Perfect Christmas Magic Bars — The Layered Holiday Dessert

Magic bars (a.k.a. seven-layer bars) are the easy crowd-pleasing dessert. Layered. Indulgent. Done right, spectacular.

The classic recipe (9x13 pan)

Ingredients (the layers)

• 1/2 cup butter (melted)
• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 1 cup butterscotch chips
• 1 cup shredded coconut
• 1 cup chopped pecans

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350°F
2. Mix butter + graham cracker crumbs
3. Press into 9x13 pan
4. Drizzle condensed milk evenly
5. Sprinkle chocolate chips
6. Sprinkle butterscotch chips
7. Sprinkle coconut
8. Sprinkle pecans
9. Press down gently
10. Bake 25-30 minutes
11. Cool completely; cut

Christmas variations

Red and green

• White chocolate + cranberries + pistachios
• Festive colors

Salted caramel

• Caramel chips + flaky salt
• Sophisticated

Peanut butter

• Peanut butter chips
• Kid favorite

What NOT to do

• Cut warm (falls apart)
• Skip the press-down
• Use old coconut (rancid)
• Overbake

Cross-references

For perfect Christmas blondies — adjacent.

For perfect Christmas no-bake cookies — adjacent.

For Christmas desserts — broader.

Perfect Christmas magic bars are the easy layered dessert. Crowd-pleasing. Indulgent. The bar that disappears fast.