Magic Bars

I recently received a complimentary copy of a cookbook by the chef who cooks for Ellen Degeneres, Roberto Martin.

I was eager to get this cookbook because I have been finding some vegan dishes popping up in my diet (mostly breakfast and lunch).  And the title was intriguing- I am definitely a carnivore!  When I flipped through the book, I came across a recipe for “Magic Bars.”  Chocolate, coconut, and graham cracker crust sounded good to me.  I did have to revise the recipe just a bit to be gluten free, but it was easy to do.  Here is how I did it…

Magic Bars

Pieces:

1. 2 cups crushed gluten free ginger snap cookies
2. 12 tbsp. vegan butter, melted
3. 2 cups non dairy condensed milk (simmer 2 tbsp. cornstarch, one half cup white sugar, 4 cups almond milk, dash of vanilla in a saucepan for about 45 minutes until reduced to 2 cups)
4. one bag non dairy chocolate chips
5. one and one half cups flaked coconut
6. one and one half cups of your favorite nuts (like pecans or cashews)

Process:

1. Crush the ginger snap cookies in a food processor.
2. Combine the melted butter and ginger snaps in a bowl and pour them into a baking pan (13 x 9) to make a crust.
3. Pour the condensed milk over the crust.
4. Sprinkle the coconut, chocolate chips, and nuts over the condensed milk.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.
6. Let cool for at least a couple hours, and then cut into bars.

I would definitely give a thumbs up on this recipe!  The flavors were amazing, and I swear you would never know it was gluten and dairy free.  Although, I do have to make this again to really get the consistency right.  I think I needed a smaller pan to make them thicker and truly cut them into bars.  Also, I tried to use soy milk to make the condensed milk and the consistency was off… next time I will do what the recipe says and use almond milk (which is thinner and probably reduces better).  Overall, I was pleased!  I will definitely try other recipes in this book.