Because I love my oven, I’m not really one for “no-bake” treats- but, let me tell you, these bars made me a believer. They’re called Nanaimo Bars, named for the City of Nanaimo in Canada, where they were invented by a local housewife who joined- and won- a recipe contest.

A Nanaimo Bar is, essentially, a bar cookie with a cookie-crumb base topped with a custard filling, and a layer of chocolate. If it sounds simple, that’s because it is. It is also really, really delicious- kind of like a candy bar in a bar cookie. There are many varieties of Nanaimo Bars, and many fans (there’s even a Facebook Fan Page!)

Want to make ‘em yourself? Here’s a classic Nanaimo Bar recipe:

Nanaimo Bar Recipe, eh!

Ingredients

CRUST:
1 stick unsalted butter
1/4 cup granulated sugar
5 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 whole egg, beaten
1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs (or digestives)
1 cup flaked coconut (optional! Omit if you hate coconut)
CUSTARD:
1 stick unsalted butter
3 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons custard powder (I heart Bird’s Eye, but feel free to use Vanilla Pudding powder as well)
2 cups powdered sugar

CHOCOLATE LAYER:
4 squares semisweet chocolate (1 oz. each) OR bittersweet chocolate
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Make the CRUST:
In a medium saucepan over LOW heat, melt together the butter, sugar and cocoa powder. Slowly (you don’t want to cook the egg here) add the beaten egg, whisking all the time, cooking over a LOW flame until it thickens. Remove from heat, and stir in cookie crumbs and coconut. Press this into an ungreased 8″ x 8″ square baking pan, and set aside.

Make the CUSTARD:
In a large bowl, cream butter, cream, custard powder, and powdered sugar together until incorporated. Beat until light. Spread over the cookie crust.

Make the CHOCOLATE LAYER:
In a medium saucepan over LOW heat, melt chocolate and butter. Remove from heat. Once cool, but still liquid, pour over the custard layer.

Cover and refrigerate. Then slice into squares, and… mmm.

I’ll admit it: Chocolate Chip are my favorite kind of cookie. They’re one of the few cookies I actually get cravings for, and whether they’re chewy or crunchy or cakey, I always say bring ‘em on!

Also: the best chocolate chip cookies are always the ones you’ve just brought out of the oven. Indeed, even the most mediocre of chocolate chip cookie batters will taste awesome if taken straight off a piping hot cookie sheet.

If you’re looking for a good recipe, look no further. I’m linking to the best chocolate chip cookie recipes to be had online… just take your pick:

The Original Toll House Cookie Recipe
This, ladies and gentlemen, is where it all started. If you want to go the traditional route, and make the cookies your mom and/or grandma probably made when you were growing up, use this recipe. It’s tried, it’s true- it’s classic.

Alton Brown’s The Chewy
Want to take it a step further? Try Alton Brown’s chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe. It uses bread flour and melted butter for maximum chewiness- you can tell they’re going to be chewy because the batter is super gooey. Highly recommended.

Alton Brown’s The Thin
Another one from Alton, this cookie hits the spot when you want something crispy and buttery. Much as I love the chewy recipe above, I can never say no to crispy and buttery cookies.

New York Times’ Chocolate Chip Cookies
Finally, we come to these. Touted by so many food bloggers as “the perfect cookie”, this recipe, adapted from Jacques Torres, will give you gloriously crispy, chewy, buttery cookies with huge chunks of chocolate. It requires a lot more work than the original Toll House recipe, but oh- it’s worth it. Really, really worth it.

What’s your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe?

I am a big chocolate lover and for Christmas dinner, I think I shall try my hand at Nigella’s version of chocolate cookies. I have not tried to make them myself but a friend, who is an avid baker, told me that these cookies are to die for! Here is the recipe according to Nigella.

Ingredients
125g/4oz dark chocolate
150g/5¼oz plain flour
30g/1oz cocoa, sifted
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ tsp salt
125g/4oz unsalted butter, softened
75g/2½oz light brown sugar
50g/2oz caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 free-range egg, cold from the fridge
350g/12¼oz dark chocolate chips

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/Gas 3.
2. Break the 125g/4oz dark chocolate into pieces and place into a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water. Heat, stirring occasionally, until melted.
3. Place the flour, cocoa, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a large bowl and mix well.
4. In another bowl, cream the butter and two sugars together until light and fluffy. Add the melted chocolate and stir well.
5. Beat in the vanilla extract and crack in the egg, then mix in the dry ingredients. Finally stir in the chocolate chips.
6. Scoop out 12 equal portions of the mixture – an ice cream scoop and a palette knife are the best tools for the job – and place onto a lined baking sheet about 6cm/2½in apart. Do not flatten them.
7. Transfer to the oven and bake for 18 minutes, then test with a skewer – it should come out semi-clean and not wet with batter. If you pierce a chocolate chip, try again.
8. Leave the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 4-5 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack to harden as they cool.

Maybe a tad more chocolate?

I don’t know about you, but scents, smells, and tastes bring back certain memories for me. For example, the smell of gingerbread, peppermint, and similar flavors always brings back memories of Christmas as a child. I suppose it is quite accurate if I say that the smell of baking cookies is powerfully associated with this particular holiday for me.

It seems that I am not the only one with the same experience! The people over at All Recipes have actually come up with a handy all-in-one guide to cookies for the holidays. Dubbed “Homemade Holiday Cookies,” the guide is in PDF format and can be downloaded for free. This is what the editors have to say about the guide:

If there’s one time of year when cookies take over the kitchen, it’s the
holidays, so we’ve gathered recipes for highly-rated holiday cookies to help you get things rolling.

You’ll also find tips for baking and decorating cookies, mailing cookies to far-off friends, and hosting a cookie exchange party. It’s everything you need to bake up some festive holiday cheer!

Sounds pretty good to me! I love cookies and baked goods but I have to say that this is not my forte. I wouldn’t mind trying my hand at making some for the holidays, though. I took a look at some of the tips presented in the guide and they look manageable – my favorite so far are the Chocolate Rum Balls. Why don’t you download this for yourself and whip up a batch or two for Christmas?

Ingredients

1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups semisweet chocolate
chips
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
In large bowl, beat butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; stir into the butter mixture until well blended. Mix in the chocolate chips and walnuts. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or just until set. Cool slightly on the cookie sheets before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.