Hello Dollies Recipe

These magical layered cookie bars with a graham cracker crust have so many names! I grew up calling them Hello Dolly Bars, but have also heard them called Magic Cookie Bars, or even 7 Layer Bars. No matter their name, you need know that they consist of layers of nuts, coconut, and chocolate on a graham cracker crust with sweetened condensed milk poured on top. This is textural heaven!

I almost want to call these no bake bars, because they are such little effort, but you do have to bake them. It just feels like you spend way more time baking them than throwing them together, because they’re so simple.

These Hello Dolly Bars are textural heaven: on top of a graham cracker crust (not unlike my buttery crusts in my pumpkin cheesecake bars), we scatter all of our favorite things. A sprinkle of chocolate chips, coconut and pecans, of course! Before baking, we drizzle sweetened condensed milk on top. Yes, the best thing to drizzle into your coffee is the binding agent for these crunchy, gooey cookie bars!

Why are they called hello dollies?

This is a super old fashioned recipe from the 1960s, and at that time, a musical entitled Hello Dolly was very popular. They’re also called dream bars, magic bars, coconut bars, or 7 layer bars.

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Magic Bar Recipe Ingredients

• Graham Crackers. We need 1/2 cup of graham cracker crumbs, which is roughly 4 whole graham cracker sheets, crushed.
• Butter. A small amount of butter to melt and bind the graham cracker crumbs together for the crust.
• Granulated Sugar. To lighten sweeten the crust, stir in granulated sugar. This is the only sugar we are adding to this dessert.
• Pecans. One-third cup of chopped pecans, or your favorite nut. I like to make these with sliced almonds, too!
• Chocolate Chips. Any type of chocolate chips work great here–dark chocolate, semisweet, white chocolate, even butterscotch chips!
• Coconut. I bake with sweetened coconut flakes rather than the dried unsweetened stuff.
• Sweetened Condensed Milk. You can use the sweetened condensed milk from the can or the squeeze bottle. Use any leftovers in your morning coffee.

How to make this Magic Cookie Bar Recipe

Preheat the oven to 350° and lightly grease or line with a piece of parchment paper an 8-inch square pan.

Magic Bars Recipe Variations

• Nuts – You can use your favorite type of nuts in this recipe. I have made them with sliced almonds and even macadamia nuts! Anything that brings crunch and nuttiness is great here!
• Chocolate – Your favorite sweet chips are all that we need here. You can use regular semisweet chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, or even butterscotch chips! Anything that melts in the oven works!
• Gluten-Free – You can use gluten free graham crackers in this recipe to make these magic bars entirely gluten free.

How to Store this Hello Dollies Recipe

These gooey magic cookie bars keep best at room temperature in an airtight container. You can store them in the fridge for a few extra days, but they’re best eaten at room temperature, or else they’re too hard to bite through! You may freeze these (tightly wrapped) for up to 3 months. Defrost at room temperature about 6-8 hours before serving.

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Yield: 9

Hello Dolly Bars

Print

Magic cookie bars in a 8-inch square pan.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 8 graham cracker sheets (or 1 cup crumbs)
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2/3 cup chopped pecans
• 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup sweetened coconut
• 1 cup sweetened condensed milk

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350° and lightly grease an 8 or 9-inch square pan.
2. Pulverize graham cracker sheets (if they aren’t already) and stir together with butter and sugar. Press this mixture into the bread loaf pan, packing firmly to create a flat crust. Bake for 8 minutes.
3. Remove from oven, sprinkle over pecans, chocolate and coconut.
4. Slowly drizzle the sweetened condensed milk over top.
5. Return the pan to the oven and bake for another 18-21 minutes, until edges are lightly browned and bubbling.
6. Let cool completely before cutting.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

9

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 347Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 25mgSodium: 120mgCarbohydrates: 41gFiber: 2gSugar: 32gProtein: 5g

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