Almost every year, I forget to order and purchase Girl Scout Cookies when they are annually available. Like many other people, I am particularly fond of the Girl Scout Thin Mints. The daughter of one of my landlords is a Girl Scout and she usually sells some of her cookies every year in her father’s office.
When I stopped in at my friend’s office today, the last box of this year’s Thin Mints was positioned on a counter, just inches from where I was standing. Since I missed out on eating any thin mint cookies last year, I decided to purchase the box on the counter.
A few nights earlier I had purchased a package of Pepperidge Farm Milano Mint Chocolate Cookies at CVS Pharmacy. That was the second package of mint Milano cookies I had purchased in the past couple of weeks.
When I realized that there were two different brands and types of chocolate/mint cookies on hand, I decided to write a comparison article of the two products.
Presented here in an effort to assist the consumer, is one chocolate/mint lover’s comparison of Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookies and Pepperidge Farm Milano Mint Chocolate Cookies.
Size / Shape
Each Pepperidge Farm Milano Mint Chocolate Cookie measures in at 2.5″ x 1″. Each Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookie is 1.5″ inches across.
Have Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookies become smaller over the years? In my memory, the thin mint cookies seem larger than their current actual size.
The net weight of the standard-sized box of Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookies is nine ounces. According the product’s nutrition facts label, the box holds about eight 4-cookie servings. .
The net weight of the standard-sized box of Pepperidge Farm Milano Mint Chocolate Cookies is seven ounces. The package holds about eight 2-cookie servings.
Price
The price that I paid for one nine ounce package of Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookies was $4.
The regular retail price charged for one seven ounce package of Pepperidge Farm Milano Mint Chocolate Cookies at Hartford, Connecticut area food stores varies. Normally, I purchase these cookies at the CVS Pharmacy located across the street from my apartment, where the regular retail price is $3.69 per package.
Texture / Consistency
The Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookies and the Pepperidge Farm Milano Mint Chocolate Cookies are both lightly textured, with a little bit of ‘snap’ offered when they are bitten into. Of the two varieties, the Milano cookies are more delicate and the Girl Scout cookies are a little denser with their chocolaty coating.
Nutritional Facts
Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookies contain 160 calories with 70 calories from fat, per four cookie serving. These cookies also contain 5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams trans fat, 8 grams total fat, 125 mg of sodium, 0 mg of cholesterol, 22 grams total carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of dietary fiber, 10 grams of sugars and 1 gram of protein per four cookie serving.
Pepperidge Farm Milano Mint Chocolate Cookies contain 130 calories with 70 calories from fat, per two cookie serving.These cookies also contain 4 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams trans fat, 7 grams total fat, 35 mg of sodium, less than 5 mg of cholesterol, 16 grams total carbohydrates, less than 1 gram of dietary fiber, 9 grams of sugars and 1 gram of protein per two cookie serving.
Taste / Flavor
The flavor combination of chocolate and mint is one of my favorite taste combos. Although each of these varieties of cookies contains chocolate and mint, their flavors are very different from each other.
The Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookies feature a bold and pronounced combination of chocolate and mint, while the Pepperidge Farm Milano Mint Chocolate cookies offer a more subtle chocolate and mint flavor.
On a flavor scale of one through ten, I would assign the Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookies a rating of 10.
On a flavor scale of one through ten, I would assign the Pepperidge Farm Milano Mint Chocolate cookies a rating of 9.50.
Packaging
It looks to me like the design of the Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookies box has changed over the years. The box I have is largely green with a photo of girls working in nature on the front label. A green Girl Scout symbol with the words ‘thin mints’ in lower case letters and an illustration of two of the enclosed cookies is positioned on the lower half of the photo.
Inside the box the cookies are enclosed in two clear plastic sleeves or wrappers that are easy to open.
The Pepperidge Farm Milano Mint Chocolate Cookies are packaged in a paper pouch-like bag that stands vertically. A white front label background spotlights an excellent illustration of three of the cookies along with some fresh mint leaves.
Inside the package, the cookies are further packaged in little white paper serving cups, which helps to foster the image of elegance that these cookies maintain.
Overall Rating
All things considered, Girl Scout Thin Mint Cookies and Pepperidge Farm Milano Mint Chocolate are both tasty varieties of cookies that are fun to eat.
The Girl Scout cookies are classic and nostalgic pieces of Americana and the Pepperidge Farm cookies are delicate and elegant enough to be served in an upscale restaurant.
Would I purchase these varieties of cookies again? The answer to that question is “definitely yes”. Hopefully, I’ll be able to remember to purchase the Thin Mints when Girl Scout cookie time rolls around again. Both of these varieties of cookies are recommended by this chocolate and mint lover.
Sources :
Personal experience with both brands of cookies