holy crap these are good

For a few weeks now I have had the craziest craving for what I now know to be seven-layer bars, but until very recently I didn't know what they were called. Because I grew up in a non-baking household (read: my mother has made it her goal never to bake anything), I've never eaten these bars at home. I probably had them at a picnic or one of the countless potlucks organized by my high school lacrosse team, and it's been so many years since I've had them that I wouldn't know where to turn for a recipe. Since starting to cook, I have become more curious in what I'm eating and how it's been prepared, but because any seven-layer bars I've had were probably devoured in my pre-cooking years, my memory of them is hazy--beyond chocolate chips, coconut and sweetness, I couldn't tell you a thing about them. Without a doubt, my musings about chocolate and coconut from earlier in the week stemmed from having this on my brain.

All this changed on Friday, when the Spring/Summer 2009 issue of my alma mater landed in my mailbox. I was giving the issue a cursory skim while watching a riveting episode of (what else) Law & Order when I saw it: a recipe for that sweet, square-shaped delight that had been running through my brain! Rejoice! They're super easy to make--even my mom offered to help out!--and better than I remembered.

Seven-layer bars
Adapted from Philadelphia Home, Spring/Summer 2009
Time: 35-40 minutes
Yield: This depends on how small or large you cut them (I made them very small, as they are super sweet and super rich!)

1 1/2 c. crushed graham crackers (this was 9 full sheets, or a third of a box)
1/2 c. unsalted butter melted
3/4 c. grain-sweetened chocolate chips
3/4 c. peanut butter chips
1/2 c. sliced almonds
1 c. dried cranberries
1 c. sweetened condensed milk
3/4 c. flaked coconut

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare an 8- or 9-inch square baking pan with a thin layer of vegetable oil or butter. (I used my Misto sprayer.)

2. In a medium bowl, thoroughly combine graham cracker crumbs and butter. Pour crumb mixture into the prepared pan and with a flat-bottomed drinking glass or measuring cup, pack crumbs into a firm layer.

3. Combine chocolate and peanut butter chips, and spread over crumbs, pressing firmly into crumb layer with your hands.

4. Sprinkle a layer of almonds over chips, and then sprinkle a layer of dried cranberries over almonds. Pour sweetened condensed milk over everything, and top with a layer of coconut.

5. Bake 25 minutes, then place on a rack to cool completely before cutting into bars. (This means completely. Like, more than an hour. I cut into it after an hour of cooling, and it was still melty and gooey, which was very nice and delicious but not at all bar-like.)

The recipe concludes with, "Do not refrigerate. Can be kept overnight." Which makes me think the author means that they can't survive longer than that. But based on the sampling I did this morning (in the name of kitchen research and blogging accuracy, I swear!), they're still doing fine after a day and a half. I've stored them in a cookie tin.

My room for improvement: The bottom layer was a little mushy and fell apart easily; next time, I might bake the graham cracker crumbs for a bit before layering on the other ingredients (or either up the amount of graham crackers or reduce the amount of butter). Also, while I appreciate the nutritional benefits of the dried cranberries, I'll probably reduce the quantity (or substitute with another dried fruit) next time. Finally, I mistakenly bought shredded, not flaked, coconut, and I imagine I would prefer the texture of more substantial pieces of coconut.