Almond Joy Magic Cookie Bars (Day 4)

7-Layer Bars. Hello Dollys. Magic Cookie Bars. Whatever you know them as, these ridiculously easy, have been around since the 1960’s. The first published recipe this baker could find is dated December 20, 1967 in the Daily Press from Victorville, California. While no specific brand of sweetened condensed milk is named, Mashed.com credits Eagle Brand Milk, and more specifically its owner Gail Borden, for the original Magic Cookie Bar recipe. (I would question this since Gail Borden died in 1874, and the recipe didn’t debut until the late 1960’s.) Eagle Brand Milk is known for its marketing in magazine ads and convenient recipes on the cans of its sweetened condensed milk.

Many iterations of Magic Cookie Bars are out on the WWW. The cookie crunchers in this house prefer almonds and coconut with chocolate, hence the recipe. But feel free to swap out your favorite nut type, baking chips and add candied fruit like maraschino cherry chunks.

Get your passport ready for Day 5 of this Cookie Quest…Russian Tea Cakes.

Almond Joy Magic Cookie Bars (Day 4)

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Reminiscent of an chocolate covered almond-coconut candy bar, every bite of this layered graham-cracker crusted cookie bar is magical!

• Author: Erin Thomas
• Prep Time: 15 Minutes
• Cook Time: 30 Minutes
• Total Time: 45 minutes
• Yield: About 2 Dozen Bars 1x

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

1–1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

1–14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips*

1–1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut

1–1/4 cup almonds, roughly chopped*

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Spray a 9 X 13-inch baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.  Set aside.

Combine graham cracker crumbs and butter in a small bowl. Press into the bottom of the prepared pan.  Pour the sweetened condensed milk evenly over the crumbs.  Layer the chocolate chips, coconut, and almonds evenly over the milk.  Press down firmly with a fork.

Bake the bars for 25 to 30 minutes or until slightly brown.  Remove from the oven and let cool completely on a wire rack. Cut into bars.  Store bars by tightly covering with plastic wrap or aluminum foil for up to 5 days.

Notes

*Substitute milk chocolate chips for the semi-sweet chocolate chips.  Walnuts, pecans or another nut type can also be substituted.