Super Easy 7-layer Magic Cookie Bars (aka Hello Dolly Bars!)
All seven layers of these cookie bars - butter, graham cracker crumbs, condensed milk, double chocolate chips, walnuts, and that golden toasted coconut - play perfectly off each other in this flavor-packed timeless treat.
Prep and grease: preheat your oven to 325°F, and grease a 9” x 13” pan.
Make the graham crust: place the butter in a medium-sized, microwave-safe bowl and melt it fully. Add the graham cracker crumbs and sugar into the bowl. Use a fork to work the butter and crumbs together until you have an evenly combined mixture. Sprinkle the crumbs into the bottom of the prepped pan, and press them firmly into an even layer using your hand.
Pour on condensed milk: carefully and slowly pour the condensed milk over the surface of the graham crust. Your goal is to evenly coat the full crust, with no holes remaining, for a solid, even layer of milk.**
Add semi-sweet or flavored chocolate chips: evenly sprinkle your sweeter layer of chocolate chips over the surface of your condensed milk.
Add walnuts: sprinkle the walnuts evenly oven the top of the chocolate chips.
Add the dark chocolate chips: sprinkle another layer of chocolate chips (dark chocolate this time) evenly over the walnuts.
Sprinkle coconut on top: evenly sprinkle the coconut on top until it covers all the chips and nuts entirely.
Bake until fully toasted: bake the bars for 30 minutes, until the coconut is a nice deep golden brown, and you may even see some condensed milk bubbling up in the corners and caramelizing. (See safety warning in the tips below!***)
Cool, cut, and enjoy: allow bars to cool fully before slicing (a couple of hours at least is helpful, or overnight so the chocolate can solidify). Slice the bars right in the pan (cut six by four for 24 squares), then pass around those super-stacked treats and enjoy that creamy, crispy, chocolatey, graham-y goodness!
Notes
*Which chip? After extensive testing (and tasting!) over the years, I’ve determined I like these bars with a pure traditional chocolate flavor, and especially with some nice dark chocolate in there. So I've chosen to scrap the typical butterscotch chips and add in some dark chocolate.That said, you can definitely add butterscotch back in if you like.I’d recommend still keeping the dark chocolate layer to balance the sweetness of these bars, and subbing in the butterscotch, peanut butter, milk, or white chocolate chips for my semi-sweet layer if that sounds better to you.
**The perfect pour:I know it’s tempting to dump all that condensed milk out in one go, but try to resist for the sake of a beautifully even milk layer in your final bars.I promise there is enough condensed milk to flood into a solid layer if you just take your time and slowly drizzle it.First, I'd recommend a back-and-forth zigzag pattern working from one short end of the pan to there other.Then, I’d do a round as close as possible all around the edge to fill the border. Finally, start patching up any holes that are left in between, moving from the biggest holes to the smallest, until you have a solid, even layer.
***Watch for coconut fumes! These bars release some very strong, eye-burning fumes from the coconut in the oven, so when you first open it, DO NOT have your face right near the oven door.Stand back for a few seconds to let the fumes release, then check on your bars.
It’d mean so much to me if you could please give the recipe card a ⭐ rating on the site and leave a comment to help others find this sweet recipe! Xo, Jocelyn @ Mint+Mallow