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.