No Bowl Chocolate Nut Bars

I’m not kidding! This really is made without a single bowl. From scratch. Find out how!

I am one of those people who always overcommits. Especially when it comes to anything food related. Then 7 out of 10 times, I find myself in a flurry at the last minute because I promised to bring something sweet for lunch with the girls, or to make something for my friends’ son’s school bake sale because she works full time and doesn’t have the time to bake something.

So it’s super handy to have a few really fast sweet recipes up your sleeve and this is one of mine. The other two standbys I have are my No Bake 5 Ingredient Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars and my friend Helen from Scrummy Lane’s 6 Ingredient Swedish Chocolate Cake (which doubles as a super fast brownie too!).

I know you’re probably wondering how on earth these bars are made without using a bowl at all so I’ll cut straight to the chase!

A picture says a thousand words – well, 12 pictures in this case – so here’s the recipe. You don’t need me to write there recipe out for you, do you? 😉

Basically, this bar is made by creating a biscuit base using melted butter (which I melt in the pan while the oven is heating) then pressing in crushed biscuits. Then it’s topped with desiccated coconut, nuts (your choice!), chocolate chips, then finally topped with condensed milk which is what brings the whole bar together. I reserve some nuts and choc chips to garnish the top with because I think it looks prettier, but that’s optional. 🙂

The end result? These bars are fabulous. The base is like a cheesecake crumb base. The inside is lovely and chewy from the condensed milk and coconut which meld together to almost become like a caramel. Then there’s the soft crunch of nuts and of course, the chocolate. Chocolate makes everything better!

This is one of those recipes that is not a “hack”, but rather an incidental side benefit is that it can be made without dirtying a single bowl. I would make these even if I had to use a bowl to make them!

So keep this one tucked away for one of those days when you’re in a rush and you’ve promised to make a sweet treat for your family or friends!!  – Nagi x

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No Bowl Chocolate Nut Bars

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats

Prep: 10 mins

Cook: 30 mins

Total: 40 mins

Sweet

4.93 from 14 votes

Servings16

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Not a single bowl is required to make these bars! Everything is put together right in the cake pan. Made from scratch!

Ingredients

• ▢ 3.5 oz / 100g unsalted butter , cut into a few pieces
• ▢ 1 cup crushed Graham crackers or other plain sweet biscuits (Note 1)
• ▢ 1 cup desiccated coconut (unsweetened)
• ▢ 1 cup chopped nuts of choice (I used pecans, peanuts, almonds and pistachios)
• ▢ 1 1/2 cups (8 oz / 250g) chocolate chips (US - semi sweet will work great)
• ▢ 14 oz / 395g can sweetened condensed milk

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350F/180C.
• Grease and line a 23cm / 9" square cake pan. (Note 2)
• Place the butter in the pan. Pop it in the oven for 2 to 3 minutes until just melted, then remove. Don't let it brown!
• Swirl the butter so it is evenly coating the base. Then scatter over the crushed sweet biscuits and press down into the butter.
• Scatter over the coconut, followed by most of the nuts (reserve some for the top), most of the chocolate chips, then drizzle over the condensed milk. Use a rubber spatula to smooth the surface and press down to compress the mixture.
• Top with remaining nuts and chocolate chips.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until the edge of the surface is dark golden brown.
• Allow to cool in the pan for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight. Carefully remove using the overhang of the parchment paper, remove the paper then cut into 16 squares. Enjoy!

Recipe Notes:

1. 1 cup of crushed biscuits = around 11 Graham Crackers (US) or 11 Anne Marie Biscuits (Australia). You can use any plain biscuits you want. I place them in a large ziplock bag, remove excess air then bash it with a rolling pin. It's very therapeutic!

2. Refer to the photo for my shortcut way of doing this. I tear a piece of parchment/baking paper that is the width of the pan then line the pan. Then I grease the base (i.e. the parchment paper), tear another piece which is again the width of the pan, then lay that cross wise on top. No need for scissors!

3. Nutrition per slice.

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 64gCalories: 294cal (15%)Carbohydrates: 32.9g (11%)Protein: 5.1g (10%)Fat: 16.5g (25%)Saturated Fat: 8g (50%)Cholesterol: 22mg (7%)Sodium: 137mg (6%)Potassium: 159mg (5%)Fiber: 2.3g (10%)Sugar: 26.2g (29%)Vitamin A: 200IU (4%)Vitamin C: 0.8mg (1%)Calcium: 90mg (9%)Iron: 2.2mg (12%)

Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @RecipeTinEats.

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