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Living Well Mom

Simple, easy, and natural ways to care for your family.

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Magic Cookie Bars | Seven Layer Bars

By Erika in Christmas

Christmas Cookies Christmas recipes gluten-free gluten-free optionThis post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

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Seven Layer Magic Cookie Bars - with chocolate, butterscotch, coconut, walnuts, graham, and more, this mouthwatering cookie bar recipe is a crowd favorite. Plus it's quick and easy to make!
Seven Layer Magic Cookie Bars - with chocolate, butterscotch, coconut, walnuts, graham, and more, this mouthwatering cookie bar recipe is a crowd favorite. Plus it's quick and easy to make!

These Magic Cookie Bars with seven layers are a must-have Christmas cookie. A buttery graham cracker crust topped with chocolate and butterscotch are among other tasty ingredients, all melted together in a sweet gooey melt-in-your-mouth bar.

magic cookie bars collection of photos this idea now...

This magic cookie bar recipe is one of the easiest Christmas cookies you can make. You don’t even need a mixing bowl or mixer; all you have to do is layer all the ingredients in a baking pan and bake for close to half-hour. That’s it!

Seven Layer Bars are mouth-wateringly delicious with chewy chocolate, butterscotch, coconut, graham, and more. There are seven layers so seven ingredients after all! This is the original version – the recipe I grew up making with my mother every year during the holidays. I think it’s pretty similar, even the same as the Eagle Condensed Milk brand’s recipe, but I haven’t checked lately.

seven layer magic cookie bars on brown parchment paper

One of the great things about this Christmas dessert recipe is it’s easy to make your own magic cookie bar variations. If you prefer no coconut, you can simply leave it out.

I even include a gluten-free magic cookie bars recipe below (it’s SUPER easy).

Seven Layer Magic Cookie Bars

Ingredients you’ll need:

  • butter or margarine
  • graham crackers crumbs (pre-crushed graham crackers are fine or you can buy graham crackers and crush them yourself in a food processor or blend.)
  • semi-sweet chocolate chips
  • butterscotch chips
  • shredded coconut (don’t use large or extra-fine shredded coconut- the medium-shred works just right. You can use sweetened or unsweetened.)
  • chopped walnuts or pecans
  • sweetened condensed milk (regular full-fat works the best)

magic cookie bar ingredients - butterscotch, butter, nuts, coconut

Recommended Supplies


Magic Cookie Bar Variations

  • No coconut magic cookie bars – follow the instructions above, simply leave out the coconut
  • Milk chocolate – substitute milk chocolate chips for semi-sweet or use 1/2 semi-sweet and 1/2 milk chocolate chip.
  • Dark chocolate chips – substitute dark chocolate chips for semi-sweet.
  • Pretzels – subsitute pretzels for the nuts
  • Peanut butter chips – substitute peanut butter chips for the butterscotch
  • Andes Mint magic cookie bars – substitute the butterscotch chips with andes mint bits. (You can find broken up mint pieces for this purpose or simply break up the full-sized mints into smaller pieces.)
  • your own versions – love nuts? add more or use both walnuts and pecans. If you find butterscotch too sweet, you can substitute milk chocolate chips. This recipe is very easy to tweak.

stack of magic cookie bars with beige spotted background and coconut flakes

Gluten-Free Magic Cookie Bars

To make gluten-free seven layer magic bars, you’ll need:

  • butter or margarine
  • gluten-free graham crackers. (Toss them into your food processor or blender to grind up into fine bits.)
  • semi-sweet chocolate chips (Nestle chocolate chips ARE gluten-free)
  • Hershey’s butterscotch chips (Nestle is NOT gluten-free)
  • shredded coconut (don’t use large or extra fine shredded coconut- the medium-shred works just right. You can use sweetened or unsweetened.)
  • chopped walnuts or pecans
  • sweetened condensed milk (Eagle brand IS gluten-free)

If you or your child are very sensitive to gluten, it’s always best to check the labels yourself as we never know when a brand may change their ingredients.

Follow the instructions for the regular magic cookie bars below to make this gluten-free version.

collection of photos - magic cookie bars recipe

How to Make the Best Magic Cookie Bars

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Tip: to prevent sticking, add parchment paper to the bottom of a 9x13x2″ pan.

Melt the butter and pour it into the pan. It should just cover the bottom. My mother used to put the pan in the oven to slowly melt the butter, but I find that too slow and I just melt it in the microwave or on the stove and pour it straight into the pan.

Sprinkle the graham cracker crumbs evenly over the butter. Don’t worry about it looking perfect.

Sprinkle the chocolate chips and butterscotch chips over the graham layer.

layout of printable recipe binder pages

chocolate chips and butterscotch chips inside of pan/ magic cookie bars

Next, sprinkle on the coconut…

coconut flakes on top of chocolate chips and butterscotch chips in a pan

…and walnuts.

nuts on top of coconut flakes and chocolate chips and butterscotch chips in a pan

Lastly, pour the sweetened condensed milk evenly over everything.

melted white chocolate chips on crunched up nuts and coconut flakes and chocolate chips and butterscotch chips

Bake your magic cookie bars for 25-30 minutes until the edges are just turning golden brown.

all the ingredients cooked in a pan

Cool your bars completely (if you can resist waiting that long) then cut into bars.

Magic cookie bars

And there you have it – quick and easy Christmas magic cookie bars!

More Delicious Christmas Cookies Recipes to Try:

  • Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies
  • Classic Peanut Butter Blossoms (Gluten-Free)
  • Gluten-Free Snickerdoodles
  • Russian Tea Cookies/Snowballs/Mexican Wedding Cookies
  • Chocolate Peppermint Sandwich Cookies
  • Candy Caramel Bars
  • Ooey Gooey Chunky Bars
  • Eggnog Logs
  • The Easiest Fantasy Fudge
Print

Magic Cookie Bars | Seven Layer Bars

stack of magic cookie bars with beige spotted background and coconut flakes
Print Recipe

★★★★★

4.7 from 11 reviews

These Magic Cookie Bars with seven layers are a must-have Christmas cookie. A buttery graham cracker crust topped with chocolate and butterscotch are among other tasty ingredients, all melted together in a sweet gooey melt-in-your mouth bar.

  • Author: Erika at Living Well Mom.com
  • Prep Time: 5 mins
  • Cook Time: 30 mins
  • Total Time: 35 mins
  • Yield: 18 1x
  • Category: dessert
  • Method: baking
  • Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
  • 1 1/4 cup graham crackers crumbs (about 8–9 graham crackers crushed. Use gluten-free if needed)
  • 1 cup chocolate chips
  • 1 cup butterscotch chips (use Hershey’s if gluten-free)
  • 1 cup shredded coconut*
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1 (14 oz) can of sweetened condensed milk (use Eagle for gluten-free)

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Melt the butter and pour evenly into a 9x13x2” pan. (It will just barely cover the bottom.) Spread graham crackers crumbs over the butter. Sprinkle the butterscotch & chocolate chips over next. Then sprinkle the coconut and nuts on.
  3. Lastly, pour the sweetened condensed milk over the top, evenly covering everything.
  4. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the edges begin to turn golden brown.
  5. Cool completely and cut into bars.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 bar

Keywords: Christmas cookies, Christmas dessert, magic cookie bars, gluten-free Christmas cookies

all of the ingredients for magic cookie bars

Copyright © Living Well Mom. All content and images are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If you would like to republish this recipe, please re-write the recipe in your own words. Alternatively, you may link back to this post for the recipe.

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    Filed Under: Christmas, Desserts, Recipes, Seasonal Tagged With: Christmas Cookies, Christmas recipes, gluten-free, gluten-free optionPublished on September 29, 2019

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    About Erika

    Erika Bragdon is a second-generation homeschooling mom with 3 kids at home and 1 in college. She lives in the beautiful hills of New Hampshire on a small farm and loves writing, baking, nature, and sharing flower essences and more natural solutions with moms.

    Comments

    1. Danielle says

      December 21, 2012 at 4:04 pm

      Oh if only I had graham cracker crumbs on hand!! These are my favorite but I’ve never figured out how to make them (for fear I’d eat them all!).

      Reply
    2. Emily says

      December 21, 2012 at 5:02 pm

      Looks so yummy! Perfect for a holiday treat.

      Reply
    3. Pam says

      December 21, 2012 at 5:50 pm

      I used to love these! I haven’t made them in a while though. Thanks for helping me remember to make a batch. 🙂 Yum.

      Reply
      • Alexis Mobley says

        January 9, 2017 at 1:18 pm

        I’ve had these Magic Cookie Bars “YEARS” ago and never forgot them, there taste and wanting more. Thank you for posting this recipe. I have most of the ingredients at home. For such a time as this!!!! I’m not crazy about nuts, I’m going to try stick pretzels and add a few raisins or craisins!! Can’t wait…floating home soon to be creative!!

        ★★★★★

        Reply
        • Janet says

          January 14, 2018 at 1:38 pm

          Did you try the pretzels, and how did that work out? Thanks

          Reply
          • Effy says

            November 5, 2018 at 6:07 pm

            I used pretzels instead of walnuts – my son is allergic – and they are delicious!!!

            Reply
    4. mel says

      December 21, 2012 at 6:02 pm

      These look absolutely amazing!! I want to make them!

      Reply
    5. Jillian says

      December 21, 2012 at 8:47 pm

      Those sounds awesome!! *drool*

      Reply
    6. Keara B. says

      December 22, 2012 at 12:12 am

      Holy cow, this looks delicious! Thanks for sharing. 🙂

      Reply
    7. Elaine Lund says

      December 28, 2012 at 12:23 am

      MMMMM! I haven’t had these in years!

      Reply
    8. Julie says

      December 17, 2016 at 1:24 am

      Do you think it would taste, or even come out right if I lefts out some, or all of the butterscotch chips and used mini marshmallows instead? I’m not sure if unit would be damp enough because that would be missing a melted ingredient.

      Reply
      • Erika says

        December 17, 2016 at 3:23 pm

        That sounds like a fun idea. I’d try it – it might be a little more crumbly and less “gooey”, but your idea will taste delicious!

        Reply
      • Teresa Little says

        January 7, 2017 at 12:30 pm

        I use peanut butter chips instead of butterscotch chips and leave coconut out

        Reply
    9. Julie says

      December 17, 2016 at 1:26 am

      * I’m sorry, I wish this had edit. I need to learn to proofread before posting.

      *left *recipe

      Reply
    10. Linda says

      December 17, 2016 at 8:42 pm

      Not enough graham cracker crumbs. Maybe should have been 1-1/2 cups??

      Reply
      • Ashley says

        December 22, 2016 at 5:43 pm

        I just made them… I felt like most of the amounts weren’t enough, or a 13×9 pan was too big.

        Reply
        • Erika says

          December 23, 2016 at 12:11 pm

          I’m sorry it didn’t turn out as you hoped, Ashley. I use a 9×13″ pan because the recipe is quite rich and results in a thinner bar. You could try an 8 or 9″ square baking pan for thicker results.

          Reply
      • Erika says

        December 23, 2016 at 12:09 pm

        Why was 1 cup not enough, Linda? I’m curious because I have made this exact recipe for years without any issues. Hopefully it still tasted delicious for you! 🙂

        Reply
        • Triish says

          January 21, 2017 at 10:20 pm

          Your recipe calls for 1/2 C. of graham crackers. I just use one sleeve. Seems to be enough. So tasty!

          Reply
          • Erika says

            January 22, 2017 at 11:38 am

            That works too, Trish. Glad you love the recipe!

            Reply
        • Rhonda says

          April 15, 2019 at 7:48 pm

          I tried this in a 9×13 dish. It never really hardened up. Was 1 stick of butter correct? It is a little greasy.

          Reply
          • Erika says

            April 16, 2019 at 9:40 am

            Yes, it is a 9×13 dish and 1 stick of butter. You need to let it cool completely if you don’t want the bars to fall apart.

            Reply
    11. Lisa says

      December 23, 2016 at 4:04 pm

      I am making them right now and have only done the butter and graham cracker crumb step and there is not enough graham cracker crumbs for the 1 stick of butter ratio for 9×13 pan. Mine looks nothing like your pic so I got on here to check the comments. I guess I will be adding more crumbs. My daughter loves these and I am sure they will turn out delicious!

      Reply
      • Erika says

        December 30, 2016 at 12:57 pm

        This is so strange, Lisa, because I just made this recipe a couple days ago using these exact measurements and it was just fine. You don’t have to pat the graham cracker crumbs in – just sprinkle it evenly over the butter and continue layering with the other ingredients. It will all stick together and turn out delicious! Thanks for your feedback!

        Reply
    12. Vicky Wellwood says

      January 9, 2017 at 11:20 pm

      Your picture and recipe doesn’t match- it looks like you put the nuts after the sweetened condensed milk?

      Reply
      • Erika says

        January 10, 2017 at 9:14 am

        A slight oversight with the photos. You can do it either way and it will taste the same, Vicky. 🙂

        Reply
        • Elizabeth Fuimaono says

          August 13, 2018 at 9:32 pm

          I love how easy and simple you made this Magic Cookie Bars recipe for me to follow. I was very impressed! I made it over the weekend and it turned out great! Although, I bought dark chocolate chips by accident and was worried that it would change the flavor but it actually lessened the sweetness and was perfect after all. Thank you so much for sharing this easy Christmas dessert.

          ★★★★★

          Reply
          • Erika says

            August 26, 2018 at 9:45 am

            I love the idea of using dark chocolate chips. Yum!

            Reply
    13. Lori says

      July 28, 2017 at 8:45 pm

      Once when I made these, I didn’t have any butterscotch chips, so I sprinkled on some toffee chips and during baking they melted and made the bars kind of “carmelly” and really yummy!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Erika says

        July 31, 2017 at 10:28 am

        That sounds delicious, Lori. Great idea!

        Reply
    14. Liz says

      September 7, 2017 at 7:14 pm

      I wonder if this is the delicious cookie bar that my Grandma and all the other sweet little old ladies at her church makes. I went there for a funeral a couple weeks ago and I can’t get the experience of the little bar out of my head. There was a chocolate one and a prune I think one. OH MY GOODNESS THEY ARE INCREDIBLE, I will have to try yours out and see I could’ve sworn those had oats or something in them.

      Reply
    15. Linda Ogden says

      December 16, 2017 at 11:06 am

      I love these and make them every year, but get a bit frustrated with the bars sticking to the pan. Do you use wax paper? Metal pan better than a g,ass pan?

      Reply
      • Erika says

        December 18, 2017 at 9:43 am

        I would use parchment paper to prevent sticking. Good luck!

        Reply
    16. ListsForAll.com says

      February 16, 2018 at 12:17 pm

      Hey Erika,

      Great job with these 7 Layer Bars. Just wanted to let you know that we added them to our new list of the Best Dessert Recipes https://www.listsforall.com/best-dessert-recipes/ I am sure our readers are really going to enjoy this recipe as much as we do.

      Keep up the good work!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
    17. Esther says

      August 19, 2018 at 4:11 pm

      I made these using Nut Topping (ice cream topping) instead of coconut flakes. One graham cracker sleeve is the perfect amount. These were amazing! Thanks for the recipe!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
    18. Amanda says

      November 15, 2018 at 3:33 pm

      Is a metal pan required?? My magic cookie bars came out super soft and smooshy. Yours looks well intact ..

      ★★★★

      Reply
      • Erika says

        November 26, 2018 at 8:14 am

        Hi Amanda, no, I usually use glass. What type of pan did you use?

        Reply
    19. Carla says

      December 26, 2018 at 3:01 pm

      Not a fan of coconut could these be made without it

      Reply
      • Erika says

        January 2, 2019 at 1:05 pm

        yes, just leave the coconut out and you’ll have 6 layer bars!

        Reply
        • Abby stacey says

          December 22, 2019 at 4:23 pm

          Can you freeze these after you make them ?

          Reply
          • Erika says

            January 6, 2020 at 9:54 am

            Hi Abby, that’s a good question – I have never tried freezing these bars (they actually seem to last for a good 2 weeks – we still have some my family is munching on because I made so many this Christmas!)

            Reply
    20. Regina says

      December 30, 2018 at 8:53 pm

      Any chance you know how long they stay fresh? I want to make these magic cookie bars in advance for a party….?

      Reply
      • Erika says

        January 2, 2019 at 1:02 pm

        Hi Regina, ours lasted for a good 6 days covered in a container before they started to taste a bit stale.

        Reply
    21. Amber Faust says

      December 26, 2019 at 1:14 pm

      These cookie bars look amazing.

      Reply
      • Erika says

        January 6, 2020 at 9:52 am

        Thank you, Amber!

        Reply
    22. Linda Lyons says

      January 21, 2020 at 8:28 pm

      The butter ratio of mine looks off (they’re just out of the oven so they haven’t cooled yet), but I had puddles of butter bubbling up—ended up sopping it up with a paper towel. Did you mean 1/2 stick or 1/2 cup (I read it to mean 1/2 cup so I used a whole stick). Thanks-Linda

      ★★★

      Reply
    23. Erika says

      January 22, 2020 at 11:29 am

      It is 1/2 cup of butter – thanks for pointing that out, I just updated the recipe so no one else gets confused. And yes, that is the correct amount of butter. Did you finish the recipe? It is normal to have extra butter with the first step. If you try it with less butter, it is likely to be too dry and will fall apart later. Hope the finished bars were delicious!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
    24. Joanne says

      January 22, 2020 at 11:32 am

      These bars are one of our favorites – we make them every year and it’s so easy too! Thank you for this delicious Christmas “cookie” recipe!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
    25. Sealani says

      December 27, 2020 at 8:53 am

      Thank you Erika, for making this recipe available to the world. I’ve been making “dream bars” or “magic bars” for many years.

      Every Christmas season I make these as a thank you to all the people who support my life – the mail person, my pharmacy staff, my doctors’ staff(s) , my neighbors – and I do lots of variations. One must be careful to not over-bake them, which I keep doing. I leave the kitchen when they are almost brown and then 10 minutes later it’s too much and they all are burnt. Luckily, some of them can be salvaged – this is a very rich, hearty cookie bar, and you can cut off the burnt part. Even with a hint of burnt, they are delicious.

      I bake them at 325, for about 35 minutes.

      This year my variations included: dry roasted peanuts, walnuts, almonds, and mixed nuts (almonds, walnuts, pistachio, pecans.) The chips were: butterscotch, white chocolate, semi-sweet chocolate, and caramel.

      When I ate sugar, I would have a hard time not eating the whole pan within a week.

      I have one last batch to go in, but I don’t have any coconut, which lead to a search for a replacement – which is how I landed here.
      I recommend that if you are trying this recipe for the first time, some guidance: you don’t want floating butter that’s not covered,. I would recommend putting in a bit more of the cracker if you see that the crackers have soaked into the butter..

      ★★★★★

      Reply
    26. Sally says

      January 7, 2022 at 6:11 am

      This recipe was so easy to make and so delicious! I’ve added this to our regular cookie recipe collection. Thanks for the delicious dessert!

      ★★★★★

      Reply

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