Homemade Samoas Cookies

4.82

494

Jump to RecipeSave to FavoritesPrint

This post may include affiliate links. Thank you for your support.

Healthy homemade Samoas made with only four ingredients: coconut, dates, chocolate chips and coconut oil. They’re also vegan and gluten-free!

I’m excited to share these homemade Samoas. They are created in honor of everyone’s favorite Girl Scout cookie. Okay, so maybe Samoas aren’t everyone’s favorite, but they’re definitely mine!

Thin Mints are a close second over here. If you’re on team Thin Mint, I highly recommend you check out my recipe for healthier Thin Mints too!

Homemade 4-Ingredient Samoas Girl Scout cookies in a glass storage container.

I actually already have a recipe for Samoas energy bites, but this version is a bit more simple in terms of the ingredients (just 4) and looks almost exactly like the real deal.

The idea for these babies was actually inspired by Meaghan of Plant & Simple Eats. She brought similar cookies to an Instagram meet up we had awhile back and I knew I wanted to make my own version!

These Samoas couldn’t be easier to make so instead of having to wait for Girl Scout cookie season every year, you can make these year round. YES!

WATCH HOW TO MAKE HEALTHY SAMOAS:

Plate of homemade Samoas.

Healthier Homemade Samoas

Traditional Samoas, as much as we love them, are highly processed and made with lots of saturated fats and artificial flavoring.

We’re skipping all of those extra ingredients like white sugar, corn syrup and sweetened condensed milk and making them with just medjool dates, toasted coconut and chocolate chips. I recommend using Lily’s chocolate chips or Hu Kitchen gems for less sugar! 

These Samoas aren’t necessarily low calorie or low sugar, but they are made with natural ingredients including natural sugar from the dates and without preservatives. A big win in my book!

The medjool dates add such a nice caramel flavor and these Samoas legit taste like the real deal! Some have even said they taste better than the real deal. Shh…. don’t tell the Girl Scouts. 

Ingredients Needed

Three bowls of dates, coconut flakes and chocolate chips. Teaspoon of coconut oil.
  • medjool dates – the medjool dates add such a nice caramel flavor and make these Samoas taste like the real deal! You can buy medjool dates that are already pitted or pit them yourself (it’s super easy). Two brands that I like are Natural Delights and Joolies. You can find Natural Delights in the produce section of most grocery stores (near the bananas) and Joolies are offered on Amazon and Thrive Market.
  • unsweetened shredded coconut – be sure to grab unsweetened instead of sweetened!
  • dark chocolate (chips or a chopped bar) – I like to use Lily’s dark chocolate chips to keep this recipe lower in sugar, vegan and dairy-free. 
  • coconut oil – this is used to help make the melted chocolate thinner, which makes it easier to dip the Samoas. The coconut oil also helps harden the chocolate in the freezer. You can skip it, but your melted chocolate will likely be pretty thick. I recommend using refined coconut oil if you don’t want any coconut flavor!
Hand holding one homemade Samoas cookie with three cookies in the background.

How to Make 4-Ingredient Samoas

Here’s how to make these easy samoas!

Toast coconut Pre-heat oven to 400°F. Spread the shredded coconut onto a baking sheet for toasting.

Sheet pan with coconut flakes.

Place in oven for 3-5 minutes, until coconut is a light golden brown color.

Sheet pan with toasted coconut flakes.

Warning! Keep any eye on the coconut: Make sure to stay in the kitchen watch the coconut, as it can easily go from toasted to burnt. Alternately, you can toast the coconut in a pan on the stove-top.

Food processor of dates and toasted coconut.

Process Add dates and toasted coconut into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until mixture is combined and starts to form a ball of dough.

Blended dates and coconut in a food processor.

Form cookies Remove from the food processor, roll 1 Tablespoon size pieces of dough into a ball and then shape into a round cookie. Using a straw or chopstick punch a hole in the middle of the dough. Move the straw or chopstick around a bit to make the hole wider, if needed. At this point you’ll likely need to reshape the cookie a bit.

Donut shape no bake cookies on a parchment lined cookie sheet. A chop stick is making a hole in the middle of one of the cookies.

Chill Place all cookies on a sheet lined with parchment and transfer to the freezer to harden up a bit. 

Melt chocolate While cookies are in the freezer, add chocolate and coconut oil to a shallow microwave-safe bowl and melt in 20-30 second increments until the chocolate is melted enough to drizzle.

Parchment lined cookie sheet with homemade Samoas. A bowl of melted chocolate beside the cookies.

Coat Grab cookies from the freezer and dip each one in the chocolate to coat the bottom. Place cookies on the parchment and use remaining chocolate to drizzle over top the cookies. 

Freeze Transfer cookies back into the freezer for 10-15 minutes to let the chocolate harden. Once they’ve hardened you’ll be able to easily remove the cookies from the parchment paper.

Enjoy – If you want to enjoy them right away, let them sit out on the counter for a few minutes. 

What to Do If Your Dates Are Dry

Fresh Medjool dates are usually soft and give easily when squished. If your dates are older or just seem dry and hard, you may want to soak them before using. Simply place them in a bowl of warm water for 10-15 minutes to soften and rehydrate them. Drain well and pat dry before using.

Hand holding a homemade Samoa.

How to Store Samoas

If you want to enjoy right away, let your Samoas sit out on the counter for a few minutes. For enjoying later, store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to one week or in the freezer for up to three months… but I bet they’ll be gone before then Ha!

More Girl Scout Inspired Treats to Try:

More Healthy Treats to Try:

Be sure to check out all of my healthy snack recipes here on EBF.

If you enjoyed this recipe, please consider leaving a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below.

Want to save this recipe?
Want to save this recipe? Enter your email below and we’ll send the recipe to your inbox. Plus you’ll get great new recipes every week!
4.82 from 295 votes

Homemade Samoas Cookies

Healthy homemade Samoas made with only four ingredients: coconut, dates, chocolate chips and coconut oil They’re also vegan and gluten-free!
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 11

Ingredients  

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 400°F. Spread the shredded coconut onto a baking sheet for toasting. Place in oven for 3-5 minutes, until coconut is a light golden brown color. Make sure to stay in the kitchen watch the coconut, as it burns really easily. Alternately, you can toast the coconut in a pan on the stove top.
  • Add dates and toasted coconut into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until mixture is combined and starts to form a ball of dough.
  • Remove from food processor, roll 1 Tablespoon size pieces of dough into a ball and then shape into a round cookie. Using a straw or chopstick punch a hole in the middle of the dough. Move the straw or chopstick around a bit to make the hole wider, if needed. At this point you’ll likely need to reshape the cookie a bit.
  • Place all cookies on a sheet lined with parchment and transfer to the freezer to harden up a bit, while you melt the chocolate. About 5 minutes or so.
  • While cookies are in the freezer, add chocolate and coconut oil to a shallow microwave-safe bowl and melt in 20-30 second increments until the chocolate is melted enough to drizzle.
  • Grab cookies from the freezer and dip each one in the chocolate to coat the bottom. Place cookies on the parchment and use remaining chocolate to drizzle over top the cookies.
  • Transfer cookies back into the freezer (or fridge) for 10-15 minutes to let the chocolate harden. Once they’ve hardened you’ll be able to easily remove the cookies from the parchment paper.
  • If you want to enjoy right away, let them sit out on the counter for a few minutes. For enjoying later, store in a sealed container in the fridge for up to one week.

Video

Notes

  • Hard/dry dates: If your dates are hard and dry, I recommend soaking them in warm water for 10-15 minutes to soften. Just drain them well before using.
  • Coconut oil: This is used to help make the melted chocolate thinner, which makes it easier to dip the Samoas. The coconut oil also helps harden the chocolate in the freezer. You can skip it, but your melted chocolate will likely be pretty thick.
  • Add protein powder: To make protein Samoas add 1 scoop of your favorite vanilla protein powder and 1-4 Tablespoons of water in the food processor with the dates and toasted coconut. Start with 1 Tablespoon and add more as needed. If you use a whey based protein powder you’ll probably only need 1 Tablespoon, but if you use a plant-based protein powder you’ll likely need 3-4 Tablespoons of water. I’ve made with these with Clean Simple Eats (use code EBF for 10% off) and Truvani (use code EATINGBIRDFOOD for 10% off).

Nutrition

Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 124kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 1mg | Sodium: 3mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 15g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: samoas
Did you make this recipe?Mention @eatingbirdfood and tag #eatingbirdfood!

About Brittany

Hey there, I’m Brittany, the creator of Eating Bird Food, cookbook author, health coach and mama of two littles. Here you’ll find quick and easy recipes that make healthy fun and enjoyable for you and your family!

More about Brittany
Get Your FREE High-Protein Meal Plan
Struggling to eat enough protein? Subscribe to my email list and I’ll send you a 3-Day High-Protein Meal Plan with a Shopping List!
4.82 from 295 votes (69 ratings without comment)

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




494 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Oh My God. I’m still not sure if I’m going to share these or eat them all myself. Ooph. 🤤🤤. So, I added a tablespoon of all natural peanut butter because peanut butter goes into everything and I sprinkled a teaspoon of cinnamon in there too. These are beyond amazing!!

    1. Haha I love this so much!! I’m totally with you — these are my favorite! Your additions sound amazing — peanut butter truly does belong in everything, and I bet the cinnamon gave it the perfect warm twist. So glad you loved this recipe. Thanks for sharing your spin and for coming back to leave a review!

  2. 5 stars
    These are absolutely FANTASTIC! I’ve found the consistency changes if you add the coconut hot or cooled to the dates in the food processor. Both are good, now that I make these EVERY week for my 16yr old daughter.
    THANK YOU!!

    1. Woo!! This makes me so happy to hear, Stefany. Love that this recipe has become a go-to for you and your daughter. Thanks so much for making them and for coming back to leave a review. I really appreciate it! 🙂

  3. 5 stars
    These are better than the real deal! So easy and delish and I don’t feel guilty about eating all of them (because you will).

    1. Haha, love this, Shannon! So glad you enjoyed them — and I totally get it, they’re hard to resist. Thanks so much for making the recipe and for leaving a review!

  4. I am wondering if there’s a way to make this without dates. I did find the apple recipe, but I like the idea of this more. I’m on a low histamine diet and can’t have dates, but am determined to have some samoas. I may try the apple, but I’m commenting here in case you see it and have ideas. I can have maple syrup, almond butter and flour, coconut flour. I can have more but not sure what’s helpful to know!

    1. Hey Mara – Dates are a main ingredient this recipe and its what gives this recipe that classic “samoas cookies” flavor. The apple recipe does have the date caramel sauce, not sure if you saw that, but that is also a main ingredient and I don’t have a good substitute for you, unfortunately. Sorry about that! Let me know what you end up trying!

See More Comments