These Paleo Thin Mints are a scrumptiously healthy cookie that make a great holiday gift. We love this treat so much though, that we make it all year round.
Homemade Girl Scout Cookies
Making your own Girl Scout cookies is as simple as 1-2-3 with my quick and easy recipe. These Paleo Thin Mints are a chocolate wafer cookie that is baked, cooled, and then dipped in rich dark chocolate that’s melted. We store our Paleo Thin Mints in the freezer for the best texture and crispy crunch.
Egg-Free Girl Scout Cookies
These copycat Thin Mints are not only gluten and grain-free, they’re an egg-free cookie recipe too! Did you know that 99% of my cookie recipes are egg-free? If you have egg allergies, you’ll want to take a look at both my Cookie Recipes Page and my Egg-Free Diet Recipes page. They’ll broaden your dietary horizons in a big way!
Gluten-Free Girl Scout Cookies
Don’t be sad when Girl Scout Cookie season rolls around. Because I’ve created a gluten-free Girl Scout Cookie season just for you! Finally, you can partake in gluten-free Thin Mints, Tagalongs, and Samoas. I would not have thought of making Paleo Girl Scout Cookies, let alone Paleo Thin Mints if I had not seen Tammy Credicott’s incredible book Paleo Indulgences
Paleo Thin Mints
Ingredients
- 1 cup blanched almond flour (not almond meal)
- 1 teaspoon coconut flour
- 2 tablespoons cacao powder
- ⅛ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons palm shortening
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
- 6 ounces chocolate chips
- ½ teaspoon peppermint extract
Instructions
- In a food processor, combine almond flour, coconut flour, cacao, baking soda, and salt
- Pulse in shortening, honey, and peppermint extract until dough forms
- Roll out dough between 2 pieces of parchment paper to ⅛-inch thick
- Freeze dough for 15 minutes
- Using a 2 inch cookie cutter, cut out dough
- Transfer circles to parchment paper lined baking sheet
- Bake at 350°F for 4-5 minutes
- Cool completely on baking sheets, then freeze 1 hour
- Melt chocolate and peppermint in a small saucepan over very low heat
- Use a dipping tool to lower cookies into chocolate, then place on parchment lined plate
- Freeze 1 hour
- Serve
Homemade Holiday Gifts
These healthy, gluten-free cookies are a wonderful DIY holiday gift. They’re perfect for Christmas, Hanukkah, and other celebrations. I love to give these Paleo Thin Mints alongside my homemade Hamantaschen when Purim rolls around.
Reduce Waste and Save Money During the Holidays
I’m very passionate when it comes to conservation and I love to reduce, reuse, and recycle as much as possible. That’s because I used to run this company which I founded in 1993 when I was 26 years old.
Now, decades later, when I give holiday gifts I follow this ethos by keeping it simple, yet special. I place my homemade cookies and candy in reusable tins which I purchase at the thrift store. I carefully scrub and de-glutenize the tins, then run them through the dishwasher. This reduces waste during Christmas, Hanukkah, and other special occasions.
Healthy Holiday Gift Recipes
Here are more healthy cookie and bar recipes that make great holiday gifts!
This post is an oldie but goodie from the archives, I first published this recipe in 2013.
Cindy Sue says
I just pre-ordered her latest cookbook, and have just gotten the first two, although I am overwhelmed, it is a GOOD overwhelmed, I am thrilled! Am I understanding correctly that you can substitute honey for any agave in Elana’s recipes? Is this one of the major differences in the Paleo recipes?
Side Note:
I buy local honey from the Co Op, one teaspoon a day of your local honey is suppose to help with allergies over a period of time.
Elana says
Cindy Sue, I substitute honey or maple syrup in place of agave in many of my recipes and it works very well :-)
Hannah says
These are better than the originals! Thank you Elana!
Elana says
Hannah, thanks for letting me know these are better than the originals!!!
Mary Gordon says
Hi Elana, I am new to GF and GF allergies : (
What can I substitute for the coconut flour and the shortening and how much of each substitute? I cannot have coconut or potato flour!
Emily says
I sub coconut oil for palm shortening in just about all recipes. Not sure about coconut flour though….maybe more almond? or arrowroot powder?
Tana says
I find it endlessly fascinating with so many sites, be it paleo, vegan, grain-free or gluten free, the endless amount of sweet recipes there are. Sweet seems to trump savory hands down. Yet, as I eliminated wheat from my diet, my tolerance for things sweet diminished substantially.
And yet, over everything else, it is really the sweets that I think are causing the bulk of our diabetes epidemic. It’s quite a thing to witness really. Thanks for all your work, sweet and savory!
Elana says
Tana, I totally agree! I think it’s really easy to find good savory recipe when giving up gluten and grains, but a bit more complex to find sweet ones, ie, baked goods and desserts. I’m so happy to help people live grain-free :-)
Britt in TX says
Yes!!!!!! You’re the best!!! I can’t wait to try making these!! Man, it’s a good thing I ate the girl scout thin mints the other day. My mom been telling me to watch my sugar; )Now I can make this and she well love it too!! Thanks again!
Elana says
Britt, you’re welcome!
Jennifer says
I made this recipe as soon as I saw it the other day. It should have had a warning that you will not be able to control yourself and will keep going back to the freezer for more :) Completely love, this has rocketed to be one of my favorite recipes and I will completely post on my blog about making them and photos of how mine turned out. I didn’t have a small circle cookie cutter so I just cut into diamond-ish shapes. It worked really well!
Elana says
Jennifer, I’m so happy to hear that this has rocketed to be one of your favorite recipes :-)
Dani says
Signed!
Anastasia Healthy Mama Info says
These look absolutely delicious! The kids will love these & so excited to try this recipe, not to mention, all the ingredients are healthy & organic:) Thank you!
Elana says
Anastasia, you’re welcome!
Ellen says
My daughter is a Girl Scout and also has a severe gluten allergy. She is out selling her cookies but can’t have even one. She remembers thin mints from her ore allergy days a d misses them. I made these as a surprise for her. She LOVED them! Thank you so much for making a little girl feel like a Girl Scout.
Elana says
Ellen, thanks for sharing your daughter’s story here! I am so touched that my recipe made her feel like a Girl Scout :-)
Annsley says
These look amazing! Can you substitute butter or Earth’s Balance instead of shortening? Also, instead of almond flour can you use a GF blend?
Thank you!
Elana says
Annsley, I haven’t tried those substitutions so not sure :-)