Discontinued Girl Scout Cookies You'll Sadly Never Eat Again
Girl Scout cookie season is the best time of the year. Girl Scouts adorned in badge-covered vests flock to supermarkets and hardware stores to peddle their colorful boxes of delicious seasonal cookies. Girl Scouts have raised money through bake sales since 1917, with commercial production beginning in the 1930s (via History). Since then, the organization has gone on to sell several types cookies, with a few staple flavors at its core. Girl Scout cookies are a category of treats all on their own, and not just because they're elusive (and kind of pricey). The allure is that you can't just go to the store and pick up a box of Thin Mints — typically, you have to serendipitously run into a Girl Scout Cookie display and enter into a spontaneous shopping spree with reckless abandon.
In the decades that the Girl Scouts have been selling cookies, many boxes have come and gone. Over the years, we've all discovered our go-tos, and there is often collective outrage whenever the Girl Scouts decide to discontinue a fan-favorite cookie. Sure, options like Trefoils (also called Shortbread, depending on location) and Thin Mints are always available. However, many other beloved cookies have gone by the wayside, and it seems like some may never make a return. We rounded up 20 Girl Scout cookies that have likely been discontinued for good. There's always a chance we're wrong, but these cookies seem like they are gone forever — though never forgotten.
Thanks-A-Lot cookies were a delicious embodiment of the spirit of the Girl Scouts. The organization is all about being kind, helping others, and celebrating diversity, much like the appreciative cookies. Thanks-A-Lots weren't too fancy — simply shortbread cookies coated in fudge. The novelty came in the design, as each cookie had "thank you" carved on the front in one of five languages. Aside from English, the cookies also shared messages of gratitude in French, Spanish, Swahili, and Mandarin Chinese (via Girl Scout Cookies Fandom).
Thanks-A-Lots were retired relatively recently. They were taken off of the Girl Scout cookie roster in 2021 after being in rotation for 15 years (via Caller). And fans of the cookie weren't happy to find out it isn't available for sale any more. One Girl Scout troop even made a Change.org petition asking the organization to bring back the cookie, claiming that Thanks-A-Lots were one of the troop's best-selling boxes. Time will tell if these calls to action will work or if Thanks-A-Lot will just become a faded memory.
Olé Olé cookies were one of the Girl Scouts' many attempts to create healthier cookie options for their customers to try and expand the pool of people buying boxes. The reduced-fat cookies were on the market from 2001 to 2003, according to Little Brownie Bakers, one of the official cookie bakers for the Girl Scouts. They were small vanilla cookies mixed with pecan chips and coconut pieces and dusted with powdered sugar. Olé Olés were seemingly inspired by Mexican wedding cookies, but the addition of coconut added a tropical vibe to the confection that typically has stand-out flavors of nuts and vanilla.
Many Girl Scout cookie fans may have moved on after the loss of Olé Olés years ago, while others are still looking for a suitable replacement for their forgotten favorite. One Reddit user asked for a copycat recipe of the long lost cookie so they can recreate it at home. "I loved them as a kid ... I always hoped that they would come back," the Reddit user added.
Chocolate isn't always a key ingredient in Girl Scout cookies, but when it's incorporated thoughtfully, it tends to knock it out of the park. The Girl Scouts used to sell a chocolate lover's dream in the form of Double Dutch cookies, which debuted in 2004 (via Little Brownie Bakers). It was basically your run-of-the-mill double chocolate chip cookie. The Double Dutch featured a mix of milk chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate to add to its richness, making it almost resemble a dense and chewy brownie.
Even though the Double Dutch hasn't been for sale since the mid-2000s, it's pretty easy to find a copycat recipe to make a version of it at home. The Cookie Tin has a dupe for the Double Dutch featuring a combination of cocoa powder and chocolate chips. And here at Mashed, we have a pretty stellar double-chocolate chip cookie recipe that will scratch the same itch.
It seems as though the Girl Scouts have featured some sort of lemon-flavored cookie since the dawn of the business, and the Lemon Chalet Cremes were arguably one of the best iterations. These cookies were originally introduced in the late 1980s under another name — Cabana Cremes. Girl Scouts also introduced sugar-free and reduced-fat renditions of the sandwich cookie via Little Brownie Bakers).
While it fell out of rotation in the late '90s, in 2007, it made a comeback when bakers took out the vanilla cream to create the Lemon Chalet Cremes, which were around until 2011, before being replaced by the Savannah Smiles as the organization's featured lemon cookie (via Girl Scout Cookies Fandom). Lemon Chalet Cremes were sold in various shapes, both round and rectangle. They featured two vanilla cinnamon cookies carved with images of the first Girl Scout international World Center, based in Switzerland, that sandwiched the zesty lemon cream in the middle .
Girl Scout cookies tend to have cute and cheeky names, which may be why the Snaps cookie didn't see major success among its competitors. The concept of the cookie was a little half-baked, too. It was a low-fat oatmeal and raisin cookie with a light, sweet icing (via The Cookie Tin). If it weren't for the icing, this cookie would be desperately lacking in flavor despite its satisfying crunch. Snaps were only around from 1994 to 1997, so they didn't last long at all (via Little Brownie Bakers).
Because they are so basic, it's safe to bet that Snaps aren't at the top of the list of cookies that the organization would consider resurrecting from the Girl Scout cookie graveyard. If we are proven wrong, the bakers should at least consider another complimentary ingredient to enhance the flavor of the cookie, as well as improve a bit on the texture so that it isn't so one-note.
Van'Chos may sound like an interesting creation resembling a plate of dessert nachos, but it was actually the name for a combo of chocolate and vanilla sandwich cookies from the early days of Girl Scouts' cookie-selling business. According to Little Brownie Bakers, Van'Chos made their debut in 1974 and lasted until 1983, which is a notable run. The name comes from a mashup of the words vanilla and chocolate, which is pretty straightforward. A box came with two sleeves of cookies, one featuring chocolate sandwich cookies and the other with vanilla. Both flavors featured a vanilla cream filling, definitely meant for licking (via Washington Post).
It kinda seems like the Girl Scouts' version of dual-flavored Oreos, which is probably why Van'Chos won't make a comeback. Oreos have perfected the chocolate sandwich cookie, so the Girl Scouts would be competing with a year-round staple. Now, if they made a sandwich cookie out of Thin Mints, they might have a better chance of breaking into the market.
The Girls Scouts have sold two different types of cookies under the name Dulce de Leche, both highlighting the caramel ingredient that's a staple in Latin American desserts (via Buy Girl Scout Cookies). The first iteration of Dulce de Leche came in 2008, and featured a vanilla cookie with dulce de leche chips and drizzled with more melted dulce de leche. Those cookies were only around for a year until a new, smaller version came out. The base of the cookie was the same, but the new recipe omitted that delicious drizzle on the top.
The second batch of bite-sized Girl Scout Dulce de Leche cookies stayed on the market until 2014 (via Little Brownie Bakers). It's unlikely that these will make a comeback considering Girl Scouts currently sell currently sell their Toffee-tastic cookies, which channel that caramel flavor and even look similar to the second version of the Dulce de Leche cookies.
It's hard to imagine the Girl Scouts selling a snack other than cookies, but the organization tried to make it happen back in the 1980s when they introduced Golden Yangles (via Girl Scouts Make History). Golden Yangles were not a sugary sweet baked good like the rest of Girl Scouts lineup before and after their debut. Instead, these snacks inside a bright blue box were triangle-shaped crackers loaded with cheese flavor. It was like a knock-off version of a Goldfish cracker or a Cheez-It, but less exciting.
Considering the competition, Golden Yangles were apparently only sold for a few years. If you're dying to get your hand on a box, there is a vintage half-full carton selling on eBay for $60 as of August 2022, because Girl Scouts probably won't bring this one back ever. It makes sense that the organization would be curious about whether or not venturing into selling savory snacks would boost sales. However, it seems like a one-and-done experiment that shouldn't be repeated again.
Juliettes is a name that the Girl Scouts decided to attribute to two totally different types of cookies sold at different periods of time. The cookies got their name after the founder of Girl Scouts — Juliette Gordon Low (via Food Network). Even though they have a legendary name, it seems unlikely that this cookie with an identity crisis would make a return. And if it did, which version would it be?
The first Juliettes were introduced in 1984 and featured two sleeves of daisy-shaped shortbread cookies that were probably similar to Trefoils. To make these treats interesting, each box featured two different flavor profiles. One row of cookies had a lemon coating on the bottom while the other had a pecan-praline coating (via Little Brownie Bakers). They were only sold for a year. Then, in the 1990s, the Juliettes reappeared as a caramel and pecan cookie coated with chocolate fudge. The second version paid homage to the pecan-praline row of the original cookie, which makes sense considering a lemon-flavored cookie was already a mainstay by that time, according to the Little Brownie Bakers' timeline.
Raisins aren't as glamorous of a baking ingredient as chocolate or nuts, so it's not a shock that a Girl Scout cookie centered around the ingredient wasn't a massive hit among die-hard cookie customers. Rah-Rah Raisins might still be a memorable discontinued cookie, though, since they only left the market in 2016. The recipe resulted in an oatmeal cookie with greek yogurt chips and raisins mixed throughout (via Girl Scouts).
At the end of the day, it's an oatmeal raisin cookie that sounds like its made even healthier with the addition of yogurt chips — and health isn't always the number one factor people are considering when buying Girl Scout cookies. Why buy a box of Rah-Rah Raisins when you could just purchase a second box of Thin Mints or some more Samoas? It's basic dessert lover logic, and Girl Scouts clearly learned that when they discontinued this flavor.
Girl Scouts got a little creative when naming the short-lived Iced Berry Piñata cookies, as the treats didn't resemble a traditional, animal-shaped birthday party activity fueled by candy and adrenaline. The idea behind the name seems to be a way to describe the sugar cookies that were "filled" with strawberry jam like a piñata is filled with treats (via Girl Scouts of Blackhawk). Iced Berry Piñatas also had white icing and cinnamon crumbles to add even more sweetness, making these cookies almost resemble strawberry pie or danishes.
Iced Berry Piñatas were only sold from 2003 to 2005, per Eat This, Not That, and it's not clear what's behind their short shelf life. But it's been almost two decades since these cookies were up for sale, and it seems unlikely they'd be a priority for the Girl Scouts to bring back anytime soon.
Girl Scout cookies that last more than one season of cookie sales tend to follow relatively predictable parameters. Lemon or peanut butter are always a safe bet for flavor profiles, and sandwich cookies or cookies dunked in chocolate never get old. The Girl Scout cookie bakers seemed to go really out-of-the-box in 2013 when they debuted the Mango Crème cookies in partnership with NutriFusion (via Girl Scout Cookies Fandom).
Mango Crèmes featured two vanilla coconut cookies with mango-flavored cream sandwiched in between. Working with NutriFusion was the Girl Scouts way of incorporating more vitamins and minerals into one of their sugary treats. The nutrients were derived from "rehydrated apples, oranges, cranberries, pomegranates, limes, strawberries, and shiitake mushrooms" (via Gothamist). It wasn't a bad tropical-inspired cookie, but this was a limited time item. It makes sense that something so unusual for Girl Scouts would be one and done after just one season on the roster.
Girl Scouts also love trying to make pecan and caramel flavored cookies a hit, such as the organization's Golden Nut Clusters from the early 1990s. These cookies featured a mixture of chewy caramel and crunchy pecans on a thin cookie with a maple coating, which makes the recipe stand out from other cookies with similar flavor profiles (via Candace Lately).
Golden Nut Clusters were also extremely chewy, almost like a Payday candy bar. And treats that get stuck in your teeth and require you to eat alongside a toothpick can be a major drawback for some people. On top of that, to give the snack some staying power, the name could probably have been improved upon, as well as the appearance of these pale blob-like treats. It doesn't sound like Golden Nut Clusters were the worst idea that the Girl Scouts ever came up with, just not an idea worth spending energy to revisit in the future.
Girl Scouts have tried many ways to make a health-conscious cookie happen, like in 2008 when they debuted a cinnamon roll-flavored cookie in 100-calorie packs. Cinna-Spins were spiral cookies that were crunchy and full of cinnamon flavor. The idea for the cookie was solid, as a cinnamon roll and cookie mashup seems like a natural best-seller (via New York Post). However, the Cinna-Spins only lasted about a year and it's unclear why these cookies were discontinued (via Distractify).
Cinna-Spins were sold in five 100-calorie packs that contained just 15 cookies each (via WFMY News 2). It seems like counterproductive to try to bank on selling desserts to people counting calories, which is likely while we'll never see the low-cal Cinna-Spins on Girl Scout Cookie displays ever again. It wouldn't be a bad idea for the troops to bring back the idea without the emphasis on calories, maybe even finding a way to incorporate some tasty white sugar icing on top. We bet that recipe won't result in 15 cookies that total just 100 calories, but it would undoubtedly be tasty.
At the start of the new millennium, the folks responsible for creating Girl Scout Cookies got some inspiration from Hawaii with the Aloha Chips. Tropically named Aloha Chips were the Girl Scout's version of a buttery cookie with white chocolate chips and macadamia nuts (via Little Brownie Bakers. They were introduced as a replacement for Le Chips, a milk chocolate and hazelnut version of Aloha Chips (via The Washington Post). Even though the recipe for Aloha Chips was basic, the cookie stuck around until 2004 and gained a steady fanbase along the way.
But the Girl Scouts have learned over the decades that basic doesn't cut it. If they make a cookie that is widely available elsewhere and all year long, it has much less of a chance of becoming a cult favorite. Aloha Chips were not bad by any means, but they seemingly weren't unique enough to stand the test of time like Samoas or Thin Mints.
Kookaburra cookies are a relic of the Girl Scouts' past that probably wouldn't even classify as a cookie by today's standards. These rectangle-shaped treats were available in the 1970s and 1980s, and were called cookie bars on the box rather than just cookies. A Kookaburra sounds like a mashup between a Rice Krispies Treat, a Kit Kat, and a Twix bar, but also a thing of its own.
Kookaburras featured crispy rice layered with caramel and dipped in chocolate, and they were distinctly chewy and rich (via Phoenix New Times). They were previously a staple box for those Girl Scouts from a few generations ago, but likely wouldn't be unique enough to fit in with the stacked cookie lineup today. It's giving major candy bar vibes, which doesn't fit in well with the current selection of Girl Scout cookies. Plus, the ambiguous name doesn't fit in with treats like Adventurefuls or Raspberry Rallys, which are more playful.
Le Chips are one of the more memorable Girl Scout cookies from the mid-1990s, even though they only lasted a year and never made a comeback after they went into retirement. The interestingly named treat was an oatmeal cookie with chocolate chips and pieces of hazelnuts and dipped in melted chocolate on the bottom (via Little Brownie Bakers).
Le Chips were truly delicious cookies that probably should have lasted longer on the market. However, the Girl Scouts seem to like to rotate the way they serve an oatmeal cookie with fun mix-ins. We've seen a few iterations of it on this list alone, but Le Chip was arguably one of the best. Luckily, it's not a hard recipe to replicate at home, or at least get close to it, if it sounds like the one Girl Scout cookie you are most disappointed to not get to try. You could start with our recipe for the best hazelnut chocolate chip cookies.
Another lemon cookie that may never make a comeback for Girl Scouts was the short-lived Lemon Drop cookie. It was a buttery lemon cookie with lemon chips mixed in, which is out of the ordinary but also packs a bold expression of the tangy flavor. Lemon Drops were first introduced in 1998 and discontinued just one year later (via Little Brownie Bakers). It seems that these lemon cookies just couldn't stand up to other lemon-based recipes the Girl Scouts have sold over the years.
It is interesting because in 2022, Girl Scouts are selling are selling a cookie very similar to the Lemon Drops, but with a slightly different recipe. Called Lemon Ups, the new lemon-flavored cookies don't contain lemon pieces like their predecessor, but they are marked with inspiring messages like "I am a leader" that are supposed to help bring a smile to your face (via Little Brownie Bakers).
It seems likely that if one lemon Girl Scout cookie were to ever make a comeback one day, it would be the Savannah Smiles. These lemon wedge cookies coated in powdered sugar are one of the most beloved discontinued cookies on the list, maybe even among all Girl Scout cookie flavors out there. They were introduced to the cookie lineup in 2011, in honor of the 100th anniversary of Girl Scouts (via Little Brownie Bakers). The sugar-dusted treats were named after Savannah, Georgia, the birthplace of the Girl Scouts organization, and were shaped like the smiles of all the Girl Scouts who are apart of the community, honoring the organization's Brownie Smile Song.
Savannah Smiles went out of rotation in 2019, which is an impressive run. And many hope that one day soon the cookies will make a return, and bring smiles back to so many fans of the sweet lemony bites.
Another oatmeal recipe that likely won't be back on the Girl Scouts' cookie catalog is the Upside-Downs. In the late 1990s, the Girl Scouts sold these frosted oatmeal cookies — said to be like the organization's take on the Little Debbie's Oatmeal Cream pie, but with a much crunchier texture that is pretty distinct with many Girl Scout cookie varieties (via Cafe Mom).
The oatmeal cookie was crunchy with an intricate lattice pattern and each one was dipped in frosting on the bottom, giving the cookies their silly name. If you ask us, the cookies remind us a little of the Girl Scouts attempt at Snaps. Unfortunately, much Snaps, the Upside-Downs didn't last long, though it's not totally clear exactly when they were removed from the lineup and why. Perhaps that's because no one is thinking back on this forgotten box, so we're betting it is unlikely they will make a comeback.