This post may contain affiliate links. See my privacy policy for details.
I wanted to jazz up Nanaimo bars. I don’t know why I thought of Bailey’s, other than I wanted to add it to my coffee as usual first thing in the morning while trying to deal with getting the kids up and out to school, but as usual, I resisted temptation. I did not, however, resist making bars with Baileys in the middle.
These received rave reviews from the gals at work (but they will eat anything, I swear) and you can adjust the Bailey’s to your liking in the middle layer. I am a little out of season, these would be fabulous at Christmas.
You can also make a mint version AND a peanut butter one. Oh..my lord..can you imagine the peanut butter one?
Ingredients Needed:
Bottom Layer
1/2 cup of butter
1/3 cup of sifted cocoa
1/4 cup of granulated sugar
1 large egg, beaten
1 3/4 cups of graham cracker crumbs
3/4 cup of unsweetened coconut
1/2 shaved chocolate
Middle Layer
2 cups of icing sugar
1/2 cup of butter
2 1/2-3 tbsp of Mint Chocolate Baileys
2 tbsp of cornstarch
Top Layer
1 cup of chocolate chips
2 tbsp butter
Melt the butter, cocoa and sugar together in a pot on low heat.
Shave the 1/2 cup of chocolate. I wanted to make the bottom more chocolaty and make up for the lack of any nuts in the base.
Remove the melted butter/cocoa mix from the stove and beat the egg in quickly, making sure there are no lumps.
Add in the graham crumbs and coconut, then when it’s slightly cooler add in the chocolate shavings.
Press the crumb base into an ungreased 9×9 pan.
Cream the butter and icing sugar together with a mixer till creamy. Add in the cornstarch and whip until smooth again.
Everything is better with Baileys.
Add in 2-3 tablespoons of the magic ingredient. Yum.
Gack. Speaking of magical, where’s that cleaning fairy o’ mine?
Oh right, he’s at work. I need to stop cooking until he gets home and then do my usual tornado style of baking and leave it for him.
Love you honey.
This makes me chuckle. I asked my daughter to peel my lunch for me and this is as far as she got before she lost attention and wandered off. Momma has to peel her own lunch.
Or perhaps just have a liquid lunch *insert nefarious wiggling eyebrows here*
Melt the chocolate chips and butter together.
Spread the chocolate over the top and refrigerate for a couple of hours.
Slice and serve.
Bailey’s Bars
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes
- Cook Time
- 15 minutes
- Total Time
- 25 minutes
- Course
- Dessert
- Cuisine
- American
- Servings
- 16
- Calories
- 366
- Author
- Karlynn Johnston
Ingredients
Bottom Layer
- 1/2 cup salted butter
- 1/3 cup sifted cocoa
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg beaten
- 1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
- 3/4 cup shredded coconut sweetened or unsweetened
- 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
Middle Layer
- 2 cups icing sugar
- 1/2 cup salted butter
- 3 tablespoons Bailey’s
- 3 tablespoons custard powder
Top Layer
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
Instructions
- Line a 9×9 pan with parchment paper, leaving some parchment paper hanging over the edge for handles.
- In a large pot over medium heat, melt the butter, sugar, and cocoa together until it's smooth.
- Quickly beat in the egg, making sure there are no lumps.
- Mix in the graham crumbs, coconut, and walnuts. Firmly press into the bottom of the prepared 9×9 pan. Chill in the refrigerator while you get the middle layer ready.
- Get your middle ingredients together.
- Cream the icing, butter, Bailey's, and custard powder together with a hand mixer, then spread onto the bottom layer.
- Melt the cup of chocolate chips and 2 tbsp of butter together in a microwave-safe glass measuring cup, heating on high power in 20-second increments, making sure to stir after heating each time.
- Once the chocolate is smooth, spread the chocolate on top of the middle layer evenly, then cool in the fridge for a few hours. The middle layer will set and the top layer will harden.
- Remove the slab of bars from the pan once chilled by lifting the parchment paper. Slice the bars on the paper and serve.
- Keep the bars refrigerated in a closed container for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 6 months.
Nutrition Information
All calories and info are based on a third party calculator and are only an estimate. Actual nutritional info will vary with brands used, your measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
Made this recipe?
Share a photo of what you made on Instagram or Facebook and tag me @thekitchenmagpie or hashtag it #thekitchenmagpie.
Please rate this recipe in the comments below to help out your fellow cooks!
Learn to cook like the Kitchen Magpie
A Very Prairie Christmas Bakebook
Vintage Baking to Celebrate the Festive Season!
Flapper Pie and a Blue Prairie Sky
A Modern Baker’s Guide to Old-Fashioned Desserts
The Prairie Table
Suppers, Potlucks & Socials: Crowd-Pleasing Recipes to Bring People Together
Heather Brown says
I suggest you don’t use corn starch in the Bailey’s buttercream filling ……use Bird’s Custard Powder. It will thicken it without the flat unflattering taste of corn starch.
Around the World in 80 Cupcakes says
Bailey’s Bars you say??!! Come to mama \U0001f60d\U0001f60d\U0001f60d
Rose-Mary Hall says
Sure! Bring some along tonight 😉
Mary P Hoffman says
They sound great!
Candice Gamez says
Oh I just might have to try this recipe. 2 of my favorites.
Tanya Frewin says
Yes please!!!
Rachel says
I made these today. Just fantastic! Thank you for the recipe!
Karlynn says
Oh, I am glad to hear that they turned out great! They ARE rich, and your husband would be pretty popular at work if he took them in 😉 nothing like a little taste of Bailey’s to brighten up the day! Happy birthday to your husband!
Hazen says
Mission accomplished. This tastes fantastic! This dessert is so rich, a little goes a long way (and boy is it great to have with a fruity drink). I may end up making another batch for my husband to take in to work! Thanks for sharing this recipe! 😀
Hazen says
These look so good that I’m making a batch for my husband’s birthday tomorrow (he’s not a cake person)!
Rebecca says
OMG!!! Please tell me you are bringing some (even just one for me) into work on Friday!!!!! YUM!
Slobbering on the Keyboard says
Oh nom nom nom! I can only imagine how yummy those bars could have been! (Oh, btw, I wish I had a cleaning fairy…that wouyld make things soooo much easier!)
Kandice says
MMMMM yummy! I also think a peanut butter version would be awesome.
Hmmmm, would it be wrong to drink my coffee with the Baileys while at the same time eating the Bailey’s Bars for breakfast? I mean really would that be so wrong?
Blackbird Pie says
Yum! Funny, you said Bailey’s and my mind went “ooh, some kind of chocolate mint liqueur would be good” and lo and behold- chocolate mint Bailey’s!
Great minds think a like. And so do ours!
I have had cherry nanaimo bars, and mint ones. The peanut butter ones would be awesome, like a fancy reese’s cup.
Your way looks easier, when I make mine I always end up with a double boiler in there somewhere, probably for melting the chocolate squares.