Shhh, now listen… Christmas Magic Cookie Bars are a Dark Chocolate Cranberry Magic Bars that are a perfect blend of flavors and textures for your holiday baking. You will love the combination of sweet, tart and delicious in these Magic Cookie Bars. Loaded with dark chocolate and the tart cranberries it’s a true party in your mouth and definitely a recipe that needs to be shared with those you love.
This post and recipe was created for #ChristmasCookies! I was sent samples by some of the sponsors, Millican Pecans, companies but as always opinions are 100% mine.
If you are here it means you are my kind of people. You appreciate bold flavors combined to perfection. This recipe is just that. Perfection! It’s rich and decadent and you will keep going back for more.
So do yourself a favor and plan accordingly, make a plate for your neighbors, take to work and share with the office or make them for a cookie exchange. You will have the best of both worlds in knowing you made other smile along with yourself.
Christmas Magic Cookie Bars are truly a strange recipe in that there is no traditional mixing of dough. It magically comes together to create a wonder bar cookie. I know, it sounds silly but trust me here!
Magic Cookie Bars have been around longer than I can remember and the trick is Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk. In fact, Eagle Brand Magic Cookie Bars have been a favorite holiday recipe for many many years. It's. the magic that binds all the layers and flavors together making a ooey gooey Christmas cookie bars recipe.
Ingredients for Christmas Magic Cookie Bars
- Butter
- Crushed Graham Crackers
- Sweetened Condensed Milk
- Sweetened flaked Coconut
- Chocolate Chips (Dark Chocolate)
- White Chocolate Chips
- Pecans – Millican Pecans chopped nuts
- Dried cranberries or Craisins
- Red and Green Candies (optional addition)
How to make Christmas Magic Cookies Bar
Making Eagle Magic Bars is fun. It's a kid friendly recipe so let them help make them. Take the time to gather the ingredients necessary along with supplies like measuring cups and parchment paper.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl combined melted butter with crushed graham crackers and stir to combine. This is the base of the magic cookie bar and it may not seem like a lot, don't worry. It's perfect.
Press graham cracker mixture in the bottom of 9x 13 pan. Spray pan with cooking spray or line with parchment paper.
Pour sweetened condensed milk all over crust. It will naturally spread out and then begin topping with semi sweet chocolate chips, coconut, chopped nuts, dried cranberries and even holiday Christmas M&M if you wish.
Bake and allow bar cookies to completely cool before cutting. Trust me, do not try to cut these bad boys before they have cooled or you will have a delicious mess on your hands. Store cookies in sealed container.
You may have noticed that this recipe does not use common ingredients like baking power, eggs and vanilla. I think I mentioned that this bar cookie is not a traditional recipe but the magic comes in the baking process with the sweetened condensed milk.
Pro Tips
A few tips, tricks and suggestions. The crust may seem thin. It's perfect. Just make sure to press the crust into the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. It makes all the difference to have the crust pressed into the bottom of the pan.
I like to pour Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk over the crust. This gives me a nice base for the other ingredients to stick to. However, you can also pour sweetened condensed milk on top after all the other toppings too. Either works fine
Cool Completely. I know it's tempting to dive into this recipe but it will be an ooey gooey mess if you do. By allowing all the ingredients to cool it's much easier to cut into nice bars. I'm always impressed with a cooled cut bar especially when I bit in and taste all the flavors combined. It's Yummy!
In this recipe I have used Millican Pecans. They are fresh and a perfect choice when baking. They are harvested fresh and shelled with precise quality control. Millican Pecans deliver a very high quality, fresh product for you.
Most common FAQ Questions
How to Store Christmas Magic Cookie Bars
Keep your bar cookies stored inside of an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Any longer and they may dry out too much to enjoy.
Can I substitute Pecans for Walnuts?
Yes of course! You may even find that you enjoy it one way or another! Try them both ways to see for yourself.
Do Magic Cookie Bars need refrigerated?
These cookies do not need to be kept stored inside of the fridge, but you can keep them in the freezer for longer storage- they last up to 3 months in there if kept properly contained.
Can I freeze Magic Cookie Bar Recipe?
Yes, you can Freeze Magic Cookie Bar Recipe. Freeze in a sealed container for up to 3 months. To Thaw place on the counter until Magic Bars reach room temperature
Can you make cookies in a glass pan?
You can make these cookie bars inside of a 9×13 glass baking dish, just make sure that its greased well or lined with parchment paper.
How do you cut desserts cleanly?
The trick for cutting these bars cleanly is to either freeze the uncut cookie for a few minutes to solidify or to continually clean the knife after every cut. You can also do a combination of the two.
Holiday Desserts and Treats
- Blonde Brownies
- Scotcharoos
- Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars
- Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Baked S’mores
- Better than Sex Chex Mix
- Valentines Oreos
- Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bake Pie
- Apple Crisp
- Magic Cookie Bars
Cranberry Chocolate Magic Cookie Bars
Ingredients
- ½ Cup Butter - Melted
- 1 ½ Cup Gram Cracker Crumbs - About 11 rectangle crackers
- 1 Can Sweetened Condensed Milk
- 1 ½ Cup Shredded Sweetened Coconut
- 2 Cup Dark Chocolate Chips
- 1 Cup White Chocolate chips
- 1 Cup Pecans - Millican Peans
- 1 Cup Cranberries - Dried
Instructions
- Preheat Oven to 350 F
- Melt Butter and Mix melted butter into Crushed Graham Crackers
- Press Gram Cracker mixture into the bottom of a 9×13 greased pan
- Pour the Sweetened Condensed Milk over the Crust
- Top with Chocolate Chips, White Chocolate Chips, Coconut, Pecans, and dried cranberries
- Bake at 350 F for 25 Minutes
- Let cool completely before cutting
- Store in Sealed Container
Nutrition Disclaimer
All nutrition values are approximate and calculated by a plugin and are provided as a courtesy. Adding or subtracting ingredients will change the nutritional value.
Nutrition
Friday Christmas Cookie Recipes
- Chocolate Bonbons by That Recipe
- Chocolate Caramel Butter Pecan Shortbread Cookies by West Via Midwest
- Chocolate Dipped Soft Gingerbread Cookies by Daily Dish Recipes
- Chocolate Espresso Icebox Cookies by Leftovers Then Breakfast
- Chocolate-Dipped Orange Logs by Eat Move Make
- Christmas Monster Cookies by Cheese Curd In Paradise
- Cranberry Pecan Oatmeal Cookies by Blogghetti
- Frosted Eggnog Cookie Bars by Family Around the Table
- Grinch Heart Thumbprint Cookies by The Spiffy Cookie
- Holiday Everything Cookies by Frugal & Fit
- Honey Walnut Cookies by Books n' Cooks
- Kahlua Mudslide Cookies by Daily Dish Recipes
- Lavender Snickerdoodles by Palatable Pastime
- Linzer Cookies by Lemon Blossoms
- Little Monster Cookie Bites by Jersey Girl Cooks
- Maple Sugar Cookies by Karen's Kitchen Stories
- Mocha Chocolate Chunk Cookies by Making Miracles
- Mocha Sandies by Cindy's Recipes and Writings
- Pecan Pie Cookies by A Day in the Life on the Farm
- Peppermint Bark Surprise Cookies by Our Sutton Place
- Poppyseed Shortbread by A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures
- Sadie's Double Pecan Butter Cookies by Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
- Small Batch Pecan Fingers by Art of Natural Living
- Soft & Chewy Molasses Cookies by Sweet Beginnings
- Spiced Holiday Cutouts by Jolene's Recipe Journal
- Toasted Pecan Snowball Cookies by Swirls of Flavor
- White Chocolate Dipped Ginger Molasses Cookies by Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
Colleen - Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck
Wow! These are loaded with all of they yummy goodies!
Donna Jean Morgan
Everything looks delicious, I can't wait to try these recipes. Thanks for sharing.
Devour Dinner
Thanks Donna!