I’ve been spending a bit of time in Nanaimo lately as Helijet opened its new route. Almost every visit has included a networking event or meeting and nearly every one featured a Nanaimo Bar on the menu.
While it’s not a new find, the Friday Find this week may be a find for some. At a previous tourism job the staff did a non-scientific poll and found that awareness of the venerable dessert squares stayed fairly constant throughout the West Coast and Prairie provinces but decreased the further east one travelled.
While there is much debate about the origins of the Nanaimo Bar, the recipe has stayed fairly unchanged since it first appeared in the 1950s. Some variations on the tried & true mix of nut/chocolate/wafer crumb base, custard flavoured filling and melted chocolate topping include mint, mocha or coconut filling but the original is by far the most common and popular.
Many places sell the sweet squares now but if you’d like to try your own hand at it, this recipe by Joyce Hardcastle was deemed the ultimate Nanaimo Bar by the City of Nanaimo:
Nanaimo Bar Recipe
Bottom Layer
½ cup unsalted butter (European style cultured)
¼ cup sugar
5 tbsp. cocoa
1 egg beaten
1 ¼ cups graham wafer crumbs
½ c. finely chopped almonds
1 cup coconut
Melt first 3 ingredients in top of double boiler. Add egg and stir to cook and thicken. Remove from heat. Stir in crumbs, coconut, and nuts. Press firmly into an ungreased 8″ x 8″ pan.
Second Layer
½ cup unsalted butter
2 Tbsp. and 2 Tsp. cream
2 Tbsp. vanilla custard powder
2 cups icing sugar
Cream butter, cream, custard powder, and icing sugar together well. Beat until light. Spread over bottom layer.
Third Layer
4 squares semi-sweet chocolate (1 oz. each)
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
Melt chocolate and butter over low heat. Cool. Once cool, but still liquid, pour over second layer and chill in refrigerator.
For the recipe and more information on the Nanaimo Bar and Tourism Nanaimo’s new Nanaimo Bar Trail visit nanaimo.ca