Grain-Free Magic Cookie Bars! An easy, PALEO treat made with coconut milk sweetened condensed milk!
I can’t believe Christmas is just around the corner! My parents are coming to our house for Christmas this year and I couldn’t be more excited. My toddler is almost 3 and truly believes in Santa.
Last year he didn’t quite get it, so this year it has been so fun to read Christmas books, watch holiday movies, and make treats for our neighbors and friends in anticipation.
It’s awesome how being a parent makes all the little things more fun again!
Here is one last Christmas cookie recipe! My Dad loves Magic Cookie Bars and I want to make them when he comes in town. He actually calls them Hello Dollies. And others call them 7-layer bars!
Whatever you call these, they are delicious. I was inspired by making sweetened condensed coconut milk for my fudge recipe.
Sweetened condensed milk is a crucial ingredient for magic cookie bars and I thought they were a thing of the past now that I eat dairy-free.
I was happy to find sweetened condensed coconut milk works great for these!
These bars have a grain-free cookie crust that is softer than the traditional magic cookie bar graham cracker crust.
The layers of chocolate chips, pecans, and coconut all smothered in sweetened milk are a true indulgence!
These are grain, dairy, and refined-sugar-free, making them an indulgence I can actually eat!
Grain-Free Magic Cookie Bars {Dairy-Free, Refined-Sugar-Free}
Ingredients
For the Coconut Sweetened Condensed Milk:
- 1 can of coconut milk
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 tsp salt
For the Cookie Crust:
- 1/2 cup hazelnut flour almond flour will work too
- 1/2 cup coconut flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/3 cup coconut oil or butter melted
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
For the Bars:
- 1 1/4 cup chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
- 1/3 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly grease a 9x9 inch baking pan.
- Make the coconut milk sweetened condensed milk by placing the coconut milk, maple syrup, and salt in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and cook for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally until the mixture has reduced to 1 cup of liquid. The milk may splatter when it starts to boil, so just stir it and lower the heat slightly. Check how much liquid you have by pouring it into a glass measuring cup.
- While the coconut milk reduces, make the cookie crust. Place the hazelnut flour, coconut flour, salt, and baking soda in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to combine. Add the coconut oil, maple syrup, egg and vanilla and process until smooth. Press the dough into the prepared pan in an even layer. Bake for 15 minutes, until set.
- When the crust is done pre-baking, remove it from the oven and top it with 1 cup of chocolate chips. Press the chocolate chips into the crust slightly. Top with the chopped pecans and shredded coconut. Pour the reduced coconut milk mixture over everything. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup chocolate chips and a little more coconut over the top. Bake for 25 minutes.
- Allow the bars to cool for at least 1 hour before slicing. Enjoy!
Nutrition
I must have come across a different version of your recipe as my search parameters also asked for refined sugar free. Your recipe(for me) said refined sugar free and because my brain did not see the chocolate chips initially as being problematic, I realized they will add a lot of refined sugar to the recipe. Anyway, I made them as specified but am now thinking of how to still use chocolate chips but make them with much less sugar in them. All I can think of it to use a very dark chocolate chip(almost bitter) but not sure how that would change the taste. Or seek out a chip made with a sugar alternative. Or do as someone suggested and just cut back on the amount of chocolate used. Has anyone substituted a form of chocolate chip which brings down the sugar content?
Hi Jean, you can opt for chocolate chips that are labeled paleo, like Hu Kitchen No Added Sugar Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips, or even some non-dairy brands are considered okay for paleo recipes. We hope this helps and you enjoy the recipe!