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Papua New GuineaFlavors · Nanaimo
Sweet in three layers that doesn’t go in the oven: cookie base with cocoa, coconut and almonds, a yellow vanilla cream in the middle, and chocolate on top. It’s named for the city of Nanaimo on Vancouver Island, which selected an official recipe in the 1980s.
Traditional sweet from Nanaimo, Colúmbia Britânica
Also known as: Nanaimo bars, Nanaimo square
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
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Nanaimo bar — Nanaimo, Canada
The Nanaimo bar is a square confection assembled in three layers and set in the refrigerator, never baked. The base mixes butter, sugar, cocoa and cooked egg together with cookie crumbs, shredded coconut and chopped almonds. The middle layer is a yellow buttercream made with heavy cream, custard powder (vanilla custard mix) and confectioners’ sugar. On top, bittersweet chocolate is melted with butter.
The oldest known recipe in this form appears in a 1952 community cookbook compiled by volunteers at the Nanaimo hospital, where the treat shows up under other names such as “chocolate square.” The name Nanaimo bar appears in 1953 in a cookbook by Edith Adams. Exactly how the dessert originated and who named it is unclear.
In the 1980s, the mayor of Nanaimo launched a contest to choose the definitive recipe. The winning version, by local resident Joyce Hardcastle, became the official recipe and is still promoted by local tourism. The recipe combines a cookie-and-coconut base, a vanilla cream layer and a chocolate topping.
The Nanaimo bar became known across Canada and appears in cafés, bakeries and markets nationwide. In Nanaimo, local cafés and bakeries offer their own versions, and the Nanaimo Museum preserves the history of the early cookbooks in which the treat appeared.
Nanaimo , Colúmbia Britânica
Sweet named for the city; official recipe chosen by the city government in the 1980s.
Base: butter, sugar, cocoa, egg, cookie crumbs, shredded coconut and chopped almonds. Middle: butter, heavy cream, custard powder (vanilla custard mix) and confectioners’ sugar. Topping: bittersweet chocolate and butter.
Chilled or served cool, cut into small squares, with coffee or tea.
Year‑round, as a dessert or snack.
Your questions
It’s a three‑layer square treat: a cookie, cocoa, coconut and almond base; a yellow vanilla cream in the middle; and chocolate on top. It is set in the refrigerator and not baked.
Because of the city of Nanaimo in British Columbia. The oldest known recipe is in a 1952 hospital cookbook from the city, and the name Nanaimo bar appears in a 1953 cookbook by Edith Adams.
Yes. In the 1980s the city of Nanaimo held a contest, and the recipe by Joyce Hardcastle, a local resident, became the official one promoted by local tourism.
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