No Bake Mint Thin Cookies

Dear Pinterest,

You don’t know me.  But I think I know about all I need to about you.

On the surface, you seem innocent enough.  Lots of pretty pictures and inspiration swirling around like so many feathery party garlands, all for the taking.  Motivational quotes to help us be the people we imagine ourselves to be in our minds?  Got it.  Crafts to enrich our child’s young life experience?  Check.  Recipes that make us drool over their simplicity and perfection?  Roger.

In short, you’re too good to be true.

I submit the following:

1. It took Google .27 seconds to return about 40,600,000 results when I searched “pinterest fail”.
2. I just lost something like 30 minutes clicking on a few dozen of those 40,600,000 results.
3. Websites the likes of Pinstrocity, Epic Pinterest Fail, and Pintester would not be relevant if our attempts to recreate these pins were successful more than they failed.
4. Those perfectly styled photos are just that….perfectly styled.  They aren’t real life.
5. Common sense says that if something is too good to be true, it probably isn’t true.

So Pinterest, as easy as it is to buy into the idea of a picture perfect life being only a click away, I’m going to keep living the life that says sometimes you have to give up on the idea of perfect and get your hands covered in some chocolate.

No Bake Minty Thin Cookies

Adapted from Top With Cinnamon

BAH Note: You don’t have to temper your chocolate but tempered chocolate will set up firm at room temperature and not need refrigeration.  And if you have a food processor…there’s no reason not to temper it.  Top With Cinnamon will show you how.  Clicky here for a lovely tutorial on the easiest method for tempering your chocolate.

I found it annoying to separate the cookies and scrape the filling.  Not to mention this resulted in lots of broken cookie bits that went into my mouth.  Yes, the “thin” part of the title is achieved by separating the cookie but the goal of chocolate coated cookies is easier to achieve if you leave the cookies whole.  You choose the approach you like best.

Oh, and I eventually gave up on dipping the cookies in the chocolate and letting the excess drip off.  My solution was to use a silicon pastry brush to slather a layer of chocolate coating all over the cookie.  It didn’t result in as thick a layer of chocolate but it also didn’t make me cry in frustration.

• 30 to 40 Oreo cookies (if separating the Oreos, use 15 to 20)
• 7 to 10 ounces bittersweet chocolate
• 1 teaspoon mint extract

Line two sheet pans with parchment paper.

Separate the Oreo cookie halves, if you choose to.  If using halves, scrape the cream filling off the cookies.  Place the cookies on one of the sheet pans.

Melt and/or temper your chocolate.  Add the mint extract and stir it into the chocolate.

Dip the cookies into the melted chocolate using a fork (turning to coat both sides) or paint the cookies with the melted chocolate using a pastry brush.  Transfer the coated cookies to the other cookie sheet.  Allow the chocolate to set up (room temp for tempered or in the fridge for melted).  Store cookies in an airtight container.

{printable recipe}