White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Magic Bars

White chocolate and macadamia nuts go together particularly well in drop cookies, where the sweetness of the white chocolate makes for a nice contrast with buttery cookie dough and crisp macadamia nuts, but these two ingredients can be a great combination in a whole variety of other baked goods, as well. A great example of these flavors coming together is in this batch of White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Magic Bars. Magic bars, also known as 7-layer bars, are a type of bar cookie where all of the components are layered together and then baked. It is “magic” because there is almost no mixing involved and the bars come out of the oven perfectly melded together in one tasty treat.

The bottom layer of this is a crust of graham cracker crumbs, oatmeal and butter. The crust is flavorful and slightly crumbly, but a great base to hold the bars together. On top of this crust are the white chocolate chips and macadamia nuts. I always use roasted and salted macadamias in these because roasting the nuts gives them a nice crisp texture and the added salt keeps these bars from being too sweet and makes them very balanced. The final layers are shredded coconut and sweetened condensed milk. The coconut just adds flavor and texture, while the sweetened condensed milk acts like glue to bind everything together.

This is a simple treat that literally has layers of flavor. The finished bars have a great mixture of crisp, crunchy textures and gooey, melty ones. Creamy white chocolate, crunchy nuts and toasty coconut are all fantastic together – and dangerously addictive, so you might want to have some people on hand to share these with! The bars keep well in an airtight container for a couple of days and are best served at room temperature, although they can also be served chilled in warmer weather.

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Magic Bars
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup quick cooking oatmeal
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup roasted, salted macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped
1 cup shredded coconut, sweetened or unsweetened
1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk

Preheat oven to 350F and lightly grease an 8×8-inch baking pan.
In a medium bowl, stir together graham cracker crumbs, oats and melted butter. Pour into prepared pan and press into an even layer, using your fingertips,the back of a spoon or a spatula. Spread white chocolate chips in a layer on the graham crackers. Spread macadamia nuts in a layer on the chocolate chips. Spread coconut in a layer on top. Pour sweetened condensed milk evenly over everything.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until coconut is golden brown.
Cool completely before slicing.
Bars can be served at room temperature or chilled.

Makes 20 bars.