Christmas Treat: Nanaimo Bar

By

"In 1986, Nanaimo Mayor Graeme Roberts, in conjunction with Harbour Park Mall, initiated a contest to find the ultimate Nanaimo Bar Recipe. During the four-week long contest, almost 100 different variations of the famous confection were submitted. The winner: Joyce Hardcastle" ~ www.nanaimo.ca

View complete recipe

  • 8
  • Average
  • 30 mins
  • 120 mins
  • Expensive

Ingredients

  • BOTTOM LAYER:
  • 1/2 cup Unsalted Butter
  • 1/4 cup Sugar
  • 5 tbsp Cocoa
  • 1 Egg
  • 1-1/4 cup Graham Wafer Crumbs
  • 1/2 cup Finely Chopped Almonds
  • 1 cup Unsweetened Coconut
  • MIDDLE LAYER:
  • 1/2 cup Unsalted Butter
  • 2 tbsp + 2 tsp Cream
  • 2 tbsp Vanilla Custard Powder
  • 2 cups Icing Sugar
  • TOP LAYER:
  • 4 Squares (4oz) Semi-Sweet Chocolate
  • 2 tbsp Unsalted Butter

Preparation

Step 1

TOP LAYER:
Melt butter, sugar and cocoa in the top a double boiler *. Add egg and stir; it will thicken. Remove from heat. Stir in crumbs, coconut and nuts. Stir well. Press firmly into an ungreased 8x8 pan.

Step 2

MIDDLE LAYER:
Cream all ingredients well and beat until light. Spread over bottom layer.

Step 3

TOP LAYER:
Melt chocolate and butter in the top of a double boiler. Cool until it is "cool" but still liquid; pour it over middle layer. Keep refrigerated. Ready to cut once the chocolate layer is totally solid - I wait about at least 2 hours before cutting into it.

Step 4

Enjoy!

View complete recipe

* If you don't have a double boiler you can make your own. Find a small-medium pot. Put about 3 inches of water in it. Place a non-plastic bowl, heat-resistant bowl on the top of the pot. The bowl should sit so that it covers the whole top of the pot. You are using this so that the steam from the boiling water melts your mixture without the danger of burning the chocolate.