Homemade, gluten free Samoas Girl Scout cookies

One thing I absolutely love and have totally missed since being on a gluten-free diet are girl scout cookies.  I haven’t had one in over 6 years and it kills me every time I see those boxes around.  When I saw a recipe on Pinterest I just had to give it a shot and adapt a version for them to be gluten-free. I am not the best cook around but I was determined to make these cookies and they turned out pretty good.  They are not very pretty but to me it is the taste that makes all the difference so don’t judge my decorating skills. It was my first attempt at these but I just had to share them right away so everyone can enjoy these amazing cookies.

When looking at the original recipe that I found the cookie that they were making was a shortbread and after looking up some recipes online and through my cookbooks I couldn’t really find a recipe that I liked very much.  Also, out of all the cookies that I have made I have never made gluten-free shortbread before so it was going to be trial and error for me.  I decided to just adapt the recipe that was on the website and see how it goes.  I substituted the flour for Pamela's Baking and Pancake Mix, which I love to make cookies with because they always turn out good.  I love the different flours that are used in it and it just gives the cookies and great flavor.  Since the mix already has baking powder in it, I just omitted that from the recipe and pretty much followed it from there with a few small changes here and there.  All in all I was very pleased with how it turned out and can’t stop eating them! I have had to give them away as much as I can because they are just too good for words and they have definitely satisfied that craving for those Samoas Girl Scout cookies that I have been missing so much.  So if you are gluten-free and are like me, missing these in your life, I hope these satisfy you as much as they have me.

 

Homemade Gluten-free Samoas Girl Scout Cookies

Ingredients:

 

For the cookies:

 

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature

1/2 cup of sugar

2 1/2 cups of Pamela's Baking and Pancake Mix

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 Tablespoons milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

sweet rice flour for rolling

 

For the coconut topping:

 

3 cups shredded sweetened coconut

15 ounces of store bought caramels

3 Tablespoons milk

1/4 teaspoon salt

8 ounces (1 1/3 cups chocolate chips) dark chocolate

 

Directions:

 

Make the cookies:

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

 

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

 

In a separate bowl, whisk together the baking mix and salt. Slowly add mix to the creamed butter making sure to scrap down the sides of the bowl when necessary.  Add the milk and vanilla extract, blending until combined and the dough begins to come together.

 

Use your hands to divide the dough in half, pressing it together to compact it into two disks. Wrap the disks in plastic wrap and refrigerate them until firm, about 1 hour.

 

Once the dough has chilled, roll each disk out onto a lightly floured surface. (Gluten-free dough can be a little tricky and what worked best for me was to work it a little bit with my hands to warm it up slightly.  Make sure the surface and the rolling pin both have flour on it or it will stick and fall apart. Just play with it until it’s warm enough to roll out.) Roll out each disk until it is 1/8 inch thick. Cut out as many cookies as possible with a doughnut-shaped cookie cutter. (I didn’t have a doughnut cookie cutter so I just found stuff in my kitchen and improvised and it worked great.) Place the cut-out cookies on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough.  The dough will be fragile so be careful when transferring to the baking sheet.  It is a good idea to have well floured hands.

 

Bake the cookies for 10 minutes until the cookies are a very pale golden brown.  (Once you see any kind of brown on them take them out or they will be over done.) Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

 

Make the coconut topping:

 

Spread the coconut flakes onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake the coconut for about 10 minutes in a 350 degree oven until toasted, stirring frequently to ensure even browning and so that it does not burn.  Remove the toasted coconut from the oven and set it aside.

 

Melt the caramels, milk and salt in a double-boiler by placing the caramels in a medium saucepot set over a large saucepot of simmering water.  Cook, stirring, until the caramels are fully melted.  Remove the saucepot from the heat and combine 3/4 of the caramel with the toasted coconut in a large bowl.

 

Carefully spread the remaining 1/4 cup of caramel atop the cooled cookies, then press on a portion of the coconut mixture.  Let the cookies cool for 30 minutes. If the caramel-coconut mixture thickens too much at any point while pressing it onto the cookies, return it to the double-boiler and warm it until it’s spreadable again.

 

Melt the dark chocolate in a double-broiler or in the microwave. Dip the bottoms of the cookies in the chocolate and place them on a wax-paper lined baking sheet. Use a fork to drizzle the tops with chocolate.  Let cookies sit until the chocolate hardens fully.

Outside Fun

Like everyone with small children we love to get outside as much as possible.  Reid got a new bike for Christmas and he wants to ride it as much as possible.  We are taking advantage of living right next to the park and we get over there at least once a day or whenever Reid can convince us to take him.  He loves to be outside and wants to practice as much as he can on his new bike.  He is getting really good on it and I’m surprised at how good he can balance already.  Best idea ever are these balance bikes.  Not a fan of training wheels and it bypasses them completely!

Tyler is 4 months

So I haven’t really been on top of things lately and I’m a little behind considering Tyler is almost 5 months but still I'm making an effort here! The months just keep going by so fast that I’m not ready for him to keep getting bigger. Every month I’m shocked at how big he is getting that maybe I’m in a little bit of denial!

Anyway, Tyler is growing so fast and we just love him more and more each day.  He is such a snuggle bug and loves to be held which is a good thing because I just can’t help myself.  He is getting so fat and chunky which makes him perfect for squeezes.  He is also losing all of his hair, especially in the back.  He doesn’t have a bald spot, but a bald ring. Still not sure what color his hair is going to end up being.  The new growth is still so short that it is hard to tell.  I think it’s going to be a dark blond but we shall see. 

He is getting more and more playful. He loves to see what is going on around him and just loves to be outside. He squeals and talks so much more when he is outside.  He pretty much has to be able to see someone when he is awake or else he gets angry so when I am cleaning I have to turn his seat so that he can see me at all times.  He smiles and talks to me while I am being busy so I don’t mind it too much.

I took him to the gym for the first time and has done great every time.  I am thrilled cause now I get to drop the kids off for an hour to have some time to myself and I get a good workout.  It takes forever to get there but once I’m there it is so worth it.   We also took him to the doctor for his 4 month checkup and things look perfect.  He is just as perfect as can be and his doctor is very happy with this development. 

Weight: 13lbs, 12oz, 22nd percentile

Length: 24 3/4 in. 38th percentile

Head: 16 1/2 in 36th percentile

Tyler is 3 Months

So I’m super behind with blogging and totally missed a whole month.  With the holidays and everything it was impossible to find a second to sit down, let alone blog.  Tyler turned 3 months in December which is always bittersweet for me cause they are officially out of that newborn phase.  I miss that phase but it is also super fun when they are more alert and their little personality starts to come out.  He is such a happy baby and good little boy that I was worried that he might just flip a switch and become terrible but he has stayed super good.  He has started to talk and make his presence known around the house and really looks for us if we aren’t in the room.  He loves to be surrounded by his family and the only time he gets fussy is when he can’t see one of us around.  He loves to be held and snuggled and adores his big brother.  Whenever Reid is playing or just around, Tyler has to have an eye on him to see what he is doing.  They love to snuggle before bed time and it’s when I can get most of the stuff I need to get done because they are both so happy just being with one another.  I am just loving having my two boys.  I was so nervous to have two but they couldn’t be better and we just adore them so much.  They fill my day with love and we have so much fun together.  I am definitely busy but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Tyler is 2 Months

My sweet little boy is two months already.  He is so fun and such a great addition to our family.  We just all love him so much and enjoy his perfect little personality.  He had his two month checkup and passed with flying colors.  The doctor is very pleased with his growth and says he is just perfect. He is starting to recognize us more and more. He is smiling and cooing which just makes my heart melt.  He adores his brother and looks for him when he hears his voice.  Reid still wants to be wherever Tyler is and asks to hold him on an hourly basis. 

Tyler has rolled over from his tummy to his back and is getting stronger every day.  He is an excellent sleeper and has been sleeping about 8-9 hours every night for a couple of weeks. I just started putting him in his crib in the room with Reid and they have been doing great.  They have both slept great and we haven’t had any problems…yet.  I’m sure they will come later but for now I am enjoying my sleep.  He is just the best baby and so calm and easy going. He still rarely cries and just waits patiently for me to get him when he wakes up or when he is hungry.  Sometimes I worry how easy going he is but that’s because I have to worry about something! He is just as perfect as can be and we just love him so much!

Two moth stats:

10 lbs, 14 oz (30th percentile)

23 in long (54th percentile) and head is 15 1/2 in (35th percentile)

Going private

Wes has really been bugging me to make the blog private so if you are interested in reading this blog then just make sure to give me your email address.  I’ll probably make it private in the next week or so. I know it’s more annoying but my husband is even more annoying and I’m sick of him talking about it so I guess I will just give in!

Halloween Time

It seems like every year each holiday just gets better and better.  With Reid getting older and now having another one it just made everything so fun.  We had a great time and Reid really got into Halloween.  I found a cow costume that was so cute for Tyler so I convinced Reid to be a cowboy so we could have a bit of a theme.  Reid thought it was great and was so excited to be a cowboy.  He would run around the house saying, “I be a COWBOY!”  That’s is apparently what cowboys say!

We decided to go to the pumpkin patch with my sister and her family.  It was super fun to go with cousins and Reid had a blast.  We got to go to the petting zoo, ride the train and of course, pick a pumpkin.  It was a great way to start the Halloween festivities and really got Reid excited for more.  We had a couple more parties before Halloween and one of them was our ward’s trunk or treat.  Reid got to practice trick or treating and get it down.  He loved it and our good friend Brett took him around because Wes had to work. He loved it and was excited to do more.  On the actual day we went to Wes’ sister’s house and my sister came over as well.  He got to go out with all of this cousins which was especially fun. He spent the night running at full speed after his older cousins saying, “Wait for me!” It was too funny and he just yelled trick or treat to everyone cause he was so excited.  It was a great time and it just makes me more excited for next year!