Holiday Nanaimo Bars
18
- Prep Time20 mins
- Total Time1 hr 10 mins
- Makes32 to 36
Produced by Chantal Braganza and Sun Ngo, Photography by Christie Vuong, Food Styling by Eshun Mott, Prop Styling by Nicole Billark.
What makes this Canadian dessert standard a holiday knockout? Toasting the walnuts for extra oomph, adding a little salt to balance the sweetness and cutting it into sleek diamond shapes. These cute little bars appear here exactly as they did in our December 1995 issue.
Base
1/2 cup (65 g) chopped walnuts
1/2 cup unsalted butter
5 tbsp cocoa powder
1/4 cup (52 g) granulated sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 1⁄2 cups (180 g) graham-cracker crumbs
1 cup (80 g) unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 tsp salt
Filling
1/3 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 tbsp custard powder, such as Bird's
3 cups (342 g) icing sugar
1/4 cup 3.25% milk
1/4 tsp salt
Topping
1 1⁄4 cups chopped dark chocolate
2 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Dragées and royal icing, for decorating (optional)
Instructions
Position rack in centre of oven, then preheat to 350F. Line a 9-in. square pan with parchment.
Base: Toast walnuts on a baking sheet until fragrant, about 8 min. Let cool, then finely chop. Set aside.
Melt 1⁄2 cup butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Whisk in cocoa and granulated sugar until smooth. Whisk egg with vanilla in a small bowl, then stir into butter mixture. Immediately remove from heat. Stir in graham crumbs, coconut, 1⁄2 tsp salt and walnuts until combined. Press mixture evenly into bottom of prepared pan. Refrigerate until firm, at least 20 min.
Filling: Beat 1/3 cup butter in a medium bowl, using an electric mixer on medium, until creamy. Beat in custard powder, then icing sugar, milk and 1⁄4 tsp salt until mixture is smooth and fluffy. Spread over chilled base. Freeze until filling is slightly firm, about 10 min.
Topping: Place chocolate in a heatproof glass bowl and microwave on medium at 30-sec intervals, stirring in between, until smooth. Stir in 2 tbsp butter until melted and combined. Spread chocolate in a thin, even layer over chilled custard layer. Refrigerate until chocolate is just set, about 20 min. Cut into diamond-, square- or triangle-shaped bars. Decorate tops with piped royal icing and dragées, if desired. Bars will keep well refrigerated for up to 1 week.
Get more Nanaimo bar recipes, including our classic Nanaimo bar recipe and our staff favourite recipe for salted-almond Nanaimo bars (they're less sweet than the traditional version!)
