Double Chocolate Magic Bars Recipe

By
Yvonne Ruperti
A photo of Yvonne Ruperti, a contributing writer at Serious Eats.
Yvonne Ruperti is a food writer, recipe developer, former bakery owner, and cookbook author. She is also an adjust professor of baking at the Culinary Institute of America in Singapore.
Learn about Serious Eats' Editorial Process
Updated April 06, 2025
20140228-284972-double-chocolate-almond-magic-bars-edit.jpg
Yvonne Ruperti

We all know that there's little need to fuss with the classic magic bar. The combination of buttery graham crumbs, coconut, walnuts, and chocolate chips all bound together by condensed milk is perfection in and of itself—not to mention how freakin' mindless it is to make. Just press the crumbs into the pan, layer in the goods, and bake. When something is that good and that simple, it's easy to get lazy and just go with the same old routine. These chocolaty bars are worth the change up.

By keeping the same simple magic bar recipe but making just a few ingredient changes, you end up with something right up a chocoholic's alley. Switch out the standard graham cracker crust for crushed chocolate wafer cookies (my favorite is Nabisco Famous wafers) and you're off to a dark and decadent start. Layer handfuls of two kinds of chocolate, milk and bittersweet, for some serious chocolate flavor that stays gooey from the condensed milk. For the nut layer, chopped almonds are an awesome complement for the coconut and give these bars a decidedly Mounds/Almond Joy vibe. A bar cookie that tastes like my favorite candy bar? Now that's what I call magic.

Recipe Details

Double Chocolate Magic Bars Recipe

Prep 10 mins
Cook 30 mins
Active 5 mins
Cooling Time 60 mins
Total 100 mins
Makes 1 pan
Cook Mode (Keep screen awake)

Ingredients

  • 12 ounces Nabisco Famous Wafers, crushed (or chocolate graham cracker crumbs)

  • 13 tablespoons (6 1/2 ounces) unsalted butter, melted

  • 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

  • 1 cup (6 ounces) milk chocolate chips (or chunks)

  • 1 (7-ounce) bag shredded  sweetened coconut

  • 1 1/2 cups (7 1/2 ounces) whole unblanched almonds

  • 1 cup (6 ounces) bittersweet chocolate chips (or chunks)

  • 1 (14-ounce) can condensed milk

Directions

  1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat to 350°F. Grease sides of 13- by 9- by 2-inch pan. Stir crushed chocolate wafers with butter, sugar, and salt until moistened. Firmly press into bottom of prepared pan.

  2. Scatter milk chocolate chips into pan. Layer coconut, almonds, and then bittersweet chips on top. Evenly drizzle condensed milk on top. Bake until golden and bubbling, about 30 minutes. Transfer pan to wire rack to cool completely before cutting into squares.

Special equipment

13- by 9-inch pan

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
8813Calories
559gFat
848gCarbs
149gProtein
×
Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories8813
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 559g716%
Saturated Fat 284g1,421%
Cholesterol 651mg217%
Sodium 4134mg180%
Total Carbohydrate 848g308%
Dietary Fiber 82g294%
Total Sugars 595g
Protein 149g
Vitamin C 14mg70%
Calcium 2771mg213%
Iron 55mg306%
Potassium 6643mg141%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

More Serious Eats Recipes