Girl Scout cookies are getting a more mature look, thanks to some new sweets at Sepia (123 N. Jefferson St., 312-441-1920). Cindy Schuman, pastry chef at the Near West Side restaurant, recently introduced a new dessert menu that’s an ode to the beloved boxed treats.
Her inspiration stemmed both from culinary necessity and nostalgia.
“We do pride ourselves on being seasonal here, and there’s not much we can make seasonally fruit-wise,” Schuman said of crafting a dessert menu during the winter.
When a colleague happened to mention that her daughter was in Girl Scouts, Schuman decided she found her seasonal focus (Girl Scout cookies are sold in the winter) and set out to create her own spins on the popular cookies.
The desserts, which have been on the menu since late February, have proved sought-after too.
“People seem to get excited about the whole nostalgia,” she said. “Everyone has their favorite.”
Her takes include torn chocolate cake with oolong tea ice cream, peppermint and chocolate sauce (based on the Thin Mint), almond whiskey tapioca with buttercream-filled shortbread (Trefoils) and oatmeal pave with peanut butter, chocolate, oatmeal ice cream and rum Anglaise (a combination of the Tag Along and Do Si Do cookies).
The popular Samoa cookie, also Schuman’s favorite, inspired a dessert comprised of toffee coconut cake with chocolate and burnt caramel, while the lemony Savannah Smiles and Lemonades cookies will be re-created in a lemon cheesecake with lemon curd and cranberry thyme crumble.
The desserts will be available at Sepia for at least another month, according to Schuman, and are $10 each.
Twitter @ewickwire
More Top Picks Best Espresso Tampers