These Paleo Magic Cookie Bars are just as rich and delicious as the classic seven-layer bars you know and love! This gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar-free version has an almond flour crust and homemade coconut milk caramel.

These Paleo Magic Cookie Bars are just as rich and delicious as the classic seven layer bars you know and love! This gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar free version has an almond flour crust and homemade coconut milk caramel.

Let’s talk about my favorite childhood dessert for a minute: Magic Cookie Bars. Also known as Seven Layer Bars or Hello Dolly Bars, these pieces of chewy, chocolatey dessert art are truly delicious and are remembered with great fondness by all who have tried them.

I really don’t know that I’ve ever had someone not love them. The combination of so many delicious things thrown on top of a buttery graham cracker crust and topped with sweetened condensed milk just really can’t end up as anything but insanely delicious.

These Paleo Magic Cookie Bars are just as rich and delicious as the classic seven layer bars you know and love! This gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar free version has an almond flour crust and homemade coconut milk caramel.

My mom and I would make batches and batches of these for Christmas every year growing up, and when I was little I would constantly be sneaking outside to grab a bar (or three) out of the freezer in our garage where my mom would attempt to hide them from us.

Magic Cookie Bars always bring back the best memories for me. Creating a healthier version of the classic, that tastes just as good, has been on my mind for a good long while now.

These Paleo Magic Cookie Bars are just as rich and delicious as the classic seven layer bars you know and love! This gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar free version has an almond flour crust and homemade coconut milk caramel.

These bars aren’t low-calorie and you still need to eat them in moderation. However, in this version, the calories come from more natural sources that aren’t loaded with preservatives and empty sugars. My dad, one of the Magic Cookie Bars biggest fans, couldn’t keep his hands off these and said they were even better than the original!

These Paleo Magic Cookie Bars are just as rich and delicious as the classic seven layer bars you know and love! This gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar free version has an almond flour crust and homemade coconut milk caramel.

They do require a bit more effort than the originals. Instead of opening a can of sweetened condensed milk, you’ve got to make your own homemade paleo + vegan version by reducing down the coconut milk and coconut sugar. But, it’s a process that doesn’t require a lot of thought, just a distant eye and the occasional stir to keep it from burning.

If you ask me, that’s not a lot to do to cut out the major amounts of sugar that would’ve been in that can of sweetened condensed milk. Besides that, everything’s pretty much the same in terms of effort.

These Paleo Magic Cookie Bars are just as rich and delicious as the classic seven layer bars you know and love! This gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar free version has an almond flour crust and homemade coconut milk caramel.

The crust is made out of crushed nuts instead of crushed graham crackers. With a little bit of cinnamon stirred into the nut mixture, you won’t even notice the difference!

The toppings are super similar to the classic recipe, with the exception of leaving out the butterscotch chips. I couldn’t think of a reasonable substitute, and the original chips weren’t too much of a loss for me. The bars are still plenty sweet and decadent without them!

What’s the best way to store them?

My personal preference is keeping them in the refrigerator or freezer. It keeps them super chewy and absolutely delicious. They’ll last a week or two in the refrigerator, or a few months in the freezer!

They’ll be good at room temperature for a few days, if you choose to keep them that way.

These Paleo Magic Cookie Bars are just as rich and delicious as the classic seven layer bars you know and love! This gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar free version has an almond flour crust and homemade coconut milk caramel.

I’ve been making this new + improved version of my favorite magic cookie bars for a while now. They’ve now become a new staple at Christmas! My sister and I fight over who gets to devour them…I’m totally in love with this recipe and truly impressed with how much they taste like the original. It’s become seriously hard to me to resist eating all of these paleo magic cookie bars once I know I’ve got some stashed in the freezer!

I’ll definitely be making these again and again, and I guarantee they won’t last too long around here! Sooo many of you have let me know you’re loving this new version as well since I posted them. It puts the biggest smile on my face to know I can help you enjoy magic cookie bars, no matter whether your diet requires no gluten, or no dairy, or no grains. If you want Paleo and vegan in the most decadent way, whip a batch of these up. You won’t regret it! Enjoy :)

These Paleo Magic Cookie Bars are just as rich and delicious as the classic seven layer bars you know and love! This gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar free version has an almond flour crust and homemade coconut milk caramel.
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These Paleo Magic Cookie Bars are just as rich and delicious as the classic seven layer bars you know and love! This gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar free version has an almond flour crust and homemade coconut milk caramel.

Paleo Magic Cookie Bars (Gluten Free + Vegan)


Description

These Paleo Magic Cookie Bars are just as rich and delicious as the classic seven layer bars you know and love! This gluten-free, vegan, and refined sugar free version has an almond flour crust and homemade coconut milk caramel.


Ingredients

Scale

For the coconut milk caramel

  • 1 (15.5 oz) can full-fat coconut milk
  • ½ cup coconut sugar
  • 2 tablespoons coconut butter
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

For the bars

  • 1 cup (96g) almond flour
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt
  • 3 tablespoons coconut butter, melted
  • ¾ cup dark chocolate chips
  • ½ cup coarsely chopped walnuts
  • ¼ cup coarsely chopped almonds
  • ½ cup unsweetened flaked coconut

Instructions

For the coconut milk caramel

  1. In a heavy saucepan, heat the coconut milk and sugar over medium heat, stirring often, until coconut milk begins to boil. Lower heat to simmer and reduce by half, stirring often to prevent the sugar from scorching. (If thicker, caramelized sugar begins to form on sides or bottom, use a whisk to reincorporate it.)
  2. When it reaches a similar consistency to a thick sweetened condensed milk or a drippy caramel sauce, in around 30 minutes, add 2 tablespoons coconut butter and vanilla. Stir well and remove from heat. You should end up with a little over a cup of caramel-colored, sweetened coconut milk.

For the crust/bars

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line an 8×8″ pan with parchment paper, then lightly grease with coconut oil.
  2. While the caramel is simmering (be sure to continue stirring every few minutes), mix together the almond flour, cinnamon, salt, and coconut butter. Sprinkle the crust mixture into the prepared baking pan. Using your fingers or a spatula, press the mixture down in an even layer, covering the bottom of the baking dish.
  3. Sprinkle the chocolate chips, chopped nuts, and coconut flakes evenly over the crust. Pour the sweetened coconut milk evenly over everything. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until lightly browned.
  4. Let chill in the refrigerator for about an hour or until completely chilled and set. Cut into 16 squares with a sharp knife and serve!

Notes

Recipe adapted from She Cooks, She Cleans

This post is sponsored by Relative Race! Thanks so much for supporting the brands that support Bakerita :)

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