Every year, the Girl Scouts launch their fundraising cookie sale to raise money both for local troops and for the regional Girl Scout councils. Some cookies have been included in the sale for decades, such as the Trefoil shortbread cookies and Thin Mints, but new cookie are also added to the lineup every year, often reflecting the food trends of the rest of the country. This year, the lineup includes the first gluten free cookie option from the Girl Scouts, Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies. The cookies are made with “real chocolate chips and real butter,” and contain no artificial flavors, colors, or high fructose corn syrup. Unlike other Girl Scout cookies, these will not be available in traditional boxes, but will be sold in resealable foil pouches. The pouches make it very clear that these cookies are different from the rest of the lineup, so there won’t be any confusion with the gluten free and traditional cookies.
With so many people interested in eating Gluten Free, both for health reasons and fad-diet reasons, these cookies should appeal to a large group of cookie lovers and are likely to be more popular than the vitamin-boosted cookies from last year that didn’t make it back to the sale in 2014. The gluten free cookies are only going to be available in some markets this year, though if they are popular it is likely that the Girl Scouts will keep them on the list for next cookie season, as well. You’ll be able to find them easily if one of the following is your nearest Girl Scout Council:
- Girl Scouts of California’s Central Coast
- Girl Scouts of Central California South
- Girl Scouts of Central Maryland
- Girl Scouts of Citrus
- Girl Scouts of Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois
- Girl Scouts of Eastern Massachusetts
- Girl Scouts of Eastern Pennsylvania
- Girl Scouts of Heart of Central California
- Girl Scouts of Maine
- Girl Scouts of Minnesota Wisconsin Lakes & Pines
- Girl Scouts of North Carolina Coastal Pines
- Girl Scouts of Orange County
- Girl Scouts of Carolinas Peaks to PiedmontÂ
- Girl Scouts of San Gorgonio
- Girl Scouts of San Jacinto
- Girl Scouts of Southern Nevada
- Girl Scouts of Virginia Skyline
- Girl Scouts of Western NY
- Girl Scouts of Wisconsin Badgerland
- Girl Scouts of Wisconsin Southeast
Valerie
January 21, 2014I was buying some Thin Mints from the Girl Scouts outside the grocery store over the weekend when I heard one of the moms remark that they’d only sold a couple pouches of the g-free cookies (overall, not just that day), which I found kind of interesting. They were more expensive than the “traditional” cookies — $4/pouch instead of the usual $3.50/box.
RAnn
January 21, 2014A couple of quick corrections: It is Girl Scouts of the USA, not Girl Scouts of America. Also, the cookie sale supports troops and local councils. The national organization profits only indirectly, through licensing fees.
Nicole
January 21, 2014Valerie – Good to know! I didn’t know that there was a price difference between the types!
RAnn – Thanks for the correction. Most of the sales benefit the local councils and I updated the post to reflect that (roughly 50% for local councils, 10% for the individual troops according to GS statistics).
Shikha @ Shikha la mode
January 22, 2014Wow, this is good to know! I’m gluten-sensitive so I love knowing this!
Lillian | Sweets by Sillianah
January 22, 2014oh, I wish my two nieces (one in NYC, one in FL) were selling these gluten-free cookies! Stinks that it’s limited to certain regions. I wonder why…
Nancy Macy
January 23, 2014Wish gluten free were in Ohio and Indiana
Candi Wetzel
January 23, 2014Just wondering if these are made in a factory with other cookies that contain gluten? Cross.contamination is a big issue.
Jennifer Burgy
January 25, 2014Ohio please! My mother cant have Gluten but placed an order anyway to send to the troops! We were so happy to hear this news, as I tried and tried to find a way to contact your baking company….
Katy
January 25, 2014Candi – looking at the ingredients list, they appear to be identical to Udi’s GF CCCs that are sold commerically. So I wonder if they’ve partnered with Udi’s to offer these under GS packaging? The nutrition facts state “Made in a facility that processes soy, tree nuts, and peanuts”, so they appear to be processed separately from regular GS cookies. http://www.abcsmartcookies.com/gf-cookie-councils and http://www.abcsmartcookies.com/gluten-free-chocolate-chip-shortbread . Hope that helps!