I recently visited family in Iowa and we made the best magic cookie bars! I have always loved these bars growing up but it has been quite some time since I have had them. They are so simple to make and are sure to be a hit as long as you like coconut! The other nice thing about these bars is how versatile they are.
For our magic cookie bars, we have a few special tricks that make the better than the classic version! Here’s what we recommend:
- Line your pan with parchment paper for the easiest clean up.
- We love butterscotch chips but they tend to overpower the chocolate and other ingredients. Instead of the standard ratio of 1 cup chocolate chips and butterscotch chips each, we increase the chocolate chips to 1 ½ cups and decrease the butterscotch chips to ½ cup.
- Some recipes say to pour the sweetened condensed milk over the crust whereas others say to pour it over all of the toppings last. We actually have found a combination of both works best. Pour half over the crust and then top all remaining ingredients with the other half.
- We like to use unsweetened coconut chips from Trader Joe’s because these bars are already so sweet and we love the large flakes. Sweetened coconut flakes will work just fine too though.
- For a messy but delicious treat, eat them while still warm. However, if you want clean slices, wait until they cool before cutting.
You may also make minor substitutions or omissions if desired, like adding walnuts instead of pecans or using only chocolate chips instead of chocolate chips and butterscotch. A reader also suggested substituting peanut butter chips for the butterscotch chips. I am going to try this combo next and also swap out the pecans for salted peanuts.
Whatever ingredient combinations you decide, happy baking!
Magic Cookie Bars
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs
- ½ cup (1 stick) butter, melted
- 1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 ½ cup chocolate chips
- ½ cup butterscotch chips
- 1 ½ cups unsweetened coconut chips or sweetened flaked coconut
- 1 cup chopped pecans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F. Prepare a 9x13 inch pan by lining with parchment paper or spraying with cooking spray.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs and melted butter. Stir until combined and gently press into the bottom of the prepared baking pan.
- Evenly drizzle about half the can of sweetened condensed milk over the crust.
- Sprinkle the 1 cup of the chocolate chips, ½ cup of the pecans, ¼ cup butterscotch chips, and all of the coconut over the sweetened condensed milk layer. Then add the remaining ½ cup chocolate chips, ¼ cup butterscotch chips, and ½ cup pecans. Pour the remaining sweetened condensed milk evenly over all ingredients.
- Bake in preheated oven for approximately 25-30 minutes until the coconut is a light golden brown and the middle is set. Let cool before cutting into bars.
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These look amazing!!!!
Confirmed, they are!
Such an easy dessert to make that satisfies my sweet tooth. Definitely worth a try!
These are always a favorite bar and super easy to make.