Giant Samoas Cookie Cake

Turn your favorite Girl Scout cookie into a cake with a family favorite recipe for a Giant Samoas Cookie Cake.

Not to be dramatic, but I might have to hang up my apron after this one.

I just don’t know how it’s ever going to get any better than a Giant Samoas Cookie Cake. I repeat: GIANT Samoas Cookie Cake.

It’s everything you’ve ever hoped and longed for when it comes to supersized desserts: a buttery shortbread cookie base slathered in chocolate on one side, topped with caramel-coated coconut on the other and drizzled with even more chocolate.

It is a Samoas Girl Scout cookie… in gigantic form.

We’ve been down this road one time before with the ever-so-popular Homemade Samoas Girl Scout Cookies recipe.

They are a labor of love and well worth the effort, but I thought it was about time we ditched the cookie cutter and embraced that big is always beautiful, especially when it comes to cookies-turned-cookie-cakes.

Much like the classic cookie, this sweet treat starts with a simple shortbread dough that’s mixed, chilled, rolled and then fashioned into a big ol’ circle.

Once baked and cooled, it’s then brushed with melted chocolate to form the bottom side of the cookie cake.

While the chocolate hardens, toasted coconut gets a glorious bath in caramel sauce until it’s well coated.

Then all that’s left to do is pile the coconut onto the cookie cake and finish it off with the iconic chocolate stripes.

Slice the cookie cake into wedges then get ready to savor buttery, chewy, coconutty, chocolatey perfection that has become the #1 Most Requested Dessert in our house, by my husband and the boys alike!

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Dessert

Giant Samoas Cookie Cake

Turn your favorite Girl Scout cookie into a cake with a family favorite recipe for a Giant Samoas Cookie Cake.

5 from 1 vote

Prep Time 30 mins

Cook Time 25 mins

Total Time 55 mins

Servings 12 servings

Print Recipe

Ingredients 

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For the cookie base:

• ▢ 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temp
• ▢ 1/2 cup sugar
• ▢ 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• ▢ 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon salt

For the toppings:

• ▢ 2 cups chocolate chips or chocolate candy melts
• ▢ 3 1/2 cups shredded sweetened coconut
• ▢ 15 oz. store-bought soft caramels, such as Werther's
• ▢ 3 Tablespoons milk

Instructions 

Make the cookie base:

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and beat until combined.
• Add the flour and salt and beat just until the dough comes together into a ball. Scrape the dough from the bowl and press it together into a large disc. Wrap the disc securely in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 1 hour.
• Lightly flour your work surface and preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat baking mat.
• Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough into a circle until it’s 1/4-inch thick then transfer it onto the prepared baking sheet. 
• Using a sharp knife, carefully trim around the edges as needed to round out the circle then cut a smaller circle out of the center that’s roughly 4 inches in diameter. (Alternately, you can leave the center of the cake intact.)
• Bake the cookie cake for 16 to 20 minutes or until it is pale golden. Remove it from the oven and let it cool completely.

Make the toppings:

• Melt the chocolate chips until they are smooth. 
• Brush the entire surface of the cookie cake with the melted chocolate and reserve any leftover for drizzling. Allow the chocolate on the cookie cake to harden (at room temp or in the fridge) then invert the cookie so that the chocolate portion is on the bottom. 
• Toast the coconut by spreading it onto a baking sheet and baking it for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently, as coconut will burn quickly. Add the toasted coconut to a large bowl.
• In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, cook the caramels and milk until they are melted and smooth, stirring as needed. Brush the top of the cookie (the non-chocolate side) with a portion of the melted caramel, then pour the remainder of the caramel over the toasted coconut, stirring until the coconut is well coated. Working quickly, press the caramel-coated coconut on top of the cookie cake.  
• Drizzle the cookie cake with the remaining melted chocolate and let it sit until the chocolate has fully hardened.
• Slice and serve.  

Kelly’s Note:

• The cookie portion of the recipe can be made a day in advance and stored, covered in plastic wrap, at room temp. The toppings can be prepared on the day of serving, however the coconut and caramel mixture will harden quickly, so do not combine it in advance. 
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