Breckenridge Texan

Local Girl Scout troop #8356 has a week left of their annual cookie sales, and they’re trying to raise enough money to go to Washington, D.C., and for other projects.

Look for the girls at the Breckenridge United Supermarket after school this week and at Walmart and Prairie Star in Albany next weekend.

Rihana and Rylee Fuller have been selling cookies at the Prairie Star in Albany on recent weekends. (Photo courtesy of Kim Fuller)

This year’s cookie lineup includes Thin Mints, Shortbreads, Peanut Butter Sandwiches, Peanut Butter Patties, Caramel DeLites, Lemonades, Thanks-a-Lots, S’Mores and the gluten-free Caramel Chocolate Chip. For more details on each cookie, check out the Cookies section below.

The cookies cost $5 per box, except for the gluten-free cookies, which cost $6 per box.

Part of the purchase price goes to the baking company that makes the cookies, but about 70 percent of the retail price goes to the local troop and the council. The troops and the councils use the funds for incentives for the girls, camp fees, etc.

Each troop receives a portion of the money and chooses how to spend it. The Breckenridge girls have set a goal of raising enough money to take the troop to Washington, D.C., and to do local community service projects benefiting the Stephens County Animal Shelter and the local senior citizens facilities.

The girls want to visit museums and monuments in Washington, D.C., as well as hopefully tour the White House and maybe even meet President Trump, said Girl Scout Rachel Burchett, who was selling cookies at Walmart on Sunday afternoon.

The girls have each set a personal sales goal, and many of the girls are close to meeting those goals, said Monica Burchett, Rachel’s mom.

If you won’t have a chance to visit one of the Girl Scout cookie booths this week, call troop leader Kim Fuller at 682-564-3980 to order cookies before Sunday, March 1.

THE COOKIES

Girl Scout councils contract with one of two licensed bakers, whose recipes and ingredients are similar but may differ slightly. Both companies provide a core slate of traditional cookies, plus one or two additional cookies that are unique to that baker. In a few cases, similar cookies are called different names by the two bakers.

Girl Scout Rachel Burchett shows the selection of cookies to Tim Wade of Breckenridge. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/ Breckenridge Texan)

The local Girl Scout troop gets their cookies from ABC Bakers. This year, there are nine types of cookies:

• Thin Mints – a round, mint-flavored chocolate cookie with a chocolaty coating.
• Shortbreads (Trefoils) – a delicate-tasting shortbread in the shape of the organization’s iconic trefoil.
• Peanut Butter Sandwiches (Do-Si-Dos) – a crisp and crunchy oatmeal sandwich cookie on the outside and creamy peanut butter inside.
• Peanut Butter Patties (Tagalongs) – a crispy cookie layered with peanut butter and covered with a chocolaty coating.
• Caramel DeLites (Samoas) – a crisp cookie, coated in caramel, sprinkled with coconut, and striped with a chocolaty coating.
• Lemonades – a shortbread cookie with lemony icing
• Thanks-a-Lots – a shortbread cookie with fudge on the bottom and the words “Thank You” in English, French, Chinese, Swahili or Spanish embossed on the top.
• S’Mores – a crispy graham cookie double dipped in crème icing and finished with a chocolatey coating.
• Caramel Chocolate Chip – a gluten-free chewy cookie with caramel, semisweet chocolate chips, and a hint of sea salt.

This is the last year that Thanks-a-Lots will be offered. “Although we aren’t sure what flavor it will be, we will have a new cookie flavor this next year, and we are excited to hear the official announcement coming soon,” Fuller said.

While most Girl Scout cookies are likely eaten straight out of the box, they also can be used in recipes, such as Lemonades Truffles, Thin Mints Ice Cream Sandwiches and Thanks-a-Lot Cheesecake. For those and other recipes, click here to see the recipe section of the ABC Bakers website. There are also recipes using Girl Scout cookies on the Girl Scout website.

Story by Carla McKeown/Breckenridge Texan

Cutline, top photo: Rachel Burchett explains the different types of Girl Scout cookies to Laura Wilson of Breckenridge. The local Girl Scouts have one more week of cookie sales; Sunday, March 1, will be the last day of sales. (Photo by Tony Pilkington/Breckenridge Texan)