Time for Girl Scout cookies! Forget the calories, just enjoy!

Five years before Girl Scouts of America was officially established, Girl Scouts were already making cookies. When members of the Mistletoe Troop sold sugar cookies in a Muskogee, Okla., high school gym in 1917, they could not have had a clue what they were starting.

More than 90 years later, Girl Scout cookies are a much-anticipated annual event all across America. Ordering time has rolled around again. That box of Thin Mints stashed in the back of the freezer is probably long gone. As for the coconut-caramel-and-chocolate Samoas, well, in most homes they never even make it to the freezer.

Cookies can be ordered from local troops between now and Feb. 5. They will be delivered in March. Some troops may even be offering direct cookie sales.

Through the Girl Scouts of Connecticut’s Gift of Caring Program and Cookies for Heroes, the public can buy cookies for delivery to troops overseas and send inspirational notes.

No longer homemade

The eight cookie varieties offered this year are a far cry from the sugar cookies that Girl Scouts and their moms baked themselves for about two decades. Those early offerings were sold door-to-door, in waxed bags, for about 30 cents per dozen.

Today, councils set their own prices, and it generally comes down to whatever the traffic will bear. Expect to pay about $3.50 to $4 per box in this area.

It was in 1936 that the “trefoil,†or three-fold shape, was established and that logo-stamped shortbread became the official cookie design.

At that time mothers, starting with troops in the New York area, got a break when professional bakeries were hired. Cookies were sold in boxes for the first time.

And everyone got a break from baking during World War II, when ingredients were in short supply. Girl Scouts sold calendars for a few years instead.

Today, only two bakeries produce the 200 million or so Girl Scout cookies sold each year.

Regional councils can pick and choose which cookies they will sell — but Thin Mints, Do-Si-Do peanut butter sandwich cookies and Trefoils are mandatory.

Anyone who wants just to order, support local scouting and enjoy their Girl Scout cookies without inhibition, can stop reading.

Cookies, not carrot sticks

If your cookie-buying decision is based on dietary concerns, read on. But if you are looking to appease your nutrition conscience, it’s important to remember that, well, these are cookies, not carrot sticks.

The federal Food and Drug Administration requires nutritional labeling on cookie boxes, as with all manufactured food items. Nutrition facts are also included on order forms (but who reads those?).

A real opportunity to compare won’t come until the cookies are in hand (and mouth).

The Girl Scouts have attempted in recent years to add sugar-free and other relatively healthy options. None have been very popular. It seems American consumers have made their opinions known.

There is no cholesterol, and the transfats are neglible if you stick to the suggested serving size of two to five cookies, depending on the variety.

There is enough sodium to be a concern for some people. Of course, they all contain ingredients that some need to avoid, such as nuts, soy, wheat and milk.

Comparing cookies by the calories listed for each variety is misleading. Those numbers reflect serving sizes, which differ for the different types of cookies. The weights also are different from cookie type to cookie type.

Do-Si-Dos are perceived by some as having some nutritional value because they are made with peanut butter. But that’s not actually the case. They are a good choice, however, because they are the lowest in calories. They also have the lowest levels of saturated fat.

Ranking slightly higher in calories are Lemon Chalet Cremes, followed by this year’s debut variety, Thank You Berry Munch. These new cookies include nutritious dried cranberries as well as less-nutritious white fudge chips.

Coming in at number five are the deceivingly calorie-rich Trefoils, ranking a bit higher than Thin Mints (which are slightly less caloric, coming in at number four on the list).

Samoas, with their toothsome ingredients, seem like they would be the biggest indulgence. But they come in at a relatively moderate third place.

Number two goes to another new cookie, Dulce de Leche, filled with caramel chips. These ones are bite-sized, which might or might not be a good thing.

That leaves the winner, in the calorie countdown: Tagalongs, peanut butter-topped cookies coated in chocolate. The brochure describes them as “wildly popular.â€

How to get them

Girl Scouts have not been allowed to sell cookies door-to-door for quite a few years now. Troops are encouraged to host selling events and approach people they know in places such as school and church. The selling season is always followed by complaints from those who missed it, mainly because they expected to order them at their front door.

To find out how to get yours, go to gsofct.org or girlscoutcookies.org to request information on who’s selling them in a particular area, or call 800-882-5561. The site also offers an opportunity to vote for a favorite cookie. Not surprisingly, Samoas are currently running far ahead of the pack with 28 percent.