16 COOK’S COUNTRY • AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2019
NANAIMO, A SMALL city on Van-
couver Island in the Canadian province
of British Columbia, is just a few miles
from Washington State, yet the city’s
namesake sweet is virtually unknown in
the United States. But Nanaimo (“nuh-
NIGH-moe”) bars deserve a bigger
stage. These three-layer bars, with
their coconutty cookie bases, creamy
centers, and chocolate ganache tops,
have a spectrum of sweet flavors and
satisfying textures worthy of interna-
tional recognition.
To bring the bars stateside, I found
five different recipes for Nanaimo bars,
including a version from Nanaimo’s city
government. I spread them out for my
tasters, and we assessed, layer by layer.
While some recipes took a no-cook
route for the base, our favorite from
this initial lineup called for cooking
butter, sugar, cocoa powder, and an egg
in a double boiler and then stirring in
graham cracker crumbs, coconut, and
chopped nuts once the mixture had
thickened. We loved the fudgy and
slightly chewy texture of this crust:
sturdy enough to carry around but soft
enough to sink our teeth into without
destroying the bar. But I wanted to see
if I could achieve it in an easier way.
I first ditched the egg, which
requires cooking to do its work as a
binder and stabilizing agent. Instead
I turned to chocolate chips, which I
melted in the microwave and stirred
into the mixture. Once cooled, the
crust was firm—but too firm, almost
candy bar–like. In my next test I added
some corn syrup and achieved the
slightly softer result I was after.
In most recipes, that soft middle
layer is made by creaming butter, con-
fectioners’ sugar, vanilla, and custard
powder, an ingredient common in
Canadian kitchens. Though it’s hard to
find in the United States, we found a
supplier and ordered some to see what
it was all about. Much like instant pud-
ding mix, it contains cornstarch, salt,
vanilla, and coloring. It didn’t taste like
much on its own, but when used as the
base for the custard layer in the bars, it
contributed eggy richness and a golden
color. I needed to find a work-around
for U.S. cooks.
I considered making a homemade
custard from scratch, but the ideal
thickness and sturdiness (I wanted the
filling to hold its shape once sliced)
proved elusive. So I experimented with
instant pudding mix, which made the
bars too sweet. Next I tried cornstarch,
which I mixed with butter, sugar, and
heavy cream, but it lacked flavor. Non-
fat dry milk powder turned out to be
the solution. Combined with the other
ingredients, it produced a rich, buttery,
vanilla-y, salty-sweet filling with the
perfect consistency.
Nearly all the recipes I’d found
had included a matching top layer of
ganache made by melting chocolate
chips and butter. It’s hard to improve
on that. But adding a tablespoon of
corn syrup made the ganache easier to
slather over the chilled filling and gave
the chocolate a winning shine once it
was fully set.
Nanaimo bars, welcome to Cook’s
Country. We are so glad you’re here.NANAIMO BARS
Makes 18 bars
For bars with tidy edges, be sure to
wipe your knife clean with a dish
towel after each cut. We developed this
recipe with Ghirardelli 60% Premium
Baking Chips.CRUST
½ cup (3 ounces) bittersweet
chocolate chips
6 whole graham crackers, broken
into 1-inch pieces
2⁄3 cup (2 ounces) sweetened
shredded coconut
½ cup pecans, toasted
¼ cup (¾ ounce) unsweetened
cocoa powder
1⁄8 teaspoon table salt
1⁄3 cup light corn syrupFILLING
1¼ cups (5 ounces) confectioners’ sugar
8 tablespoons unsalted butter,
softened
¼ cup (3⁄4 ounce) nonfat dry milk powder
1⁄8 teaspoon table salt
¼ cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extractTOPPING
2⁄3 cup (4 ounces) bittersweet
chocolate chips
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon light corn syrup- FOR THE CRUST: Make foil sling
for 8-inch square baking pan by folding
2 long sheets of aluminum foil so each
is 8 inches wide. Lay sheets of foil in
pan perpendicular to each other, with
extra foil hanging over edges of pan.
Push foil into corners and up sides of
pan, smoothing foil flush to pan. Spray
foil with vegetable oil spray. - Microwave chocolate chips in bowl
at 50 percent power, stirring occa-
sionally, until melted, 1 to 2 minutes.
Process cracker pieces, coconut, pecans,
cocoa, and salt in food processor until
cracker pieces are finely ground, about
30 seconds. Add corn syrup and melted
chocolate and pulse until combined,
8 to 10 pulses (mixture should hold
together when pinched with your fin-
gers). Transfer to prepared pan. Using
bottom of greased measuring cup, press
crumbs into even layer in bottom of
pan. Refrigerate while making filling. - FOR THE FILLING: In clean, dry
workbowl, process sugar, butter, milk
powder, and salt until smooth, about
30 seconds, scraping down sides of
bowl as needed. Add cream and vanilla
and process until fully combined, about
15 seconds. Spread filling evenly over
crust. Cover pan with plastic wrap and
refrigerate until filling is set and firm,
about 2 hours. - FOR THE TOPPING: Microwave
chocolate chips, butter, and corn syrup
in bowl at 50 percent power, stirring
occasionally, until chocolate chips
and butter are melted and mixture is
smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Using offset
spatula, spread chocolate mixture evenly
over set filling. Refrigerate until topping
is set, about 30 minutes. - Using foil overhang, lift bars out of
pan and transfer to cutting board; dis-
card foil. Using chef’s knife, trim outer
¼ inch of square to make neat edges
(wipe knife clean with dish towel after
each cut). Cut square into thirds to
create 3 rectangles. Cut each rectangle
crosswise into 6 equal pieces. Let bars
sit at room temperature for 20 minutes
before serving. (Bars can be refriger-
ated for up to 2 days.)
A coconut cookie crust and a
chocolate topping sandwich a
silky, creamy filling.Nanaimo Bars
Canadians have loved this tri-layer bar cookie for ages.
Time to bring it south. by Morgan Bolling