Magic Cookie Bars grace just about every holiday table, desirable not only because they’re very quick and easy to assemble, but also because the blending of flavors is pretty darn fantastic. Whether you call them Hello Dolly Bars, 7-Layer Bars, or Magic Cookie Bars, the base is pretty much the same: butter, graham cracker crumbs, chocolate chips, coconut, nuts, and sweetened condensed milk.
This base leaves room for infinite possibilities in variations, thankfully, so you can change them up depending upon your mood. Key Lime Pie is a new one for me, though!
My husband thought this was a bit too strong, but I felt it was perfect and paired quite well with the Chardonnay that accompanied them last night. Maybe too well… Key Lime Pie in a hand-held form with a little bit of a kick, thanks to the white chocolate chips and almonds. Impressive!
Key Lime Pie Magic Cookie Bars
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup 8 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 1/2 cups Nilla wafers roughly, finely crushed
- 1 cup unsweetened flaked coconut
- 1 15- ounce can organic sweetened condensed milk
- 1/2 cup fresh or bottled key lime juice if using the latter, Nellie & Joe’s brand is very good
- 1 cup white chocolate chips go with real white chocolate, not artificially flavored!
- 1 cup almonds coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup unsweetened flaked coconut
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Place the butter in the bottom of a brownie pan and put it in the oven while it's preheating to melt. Be careful not to burn it.
- Sprinkle the Nilla wafer crumbs over the melted butter and mix it up, then press into the pan to create the base layer crust.
- Sprinkle the 1 cup coconut over the crust evenly.
- In a medium bowl, combine the sweetened condensed milk and key lime juice until well blended.
- Drizzle 1/3 the sweetened condensed milk mixture over the coconut.
- Sprinkle the white chocolate chips and then the almonds over that. Press down to spread evenly.
- Drizzle the rest of the sweetened condensed milk mixture.
- Sprinkle the 1/2 cup coconut over that, pressing down a bit so it doesn't fall off after baking.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes.
- Cool completely before cutting.
Meal Planning Magic‘s 12 Weeks of Christmas Treats gets you ready with plenty of ideas for your Christmas festivities! If you’re a blogger and want to join in on the fun, check out this post for the form to fill out to start baking along with us! And don’t forget to follow our Pinterest board to keep track of all the yummy recipes.
Love this twist on a classic Christmas treat! Great photos!
They look absolutely delicious!
I love magic bars and your key lime and coconut combination sounds amazing! 🙂
Thank you! It’s a refreshing take on an old classic, isn’t it? 🙂
These posts make me so excited for Christmas 🙂 Love the Key Lime
Nice twist on an old favorite.
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The combination does sound interesting. I never thought of adding lime juice to magic bars, but I think it´s a great idea to cut through all that sweetness. They look wonderful!
I had never thought of it until I saw the recipe that inspired me. Then I thought, why not? Just like making key lime pie, only better. 🙂
This looks like a great variation on the magic cookie bars.
I’ve been wanting to play with that basic recipe for a long time. Kudos on an excellent adaptation. Trying to decide if I should wait until St. Patricks Day and do a green (lime) thing, or just jump on it now! YUM.
you just said brownie pan. what size is it exactly 8×8 9×9 or 9×13? please let me know so i can make these.
thanks
The brownie pan I have is 11″x7″. You can use a 9″x9″ pan in its place.
thank you so much
these look amazing! i want to make them for my wedding welcome bags. can they be made ahead and frozen?
To be honest, I’m not sure. I typically don’t freeze any kind of magic cookie bars, just in case. Maybe a trial run before you start the real big baking session?
Congratulations, by the way!!
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[…] for these online, but it looks like the original blog or blog post may not be around anymore. This is the closest version listed online, and they do give credit to the original blogger, Modern Comfort Food. I’ve made these so […]
Made these yesterday, and they were wonderful. I’ve never been a fan of coconut, but decided…I love key lime, so why not? Took them to share at a block party. Rave reviews! Thank you. My only change was that I could not find unsweetened flaked coconut, and flaking my own was not in my wheelhouse — the sweetened Bakers worked just fine.
These are so delish and a breeze to make. You won’t be sorry making these. Thank you for sharing.
Can I sub lemon juice for lime?
I haven’t tried it, but it’s worth a shot. The acid should be similar. Let me know how it works out.
I have made these for a few years now. My only switch-up was using chopped chocolate chunks for the white chocolate, which l do not like AT ALL. I love the lime/dark chocolate conbo. And l have frozen these with success. But they stayed in the freezer for no more than 2 weeks. Heh heh heh….