duplicate. Some recipes even suggest using paraffin or other unusual additives to achieve the wax-like texture of the outer layer of chocolate. It can also be difficult for home bakers to duplicate the crispness and rich chocolate flavor of the inner wafer. Commercial bakeries such as Little Brownie Bakers and ABC Bakers are licensed to make official Girl Scout cookies and must agree to make enough Thin Mints to meet demand.
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