About Cook(ie) Book

    The Girl Scout Cook(ie) Book was created for my Girl Scout Gold Award Project: "Creative Baking with Girl Scout Cookies." The ultimate goal was to target the world of cookie consumers and customers so they can find better ways to enjoy their cookies. The project, also, helps girls in Girl Scouts benefit through leadership experience and networking skill development. 

WHAT'S BETTER THAN A GIRL SCOUT COOKIE?

My original answer was: Nothing...But, the more I though about it, I started to wonder if it was ever possible to improve upon a cookie. One night while crumbling Thin Mints on my ice cream, I had a sudden realization. This epiphany began my Girl Scout Gold Award Project.

Background: 

    Girl Scout cookies have been an important part of my scouting experience since day one. They’ve helped me to go places as far as Costa Rica and the Galápagos Islands, and with hard work, they’ve helped me develop important social, business, and goal-setting skills that I will use for the rest of my life. Naturally, I wanted to do a Gold Award that incorporated my love of cookies and my massive customer network to make something great. I wanted the world to know that cookies, aren’t just good plain. First, I tried some recipes with cookies and decided this was a very good idea. Next, I tested out using recipes while selling, which had very positive results. People would not only be more excited to buy cookies, they would also buy more, because then they could make a Thin Mint Pie, or Caramel deLite Brownies. Girl Scout cookies became more than just a box of delicious guilty pleasures. Using recipes made it easier to sell, and most of my clients wanted me to "bring back more recipes next year." I decided to hold the Girl Scout Cookie Recipe Challenge as my Gold Award and make a cookbook with all my recipes, so that the world could share my love of cookies and enjoy them even more. As I researched, I found that other councils had similar cookbooks. However, almost none of these cookbooks were free, online, or representative of more than a council-area. I decided to create an online cookbook that would be free for the world! Girls could use the recipes from the cookbook as a tool to help them get more out of selling and to make that first connection with the customer. Chefs could participate in the challenge to get more local publicity and to show off their talents. Most importantly, the general public could have one place to find quality delicious recipes that used Girl Scout Cookies, to share their love of cookies, and to discover how to connect more to their community.


About the Cook(ie) Book:

    The Cook(ie) Book is a free online cookbook with recipes using Girl Scout cookies. The recipes were created by bakeries, or adapted from tried and true dessert recipes. The bakeries all participated in the Girl Scout Cookie Recipe Challenge and Bake-Off Event by creating original recipes. The mission of the website is to be a helpful resource to cookie-enthusiasts for finding better ways to enjoy their cookies and providing a connection to the world and the community.

About the "Girl Scout Cookie Recipe Challenge":

Jeff Kruckenburg; Me; Chef Brandon

The Challenge: Local Bakeries competed to create the best original recipe using Girl Scout Cookies. 

The Event: On Saturday, September, 25, 2010, the event took place for about three hours. Over 10 bakeries and restaurants competed in addition to an individual local baker. Over fourty-four guests attended to taste and vote on their favorites. There were over 12 dishes from bakeries. The event also featured desserts adapted from tried and true favorites, such as Thanks-a-lot S'mores.


Winning Recipes:

Caramel DeLite Goo Bars

1st Place! 
Halverson's Supper Club in Stoughton, WI
"Caramel deLite Goo Bars" by Chef Brandon

Want to try it out yourself? Click Here! 

Caramel DeLite Cheesecake

2nd Place!
Sun Print Café in Madison, WI
"Caramel deLite Cheesecake" by Chef Susan
Want to try it out yourself? Click Here!

Girl Scout Brown Betty

3rd Place!
Yahara River Co-Op in Stoughton, WI
"Girl Scout Brown Betty" by Chef Laura
Want to try it out yourself? Click Here!








You can participate, too! 
TAKE THE GIRL SCOUT COOKIE CHALLENGE Grab a box of cookies and make your own creation! For more information, click on the link above or email gscookiebook@gmail.com.