It's that time of year when your waistline is constantly being threatened by Thin Mints and Caramel deLites. It's hard to imagine a time before Girl Scouts across America held their famous cookie sales, and in fact the sale had been around for almost 40 years before most of the classic cookie flavors were introduced.
The first cookie sale took place at a local high school in Muskogee, Oklahoma way back in 1917 - which makes this year the 100th anniversary of this tasty tradition.
To celebrate, we've uncovered an edible artifact from the Girl Scouts archive: the first recorded recipe for Girl Scout cookies.
We don't know what type of cookie was sold at that first bake sale in Muskogee, but in 1922 this recipe was included in an issue of The American Girl, the organization's magazine.
These cookies were made by the scouts, packaged in wax paper by hand and sold at 25 cents for a dozen, which is a steal considering a box nowadays will cost you $5.
Here's the recipe in case you have trouble reading the clipping:
Makes six to seven dozen
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 tbsp. milk
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
Cream butter and sugar; add well-beaten eggs, then milk, flavoring, flour and baking powder. Roll thin and bake in quick oven. (Sprinkle sugar on top.)
For a modern (safer) take on this recipe, be sure to refrigerate your batter before rolling and cutting it. Your cookies should bake at 375° for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges turn brown.
You won't get a badge for making these cookies, but they're tasty!
