Homemade Thin Mints

1. Twist to separate each of the sandwich cookies and scrape out the cream filling. What you do with the cream filling is your own business, no judgement here. Ha!

2. Melt the chocolate according to package instructions then stir in the mint extract. Make sure it’s well mixed. I found this amount to be perfect, but feel free to add more if you want a bigger mint flavor.

3. Dip a cookie half in the melted chocolate, turn to coat using a fork, and tap off the excess before transferring to a cookie sheet lined with foil or wax paper. My favorite method of chocolate dipping for items like this is the “3 fork method”. Use 2 forks in the chocolate to dip/turn/coat/tap, and one clean fork to carefully push the item onto the cookie sheet. Continue until all of the cookies are coated.

4. Leave the cookies at room temperature until set. However, I don’t blame you if you need to put that first batch into the fridge for an emergency cookie chill so you can taste test.

Ingredient Notes:
– For the cookies: Trader Joe’s makes their own really yummy version of an Oreo (cheaper, too). And they have a gluten-free variety as well. No Oreo’s on hand? You can use graham crackers instead, they just won’t be as chocolaty.
– For the chocolate: The first time I made them, I used all semi-sweet and they were just a tad too sweet. The cookies in the photographs are made with a mix of 1/2 semi-sweet and 1/2 dark. The favorite ones I’ve made so far were made with all dark chocolate. If you want a super glossy and smooth finish, feel free to temper your chocolate, but tempering isn’t necessary for flavor—it’s purely aesthetic.
– For the peppermint extract: Make sure you have peppermint extract, not “mint” extract which is actually a combo of peppermint and spearmint. “Mint” extract is what I had on hand originally, and while still delicious, the cookies had a slight toothpaste flavor due to the spearmint. Curbed my Thin Mint craving, but we ended up tossing the last few.

Adapted from Top With Cinnamon.