Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Nanaimo Bars


I first tasted these incredibly rich goodies in Nanaimo, BC. Nanaimo is west of Victoria, on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. I got this recipe off the Nanaimo Tourism Bureau website a few years back. The comments in parenthesis are mine. They need to be refrigerated but they are best served a little closer to room temperature so the center will be gooey (In my humble opinion). To my knowledge, they have no calories. LOL

Nanaimo Bars

Bottom Layer
1/2 Cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup sugar
5 tbsp cocoa
1 egg, beaten
1 3/4 cups crushed graham crackers
1/2 cup finely chopped almonds
1 cup coconut

1. Melt first 3 ingredients in top of a double bolier
2. Add egg and stir to cook and thicken.
3. Remove from heat.
4. Stir in crumbs, coconut and nuts.
5. Press firmly into an ungreased 8" x 8" (or 9X9) pan.

Middle Layer
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2 tbsp plus 2 tsp heavy cream
2 tbsp vanilla custard powder (since this recipe originated in Canada and I'm in the US, I wasn't sure what this was. I assume it's pudding mix. I use the boxed pudding mix- not the instant kind- and it works great.)
2 cups icing (confectioners) sugar

1. Cream together butter, cream, and custard powder.
2. Beat until light.
3. Spread over bottom layer.

Top Layer
4 squares semi-sweet chocolate (1 oz each)
2 tbsp unsalted butter

1. Melt chocolate and butter over low heat (I use the double boiler- I wouldn't attempt using a microwave).
2. Cool (stir it a lot and it will cool quickly- especially if you transfer it to a cool bowl- don't forget about it because you don't want it to get hard)
3. When cool but still liquid, pour over second layer and chill in refrigerator.

3 comments:

Judy S. said...

Yum! I've wanted this recipe for a long time; now if only I weren't gluten and dairy free now..... I will share it with my kids though.

Diane said...

To clarify, Nanaimo is actually north of Victoria.

The traditional Nanaimo bar has walnuts in the base (not almonds). The custard powder I use is Birds if you are able to find it.

PattyK said...

Fred Meyer in Cornelius has Bird's custard mix in the specialty foods aisle. I saw it there this morning, 11/8/11.