If there’s an original cookie bar, I would have to say the recipe for Classic Hello Dolly 6 Layer Bars is the one! You’ll get all the magic cookie ingredients in one bite making it the perfect add-on to your cookie trays and tins.
I Love A Backstory
This recipe is from my Aunt Sis (Estelle), my dad’s only sister. When I was a kid, she was THE maker of this recipe. In my eyes, the recipe was hers. As a child, it didn’t even occur to me that the recipe may have come from the back of the condensed milk can, or even a newspaper. To me, it was all Aunt Sis, and every year we came to expect her Hello Dollies as part of her cookie trays. Her recipe card has minimal directions, and the ingredients read “cup,” not 1 cup.
The Hello Dolly recipe originated in the late 60’s. I’ve pieced together a couple of stories on the origination of the recipe. Both stories have the recipe originating in the late 60’s when Hello Dolly was playing on Broadway. There was a restaurant scene in the play and a food critic at the time featured a ‘Hello Dolly Cake” that was submitted by a little girl and her grandmother. The recipe had all the same ingredients (no butterscotch morsels) and was referred to as a cake.
Carol Channing submitted the recipe when she was interviewed for a Summer Weekly Reader. Do you remember the Weekly Reader newspaper publication for children? Now that is a blast from the past. Carol was starring in Hello Dolly at the time, and I’m sure her recipe submittal propelled the cake/bar even further.
Classic Hello Dolly 6 Layer Bars
Hello Dollies have to be the first layered bar that I made as a kid. The recipe has just a few steps which makes it the perfect treat for a mom trusting a young baker to make. The steps include:
- pouring the melted butter into the pan
- sprinkling the graham cracker crumbs
- add the chocolate chips
- add the coconut
- add the nuts
- and pour the condensed milk on top
As you can see, the original recipe has just 6 layers, and when you combine those ingredients it is heavenly! I would suggest cutting them into small bite size pieces and don’t chop the nuts too fine.
Do you make a bar cookie for Christmas? Maybe you prefer a variation of this recipe. Please consider leaving a comment below and sharing your favorite.
Thanks for stopping by, Rose
- 1 stick butter melted
- 1 cup graham cracker crumbs
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 1 cup angel flake coconut
- 1 cup chopped nuts (not too small)
- 1 can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Pour melted butter into a 9 X 9 baking dish.
- Sprinkle graham cracker crumbs evenly over the melted butter.
- Layer the chocolate chips on to the graham cracker crumbs.
- Layer the coconut on top of the chocolate chips.
- Sprinkle the nuts over the coconut.
- Drizzle the condensed milk evenly over the nuts. (I recommend stirring the condensed milk in the can before pouring)
- Bake 35-40 minutes.
- When cool, cut into squares.
- For this post, I cut 25 squares roughly 1½ inches square.
- Enjoy!