5 Perfect Nanaimo Bars Recipes 

November 8, 2023 Chatelaine

While the history of the Nanaimo bar is somewhat unknown, this West Coast treat’s connection with British Columbia and its everlasting popularity as a standard Canadian dessert are undeniable. Chocolate, custard powder creme, coconut and nuts: What’s not to love? Here are a few of our all-time favourite Nanaimo bar recipes—including a cheeky little frozen treat.

Classic Nanaimo bars on wooden cutting board

Photography, Erik Putz. Food Styling, Dara Sutin. Prop Styling, Krystin Leigh Smith.

Classic Nanaimo Bars Recipe

Let’s start with the classic: a decadently sweet no-bake dessert bar. Get our classic Nanaimo bars recipe here. 

Diamond-shaped holiday nanaimo bars arranged on a lime green surface

Produced by Chantal Braganza and Sun Ngo, Photography by Christie Vuong, Food Styling by Eshun Mott, Prop Styling by Nicole Billark.

Holiday Nanaimo Bars

What makes our twist on the standard a holiday knockout? Toasting the walnuts for extra oomph, adding a little salt to balance the sweetness and cutting it into sleek diamond shapes. These cute little bars appear here exactly as they did in our December 1995 issue. Get our holiday Nanaimo bars recipe here. 

A decadent nanaimo cake topped with floral adornments, with one slice cut ready to serve

Cake design by Julia Gallay, Produced by Chantal Braganza and Sun Ngo, Photography by Christie Vuong, Prop Styling by Madeleine Johari, Food Styling by Michelle Lucas Larving.

Decadent Nanaimo Cake

The beloved bar becomes a sheet cake! We take the recipe—first published in the 1980s—up a notch with decadent adornment. Get our decadent Nanaimo cake recipe here. 

Nanaimo bars and Turtle fudge bars on cooling rack

Photo, Erik Putz.

Salted-Almond Nanaimo Bars

Some of our editors find traditional Nanaimo bars too sweet, so we developed a bar we all could love. Thanks to cocoa powder, salted almonds and much less sugar, we got it. Get our salted-almond Nanaimo bars recipe here. 

Nanaimo bar ice cream pops

Photo, Erik Putz.

Nanaimo Bar Ice Cream Pops

What if Nanaimo bars were an ice cream and also on a stick!? Get our Nanaimo bar ice cream pops recipe here. 

Assorted cookies on a pink background with the words in white "Find more Christmas cookie recipes"

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