The holiday baking has begun. It kicked off last week with the Chocolate-Dipped Hazelnut Shortbread, baked gingerbread men earlier this week, and now we have the Magic Bars. These are on Michael’s list of desired Christmas cookies every year, and they are gooey and good and insanely easy. They are also a great cookie for making with little kids. My two oldest boys, ages 4 and 2, had a great time helping pat down the graham cracker crust and pouring on the coconut, marshmallows, nuts, and chips.
The recipe is very versatile, and you can choose any kind of chopped nuts and chocolate or other flavored chips. This batch has sliced almonds, milk chocolate chips, and peanut butter chips. Check out the Variations list below for some interesting combinations.
Many versions of this recipe call for 1-1/2 cups of graham cracker crumbs, but I use 2 cups to make the bottom layer a bit more substantial (and a bit less greasy).
Equipment
9 x 13-inch pan
medium microwave safe bowl
Ingredients
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
2 cups graham cracker crumbs or vanilla wafer crumbs
2 cups flaked coconut
1-1/2 cups miniature marshmallows
1 cup chopped nuts, chef’s choice
2 cups of any combination of chocolate, butterscotch, peanut butter, or toffee chips
1 can (14 ounces) fat-free sweetened condensed milk
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Melt butter in the microwave safe bowl . Add the graham cracker crumbs, stirring until they are thoroughly combined. Wet your fingers a little bit. Pour the mixture into the 9 x 13 pan and press down with your wet fingers, forming a bottom layer.
3. Sprinkle coconut, marshmallows, nuts, and candy chips, in that order, over top.
4. Drizzle over all the condensed milk (open can with opener and scoop out the contents as milk is very thick.)
5. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until well browned. Cool in pan on a rack. Using a wet knife, cut into small bars. Recipe makes about four dozen cookies.
Variations
Yummy combinations:
- macadamia nuts with white chocolate chips and butterscotch chips
- almonds with semi-sweet chocolate chips and toffee chips
- walnuts with semi-sweet chocolate chips and peanut butter chips
- pecans with milk chocolate chips and butterscotch chips
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Source: adapted from Ann Meyers’ recipe
🙂 My friend gave me this same recipe today. I didn’t know what to call them, so I just named them after her. I used peanut butter, chocolate chips and pecans.
Recipe sounds great. I also have a recipe for that I wrote that my son absolutely loves!
Sorry about the duplicate post, but the title didn’t come through. they are Graham Crackers.
How far in advance can you make these, how long before they are not so fresh would anyone have any ideal. Thank you
Hi Donna. We make these a couple weeks in advance and freeze them in tins between layers of wax paper. I think they taste fine within that time period. They will keep for a couple months in the freezer, though I think they start taking on some funky freezer flavors the longer they sit.
Do you bake these covered or uncovered? And, is there a good alternative to marshmellows?
Hi Shannon. I bake them uncovered. You can skip the marshmallows if you prefer, though I can’t think of an alternative that will equal the consistency.
This came out exactly like the picture! Sooo yummy! I used almond slivers, milk choc chips and butterscotch and only half the can of condensed milk.