Make healthy Thin Mints at home with this easy recipe! These crispy cookies are made with almond flour and maple syrup and coated in dark chocolate. Vegan + gluten-free.
My top 3 favorite Girl Scout cookies are Samoas, Thin Mints, and Tagalongs – in that specific order. It’s funny because I’m such a peanut butter and chocolate fan, you’d think that Tagalongs would be my #1, but Samoas are just so good . . . they win! With this in mind, I’ve been on a journey of making a healthy version of these iconic classics. First, I made homemade energy balls that were inspired by Samoas and Thin Mints – see my Sinless Samoas and these Thin Mint Energy Balls – but now I’m starting a collection of actual cookie recreations.
Last year, I shared these healthy homemade 4-Ingredient Samoas and they have been such a hit! People are shocked by how easy they are to make and LOVE that they actually taste like the real deal cookies (some people say they taste even better and at least two people on Instagram have called them LIFE-CHANGING!). If you haven’t tried them yet, finish reading this post and then pop over to the 4-Ingredient Samoas and check out that recipe, too!
WATCH HOW TO MAKE HEALTHY THIN MINTS:
Given all the Samoas love, I decided I needed to recreate my other two favorites. First up, the classic Thin Mints! Lots of people have requested the Tagalongs so they’re next . . . don’t you worry!
For this Thin Mint recipe, were using almond flour for the cookie, which was actually inspired and adapted from my 3 Ingredient Almond Flour Crackers! I love using almond flour for baking because it gives everything a rich, nutty flavor that isn’t too overpowering. It works perfectly for these thin and crispy chocolate shortbread cookies! For cutting the dough into a round cookie shape, you can use a cookie cutter but I found that a shot glass makes the perfect size cookies and works just as well.
Once the cookies have baked and cooled, you’ll dip them into a delicious chocolate coating. The chocolate coating is simply chocolate chips, a little coconut oil, and peppermint extract. Dip the cookies into the chocolate coating and then place them back on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Place them in the fridge or freezer to let them set.
That last step is probably the hardest . . . I know 30 minutes of waiting is painful, but it’s worth it I promise!
Are you a Girl Scout cookie fan? What’s your favorite flavor?
If you make these thin mint cookies, please be sure to leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how they turn out. Your feedback is so helpful for the EBF team and other EBF readers.
Print
Prep Time:
Yield:
Category:
Method:
Cuisine:
Print
PinDescription
Make healthy Thin Mints at home with this easy recipe! These crispy cookies are made with almond flour and maple syrup and coated in dark chocolate. Vegan + gluten-free.
Ingredients
Cookies
- 1 cup almond flour
- 2 Tablespoons cocoa powder
- 2 Tablespoons maple syrup
- 2 Tablespoons melted coconut oil
- Pinch of sea salt
- ½ teaspoon peppermint extract
Chocolate Coating
- 1 cup dark chocolate chips
- 2 teaspoons coconut oil
- ¼ teaspoon peppermint extract
Instructions
- Combine almond flour, cocoa powder, maple syrup, coconut oil, sea salt and peppermint extract in a medium bowl until dough forms. The mixture might seem a little crumbly, but that’s okay. Place dough in the fridge for about 15 minutes.
- While the dough is in the fridge, preheat your oven to 350°F and prep a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper.
- Place the chilled dough on a piece of parchment paper. Cover it with a second piece of parchment. Pat it down with your hands and then use a rolling pin to roll out the dough. You’ll want the dough semi-thin— about 1/4 of an inch thick. Use a small circular cookie cutter to cut out circular cookies and place each on your prepared baking sheet. I used a shot glass for this and it worked great.
- Place cookies in the pre-heated oven and bake for 13-15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
- Melt chocolate by adding your chocolate chips and coconut oil into a small bowl. Melt in the microwave using 30-second increments or use a double boiler. Once chocolate is melted, stir in the peppermint extract.
- Using a fork, dip cookies into the melted chocolate. Let any excess chocolate drip off before placing the cookie back on the parchment lined baking sheet.
- Place cookies in the fridge or freezer for the chocolate to set, about 30 minutes. Once the chocolate has set, you’re ready to enjoy! Store leftover cookies in the freezer and enjoy straight from the freezer – no need to thaw.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 108
- Sugar: 8g
- Fat: 8g
- Carbohydrates: 11g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 1g
Keywords: thin mint cookies
I made these today! They are amazing. Thank you for another amazing recipe. I love so many of your recipes and enjoy your blog very much. Can’t wait until you do a tagalong recipe ?.
★★★★★
Ahhh!!! I’m so glad that you hear that you liked them, Chelsie. I’m so pumped to share the tagalong recipe soon! 🙂
I was wondering if I could order peppermint essential oil to sub the extract.
Tagalongs are my absolute favorites!!! I cannot wait to try the recipe.
I don’t bake cookies often but these look great! Might have to try them.
This came at just the right time!! My husband recently polished of TWO boxes of thin mints and I’m over jealous because I’m GF. Thank you!!
Hi Brittany can I use regular dates to make your recipe SAMOAS???
What do you mean by regular dates? What type do you have?
What would you recommend for a lower carb substitute for the maple syrup? Should it be liquid (lakanto maple flavored syrup or similar), or would a powdered sweetener like erythritol work?
I’d recommend a liquid low carb sweetener for sure!
Hi. I love your stuff. So far my face is the granola bars.
Well… I tried the mint cookies and I’m waiting for them to come out of the oven and I want to tell you I was so desperate to try them I used regular flour, so far it’s a fail. Lol the dough was way to crumbly and I added a lot more oil and syrup so it might not work. I’m not giving up tho I’m going to buy some almond flour to try again.
Thanks for putting your good stuff out there.
Yay! Now I can eat a sleeve of Thin Mints without any guilt!!! Check out https://www.hungerpass.com/ for some healthy dessert ideas!
Brittany, these cookies are amazing! Your recipes are superb. I’ve made the zucchini pasta, slaw salad with almond butter dressing and now these cookies. Fabulous! Thank you for sharing!
★★★★★
Great idea! My friends have been complaining that the Girl Scout cookies have gotten more expensive. I love the idea of making them at home AND making them healthier!
Do you think I could use a non-nut flour like cassava?
I haven’t tried it but you could certainly experiment!
If I’m a little short on almond flour do you think I couldn’t use a bit of coconut flour? Either that or for your homemade crackers with every but the bagel seasoning?! Haha..I’m making both and probably only have 1.5 cups almond flour!
Coconut flour isn’t a direct sub for almond flour and I haven’t tested the recipe with coconut flour so I don’t know if it will work or not. You can certainly try it, but it will be an experiment.