Nanaimo Bars
Nanaimo bars are a Canadian treasure and for good reason! These will impress anyone with a sweet tooth with the biscuit base, soft custard filling and that nice chocolate topping!
Servings 12 -16 bars
Calories 322kcal
Ingredients
Base
- 113 grams / 4 ounces butter melted
- 37 grams / ⅓ cup plain cocoa powder
- 50 grams / ¼ cup superfine sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 100 grams / 1 cup graham crackers finely crushed
- 50 grams / ½ cup ground almonds
- 100 grams / 1 cup desiccated coconut
Custard buttercream filling
- 113 grams / 4 ounces butter very soft
- 25 grams / 3 tablespoons custard powder
- 240 grams / 2 cups confectioner’s sugar
- 72 grams / 5 tablespoons heavy cream
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
Chocolate topping
- 150 grams / 5.3 ounces dark chocolate melted
- 15 grams / 1 tablespoon butter melted
Instructions
Base
- Line a baking tin with greaseproof paper, folding the edges down (or holding down with clips) and smoothly and set aside.
- To make the base, place the melted butter, cocoa powder, sugar, vanilla extract and salt into a bowl and stir together until well combined and smooth.
- Add the graham crumbs, almond meal and desiccated coconut and combine until no dry patches remain in the edges of the bowl and the mixture holds together.
- Spoon into the prepared tin and press down firmly into a nice even layer. Set aside.
Custard buttercream filling
- Place the very soft butter, custard powder and sugar in a bowl and whisk to until the butter is broken up and mixed through the sugar, approximately 2 minutes.
- Add in 2 tablespoons of the cream, vanilla extract and salt.
- Whisk to combine until smooth, adding in the remaining 3 tablespoons of cream to fully whip until the custard buttercream is smooth.
- Spoon into the center of the top of the base and spread outwards slowly until the creamy custard filling is even. Set aside.
Chocolate topping
- Meanwhile, stir the melted chocolate and butter together until smooth and pour the top layer over the custard filling, tapping the base of the tin to spread out the chocolate nice and evenly.
- Place in the refrigerator and allow to set for several hours or overnight.
- Remove and slice into even squares with a sharp knife that has been warmed with warm water to avoid your bars cracking.
- Serve.
Notes
- Graham crackers: These the perfect base for these bars with their light and whole wheat flavor. If you are unable to obtain graham crackers, a great substitute in equal measure would be digestive biscuits or even oreos!
- Almond meal: Ground almonds or almond flour might be what you refer to as what is called almond meal here. Finely ground almonds create a beautiful and soft flavor and texture within our base.
- Desiccated coconut: Desiccated is easiest to source in many places and gives our bars a slight depth in flavor complimentary to the chocolate, however, you could substitute with shredded coconut.
- Custard powder: The traditional ingredient that gives our bars a depth of flavor and balances the full on butter flavor in the filling.
- Dark chocolate: High quality dark chocolate was used here, the type you would snack on instead of baking chocolate due to it having less additives and leaving a more complimentary flavor to the bars.
- Cutting your chocolate topping without cracking it: Using a knife that has been run under warm water and wiped dry and marking slowly to lightly warm the chocolate without cracking it. This is best done for each cut you make.
- Baking tin: A 18x18 cm or 7x7 inch square baking pan works well here, though a rectangle tin would also work well.
- You can make these ahead: You can prepare them in advance and store them in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. This makes them perfect for parties or any time you want to have a sweet treat on hand.
Nutrition
Calories: 322kcal