Nanaimo Bars
Canada’s national confection: a nutty chocolate base layered with sweet buttercream and topped with dark chocolate. Perfect for potlucks or afternoon tea.
Servings: 16 squares
Ingredients
for the base
- 115 grams butter
- 50 grams caster sugar
- 30 grams cocoa powder
- 200 grams digestive biscuits crushed into crumbs
- 65 grams desiccated coconut
- 50 grams walnuts chopped
- 1 large free-range egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
for the buttercream
- 60 grams butter room temperature
- 230 grams icing sugar
- 20 grams custard powder
- 2-3 tbsp full fat milk
for the chocolate topping
- 120 grams dark chocolate
- 1 tbsp butter
Instructions
- Grease and line an 8-inch square baking tin or butter an 8-inch silicone baking tin.
- Place the digestive biscuit crumbs, coconut and chopped walnuts in a large bowl.
- Melt butter, cocoa powder and sugar together over a medium heat in a small saucepan. Don't let it boil.
- Crack in the egg, and stir well to cook/pasteurise it.
- Remove from the heat, add the vanilla and stir the chocolate mixture into the digestive biscuit crumb mixture.
- Stir until well incorporated and press into the bottom of the prepared tin. Pop into the fridge to chill for an hour.
- To prepare the buttercream, beat the room temperature butter, icing sugar and custard powder together and add enough milk to make it light and creamy.
- Spread in an even layer over the chilled base, and pop into the fridge for a further half an hour.
- To prepare the chocolate topping, melt the dark chocolate and butter together in a heatproof bowl suspended over a pan of barely simmering water.
- Spread evenly over the top of the buttercream, and chill until hardened.
- Cut into squares and serve!