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Keebler’s Coconut Dreams, reviewed

Keebler Coconut Dreams
The only way to get those classic Girl Scout Samoas (a.k.a. Caramel de Lites) is to wait for another Girl Scout selling season to roll around – or to set aside some time in the kitchen to make your own homemade Girl Scout cookies. Although I can and do make them at home, I still look forward to “cookie season” and when I saw a box of cookies with that familiar Samoas design on the packaging at my local grocery store, I stopped in my tracks to check it out. They were Keebler’s Coconut Dreams, a new cookie from Keebler’s that is just like a samoa. I will always prefer homemade cookies to storebought, but I could not resist giving these Samoas look-a-likes a try.

I am very surprised that it has taken this long for a Samoas knock off to appear in stores. They’re always a hot item during the cookie sales. These cookies are simply described as fudge, caramel and coconut cookies, and yet there is no mistaking their chocolate-drizzled, ring shape for anything but a Samoa. Flavor-wise, they are very close, if not identical, to the Girl Scout cookies, with a nice fudge flavor and a great toasted coconut and caramel topping.

I’m still very partial to homemade ones these days, but would buy these again in a minute if I needed a quick Samoas fix and didn’t want to wait a few more months for Girl Scout cookie season to come around again. If you want to go the homemade route, try one of these Samaoas look-a-likes yourself:

Keebler Samoas

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38 Comments
  • Kim
    July 22, 2010

    my fiance’ is so excited about these! glad to hear they are a pretty good match! I am surprised it took this long too!

    Kim @ http://frostmeblog.blogspot.com
    party inspiration

  • A Busy Nest
    July 22, 2010

    My husband was thrilled to hear that there is a Samoa look-a-like available year round. I agree though that nothing beats a homemade cookie!

  • megan
    July 22, 2010

    mmm…you just made me crave caramel delites! i’m going to guess keebler’s version are more affordable than the girl scouts’.

  • moonablaze
    July 22, 2010

    keebler makes girl scout cookies in some parts of the country, so they’re not exactly knockoffs. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girl_Scout_cookie

  • nina
    July 23, 2010

    Thank you so much for pointing these out! I’m going to have to get a package of these tonight! The girl scout cookie version of these is the only way I’ll eat coconut!

  • Amy L
    July 23, 2010

    I don’t usually buy packaged cookies (except for Girl Scout cookies), but I’m going to have to try these. Thanks for sharing.

  • Katy R
    July 23, 2010

    This is the best news I’ve heard all week!

  • mags
    July 25, 2010

    I was a girl scout and love to support their cookie sales, but I think an all-year samoa supply would been a boon to my relationship with my fiance. I have found that nothing cures a cranky boy like a samoa! Now I’ll just have to find a way to fool him into thinking it’s always girl scout cookie time…

  • angela
    July 26, 2010

    i’m surprised to hear that these are new, since i know we’ve had them in our local wal-mart for a good year now. they also have their version of thin mints and peanut butter patties. it’s my understanding that keebler and girl scouts have the same manufacturer (is that the right word?) and are essentially the same product. while i love the convenience, the allure of gs cookies is that fact that they are only around for a limited time each year.

  • THE KING
    July 28, 2010

    K, I LOVE SAMOA’s…no mint cookies for me from the Girl Scouts. My wife got these last Friday and I’ve already gone through them and another package. They are DEEEEEVINE! Love wrapped in a Keebler package. Hmmmm…..maybe it’s not a good thing these are available year round? Maybe the Girls Scouts were really watching out for my waist line? Well, nonetheless they are yum in my tum.

  • dave
    July 29, 2010

    I think your homemade = better assertion is tacked on and obsolete. You may get a better experience after making them yourself, but there is no way you’re making them better than Keebler. Sorry.

  • anickh
    August 3, 2010

    i kept writing letters to keebler telling them to do this and yay, they finally did. it probablly wasnt my letters that made it happen, but really, like everone said, its about time!!! so i bought these tonight, and fortunately theyre very good!!! taste just about as good as the real grl scout samoas! im so happy about this

  • joja
    August 10, 2010

    Moondance has it right, sort-of. Keebler owns Little Brownie Baker, the manufacturer behind one of the two contracted companies who make GS cookies.

  • effie
    August 22, 2010

    given that GS cookies are going to be $ 4.00 a box, and the girls may get a whopping fifty cents from the sale of the cookies, less and less people are willing to purchase the cookies to support the scouts.
    these keebler cookies are $ 2.00 to $ 2.50 a package.
    they taste the same

  • cara_mia
    August 29, 2010

    Not surprising – Keebler makes the cookies for the Girl Scouts. If anyone were going to make a knock-off that tastes like the real thing, they would be the ones.

  • Lu Ann
    September 2, 2010

    Keebler also has thin mint clones called Grasshoppers and Tagalongs called Peanut Butter filled.

  • LM
    September 15, 2010

    I’m a Girl Scout employee and I would like to share the following in response to effie’s comment:

    With every purchase, approximately 70% of the proceeds stays in the local Girl Scout council to provide resources needed to support Girl Scouting in that area, including a portion that goes directly to the group selling the cookies. The balance goes directly to the baker to pay for the cookies.

    All of the revenue—every penny after paying the baker—earned from cookie activities stays with the local Girl Scout council that sponsors the sale, including a portion that goes directly to the group selling cookies. Councils use their cookie revenue to supply essential services to troops, groups, and individual girls, such as providing program resources and communication support, training adult volunteers, and conducting events.

  • Hal Summers
    November 2, 2010

    Keebler should bring back the old Yum Yums cookies that were made by Sunshine Cookie Company. They were far better than Samoas.

  • A.M.
    January 6, 2011

    Does Keebler make G.S. cookies??? The coconut dreams are amazing!!! My husband said he could sit down with a whole package and milk and eat them all.
    I’d rather pay the grocery store price than the G.S. high price!!!

  • M D
    January 20, 2011

    I am a G S and I STRONGLY dislike these copy cat cookies . Why not freeze the cookies Ever though of THAT?Why mess with the classic buy the original!!!!!!!

  • ganso
    January 21, 2011

    The G.S. Cookies are the copy cat, and the inferior cookie. The G.S. is not a cookie company. They contract with the cookie company to make a version of a cookie the cookie company already makes with a new name. In this case, Keebler bought out Sunshine, who made the original cookie, which was called yum yums, and were better, and a better value, than both versions. But Coconut Dreams are the best version of this cookie you can buy at this time. Unless you want to DONATE money to the G.S.

  • MDLC
    January 22, 2011

    Actually Girl scout cookies are in fact made by the Keebler company. I found this out a few years back when i came across a pack of grasshopper cookies made by keebler that are identical to the Thin Mints by the Girl scouts.
    One box label reads “Made for The Little Brownie Bakers in Louisville, Kentucky.” Not “made BY” Little Brownie Bakers but “made FOR” Little Brownie Bakers. They’re actually made by the giant cookie company, Keebler. Keebler is owned by Kellogg’s but their name isn’t on the box, either. Nothing simple about this.

    The other company that makes Girl Scout Cookies is ABC Bakers. ABC Bakers is owned by Interbake Foods in Richmond, Va.

  • Randi
    February 3, 2011

    They’re not really a knock-off. A Keebler subsidiary makes the Girl Scout cookies.

  • angela
    February 4, 2011

    I think it is really sad that a huge cookie company feels the need to take away from the biggest fundraising that girl scouts have. Customers look forward to buying girl scout cookies and samoa/carmel delights are one of the biggest sellers. Sales are dwindling in this tough economy and girl scout program is dependent on sales for financial support. After all when you buy a box of girl scout cookies you are changing lives not lining pockets of an already wealthy company. I say boycott these fake cookies to show support no matter how good they taste.

  • LG
    March 11, 2011

    They are not new. These have been around for at least a couple of years.

  • Pat
    March 15, 2011

    I recently discovered the Keebler Grasshoppers to be a perfect match to the Thin Mints. Much to my delight, I noticed these Keebler cookies today which taste exactly like Samoas! The package was marked “new” so maybe they roll them out at different times depending on your region. I am in the Pacific NW by the way.

  • Colleen Sadowski
    March 26, 2011

    I am attempting to find Keebler’s Toasted Coconut cookies. (Special Edition). They are delicious.

    I live in St. Paul, Minnesota area. Where can they be purchased?

  • Jason TD
    May 31, 2011

    Colleen, we just bought some at the Target in Richfield.

  • Dave
    June 23, 2011

    I for one am glad these cookies can be bought year round and think it is long overdue. Before the pity parties start their boycott ask yourself if you polled 100 random people and asked them “what do girl scouts do” I bet the response will be 90 percent or higher “they sell cookies”. To me it is a problem that these girls are required to peddle these cookies and it sends the wrong message. I am amazed it took so long for these cookies to be available year round. Now if we can just get chocodiles back on the east coast I will be very happy…

  • D. Heath
    June 26, 2011

    If Girl Scouts wanted cookie sales that bad they would have sold them in my town. I even gave the website my email address so that they could tell me who was selling in my area. I’m pretty sure there are a bunch of complaints to Keebler about this, so they tapped into the market.
    I love these cookies!! I am thankful to Keebler for selling them 🙂

  • JW
    October 11, 2011

    Keebler actually makes Girl Scout cookies. My dad works for Kellogg’s, who owns Keebler; this is how I know. He is always very proud to tell me his company makes them!

  • Mark
    February 14, 2012

    The girl scouts sell their cookies for a limited time and Keebler sells all year. We do buy several boxes from the girl scouts every season, but after that, it’s Keeblers for us. We do like supportring the girl scouts but I’m not going to buy a year’s supply from them.

  • Deal Dishing Mom
    June 6, 2012

    Does anybody remember the cookies Yum Yums? They were made by Sunshine that was bought by Keebler. They made these in the 80’s. They tasted similar to the Samoas and Coconut Dreams, but they were so much better! I hope they bring them back.

  • kim
    February 5, 2013

    i love these coconut dream cookies.. ya they r not the smoas from the girl scouts .. but they tast just like them an i will take they all yr round… better keep maken the coconut dream cookie,,, theres nothen wrong in supporting the girl scouts.. i do support them every yr when i get the chance.. but keebler for the rest of the yr ,, if u havent tryed the keebler brand i suggest ya try them

  • Nmj122179
    August 10, 2013

    I was just eating the Keebler brand and though not exactly the same as what we old timer scouts called Samoas, but now Carmel Delights were yummy but not as thick in size or as large in size as the Girl Scout Trade and staple cookie during cookie season, but still enjoyable! It’s about time they made something almost the same as Samoas!! However being able to eat them year round and not just once a year could be trouble!! Lol. However I wasn’t disappointed with them though not exactly the same. I wish I could find Samoa ice cream. I’ve only seen thin mint ice cream at the grocery stores the past few years.

  • A Former Girl Scout
    August 28, 2013

    I hate these so much! As a former girl scout, I would like to point out that GS cookies are most troops only way of earning money. The reason our cookies are priced so high is that it’s a FUNDRAISER! One of the reasons that we sell so many cookies is that people have to wait all year for them. With these being sold, we sell lees of our cookies. This results in our troops not being able to do so many activities. GS made me grow, and I want other girls to have the same opportunities that I had.
    Sincerely,
    a person sticking to the original cookies

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