About a year ago while out on my favorite 6-mile run, I spotted a brightly colored object off in the distance next to the sidewalk. Since my route went past an elementary school on the same street just a few blocks before, I assumed that one of the kids had dropped a pencil case or a toy from show-and-tell, but I still kept an eye on it as I approached.
When I came within a few yards of the purple rectangular thing, I finally recognized it—and wanted to both laugh and groan at the same time. But my straining muscles hogged all of the oxygen and left none for a chuckle, so instead I shook my head and tried to forget about what I had just seen.
It was a Samoa box—my all-time favorite Girl Scout cookie flavor! Although not a huge fan of coconut, there’s something about that thick layer of sweet caramel that’s so addictive… And the chocolate drizzle on top and coating on the bottom just makes those cookies even more irresistible!
Of course, that little sighting happened just a few days after I had resolved not to buy any Samoas in 2015 because I knew I’d be much too tempted to eat the whole box in one sitting.
I tried not to think about those cookies when I passed by the empty box again on my way back home, and I distracted myself with an extra square of dark chocolate that afternoon. Yet two days later when I headed out for my next run, the box still lay next to the sidewalk, abandoned and just as tempting… And again two days later… And again… And again… For the next month and a half!
Since then, I’ve both moved and changed my regular exercise routines (thanks to many of the ladies following me on Instagram who introduced me to BBG!), but I still find those cookies just as addictive as ever… So to prevent myself from buying a box from those cute little Girl Scouts every time I visit the grocery store, I baked these Healthy Samoa Cookie Scones instead!
It’s basically like eating cookies for breakfast—but without any guilt!
These healthier scones start with white whole wheat flour. White whole wheat flour comes from finely grinding a special type of white wheat, whereas regular whole wheat flour is made from a heartier red wheat. This gives white whole wheat flour a lighter taste and texture, very similar to that of all-purpose flour, but it retains all of the same health benefits as regular whole wheat flour.
Note: Whole wheat pastry flour is a perfect substitute! And if you prefer to make your scones gluten-free, I included my favorite blend in the Notes section beneath the Instructions.
Although most traditional recipes include a full stick or two of butter plus lots of heavy cream (my waistline is crying at the thought of all of those calories!), this lighter version requires just 2 tablespoons of butter. Yes, that’s right! The rest of their tender texture comes from my favorite ingredient in healthier baking: Greek yogurt. Greek yogurt provides the same moisture as extra butter and heavy cream for a fraction of the calories, and it gives your scones a protein boost too!
Remember the two-ingredient caramel sauce recipe I shared with you last week? That’s what we’re using to sweeten these scones! You’ll also drizzle some on top of the pastries once they’ve cooled to make that caramel flavor really shine. It’s the best part of those Samoa cookies!
As for the other Samoa flavors, you’ll add both unsweetened shredded coconut and coconut extract to the scone dough. You can find coconut extract on the baking aisle near the vanilla extract, and it’s relatively inexpensive. It’s also shelf-stable and keeps for ages, and you can use it in recipes of mine like this, these, this, or these too. And of course, don’t forget the dark chocolate drizzle on top! (Feel free to add a little extra, if you’re a chocoholic like me!)
A healthy breakfast that tastes like cookies? Life doesn’t get much better than this! And after you make these scones, leave me a comment to tell me what you think—or share a picture with me on Instagram! I’d love to see them!
| Healthy Samoa Cookie Scones | | Print |
- for the scones
- 1 ½ cups (150g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp (28g) unsalted butter, very cold and cubed
- ½ cup (120g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 6 tbsp (90mL) homemade two-ingredient caramel sauce
- 2 tbsp + 2 tsp (40mL) nonfat milk, divided
- ¾ tsp coconut extract
- 2 tbsp (10g) shredded unsweetened coconut
- for the drizzles
- 1 tbsp (5g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 ½ tsp honey
- 1 ½ tsp nonfat milk
- 2 tbsp (30mL) homemade two-ingredient caramel sauce
- Preheat the oven to 425°F, and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or the back of a fork until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Stir in the Greek yogurt, caramel sauce, 2 tablespoons of milk, and coconut extract. Fold in the shredded coconut.
- Shape the dough into a ¾” tall circle on the prepared baking sheet, and brush with the remaining milk. Slice the circle into 8 triangular segments with a sharp knife. Bake at 425°F for 14-17 minutes, or until the tops are lightly golden. Cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- To make the chocolate drizzle, stir together the cocoa powder, honey, and milk in a small bowl. Transfer the mixture to a zip-topped bag, and cut off a tiny piece of one corner. Add the caramel sauce to a separate zip-topped bag, and cut off a tiny piece of one of that bag’s corners. Just before serving, drizzle both the chocolate and caramel sauces on top of the scones.
Whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour. Regular whole wheat flour may be substituted in a pinch, but the scones will have a more wheat-y flavor, which will mask some of the coconut.
In a pinch, solid-state coconut oil may be substituted for the butter, but I warn against doing this, if at all possible, because the scones’ texture won’t be quite the same.
If you haven’t made the two-ingredient caramel sauce, 3 tablespoons of pure maple syrup, honey, or agave may be substituted for it in the scone dough.
Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.
Vanilla extract may be substituted for the coconut extract, but the scones will have a much subtler coconut taste.
Pure maple syrup or agave may be substituted for the honey in the dark chocolate drizzle.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low calorie}
Ohhh man, those girlscout cookies are TORTURE!! These scones look SO GOOD.
Thanks Brittany! It’s probably a good thing that they only sell those cookies for a few months out of the year… 😉
Girl Scout cookies are so tasty, yet so bad for you. I’m super fond of the thin mints. These Samoa cookie scones look wonderful, and I really like how you incorporated the date caramel.
Thanks Elaine! 🙂
Hi Amy 🙂
I just want you to know how much of an inspiration you are! My daughter “Madie” lives with the challenges of Autism as well as a very slow metabolism due to birth defects of her digestive system.(she is a full figured 15 year old) She has an extreme love of baking, however has been limited due to trouble finding healthy recipes that are both fun and tasty . We truly found the best of both worlds with your site through Facebook! Thank you for sharing your wonderful recipes! Madie hopes to someday become a professional Baker 🙂
Oh my goodness Angela, I’m absolutely touched! Thank you so much for sharing your daughter’s story with me. I’m incredibly glad that you found my blog on Facebook and that my recipes can fit into her diet. That means the world to me! 🙂 I’m really excited to hear what you try next!
We are excited too Amy!..and will be sure to stay in touch 🙂
Wonderful, I can’t wait Angela! 🙂
We are baking up your wonderful healthy carrot cake for Easter Amy! So excited to try it 🙂
I’m so touched Angela! I’m excited to hear what you think of it! 🙂
I love any-type of scone.. and these samoa cookie scones just look and sound SO delicious. Such a unique flavour combination.
Thank you Thalia! 🙂
Can I use coconut flour?
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe, Jan! Coconut flour won’t work in these scones. It makes the dough much too dry and crumbly. However, I’ve already included my top gluten-free recommendation in the Notes section of the recipe (located directly underneath the Instructions), if that’s your main concern!
But if you’re mainly looking to use coconut flour in a recipe, then you can find my recipes that already call for coconut flour here. (I don’t recommend using it in my recipes unless explicitly called for because it behaves so differently than any other flour, which means it often drastically changes the taste and/or texture.)
I’d love to hear what you think of these scones if you try making them — or any of my coconut flour recipes!