Nanaimo Bars; An Olympic Treat

So I was perusing the food section of the Inquirer on Thursday and saw this recipe for Nanaimo Bars. The story is that a local woman made them as part of a fund raising event and they became so popular that local coffee shops and such began selling them. Nanaimo is a town in British Columbia not far from where the Olympics are being staged. Hence, the name.

I wondered out loud, but more to myself, if they would be fun to make. Dave heard me (even though I was talking to myself) and said he really likes them so of course I had to make them. Here is the article with the recipe.

Ok mine came out square like the picture in the Wikipedia article. It was enough to make them. Putting them in the shape of the Olympic rings was too much for me! Now i'm not an expert baker by any means. I also have a small kitchen and not a lot of gadgets. So making these was a realy experiment... i mean experience! LOL Here are some of the modifications I had to make:

The graham crackers and nuts must be chopped fine. I do not own a food processor but I do have a crab mallet and ziploc bags. That woked just fine.

I wouldn't know a jellyroll pan if it jumped out and bit me so I used a 9.5*13.5 glass baking dish.

I also wasn't sure what the purpose of the parchment paper was (and i don't have any) so I simply greased it well. The cookies did not stick so I think I accomplished the task.

I do not own a double boiler either. So I boiled water in a medium saucepan with a stainless steel bowl in it to melt and cook the various ingredients. Awkward perhaps but it worked!

I also don't own a candy thermometer so I used a meat thermometer. It was clean and the ingredients of my cookies did not know the difference. (Please don't tell them)

I also used salted butter because that was what I had. However, I didn't have enough so I substituted margarine when I ran out. That probably changed the taste of the final cookie but it's ok.

I jus took them out of the baking dish after refrigerating them as per the recipe. They look kinda like the picture as I said before but very crumbly. They taste very sweet. I think they need to abe eaten in small doses. But all in all a pretty good treat! The real test will be when Dave gets to taste them tonight after dinner. It's been 11 years since he lived in Canada so hopefully his taste buds will forgive my efforts!

I may have to consider these for the Gormley Family cookie bake later this year. With all the steps it takes to make them there is lots for all the helpers to do!