Recipe: Boozy Thin Mint Cookies

It’s finally Girl Scout Cookie season and that means people are going to be clamoring to get their hands on as many boxes as they can. But what if you don’t have access to a girl scout, or you want a cookie that has all the delicious flavors of the traditional thin mint, but is also a bit more sinful? Then you’ve got to make this boozy version.

In these faux-thin mint cookies, we use Branca Menta, the delicious mint liquor from Italy, to give the cookies their minty taste. The result is a decadent cookie that’s a grown up version of the thin mints you ate as a kid.

Here’s how to make them:

Branca Menta “Thin-Mint” Cookies

The Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 5 tablespoons butter at room temperature
• 1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
• 3 tbsp Branca Menta
• 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 12 to 18 ounces semisweet or dark chocolate chips

Instructions:

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat together the sugar and butter on medium speed until creamy and well combined, about 1 minute. Reduce the speed to medium-low and add first the egg and then the egg yolk, beating well after each addition. Beat in the extracts. Slowly beat in the flour mixture until just combined. The dough will be super sticky.
2. Shape the dough into a disk on the parchment paper. (If the dough is too sticky to work with, chill it in the fridge for 30 mins.) Wrap the disk of cookie dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 30 minutes. (You can refrigerate the dough up to overnight, though you’ll need to let it warm slightly at room temperature before you’re able to roll it out.)
3. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
4. Roll out the dough into same size balls and flatten with the bottom on a glass till about 1/4-inch thick.
5. Bake the Branca Menta cookies, switching halfway through, until dry and crisp and firm around the edges, anywhere from 8 minutes, depending on thickness. Let the cookies cool slightly on the baking sheets and then transfer them to wire racks to cool completely.
6. Meanwhile, melt the chocolate chips in a double boiler. Submerge a cookie into the melted chocolate and turn to coat. Shake off any excess and place on parchment paper. Repeat for all of the cookies, re-heating the chocolate when necessary.
7. Let cookies cool for at least 30 minutes or until chocolate is firm.
8. Cookies will keep, layered between sheets of parchment paper in an airtight container, for up to 1 week – if you have any last that long!

Yields: 18 Cookies