Have you heard of Nanaimo Slice? Also often called Nanaimo Bars! This is one of many recipes I came across in my Mum’s repertoire that left me intrigued. My first question… how do you even pronounce it?!

A quick Google search told me that it is pronounced: “nuh-nai-mow“. And that it is also a city in Canada! Which takes us nicely to the origin of this tray bake…

The first known recipe for Nanaimo Bars appeared in the Nanaimo Hospital Cookbook in 1952, and was simply called “chocolate squares”. Only a year later, a similar recipe was published in another recipe book (Edith Adam’s Cookbook), but this time using the name “Nanaimo Bar”. Despite these being the first known publications of the recipe, it’s believed that Nanaimo Bars have probably been around a whole lot longer, with it being said that you’ll hear many different stories about their origins depending on who you ask in the city of Nanaimo.

So, what is a traditional Nanaimo Bar?

Nanaimo Bars are a classic Canadian tray bake made up of three distinct layers: a chocolatey biscuit base, a creamy custard filling and a chocolate topping. Traditionally, the base is made with graham crackers, coconut and nuts, but digestive biscuits are much easier to find here in the UK and work perfectly in their place.

For me, though, it was a recipe from my Mum’s kitchen drawer that sent me on a path of perfecting my very own Nanaimo Slice recipe. My Mum has many little DIY recipe booklets; some from my own Granny that she put together with her friends from church or the Women’s Rural, and others collected from cafés and bakeries she worked with over the years.

The Nanaimo Slice recipe I found came from one of those café booklets. Like many homemade recipe collections, it was a bit of a mixed bag. Measurements switched between grams and ounces, instructions were often brief, and there wasn’t a photograph in sight. Making anything from them could be a bit of a challenge!

Regardless, I gave the recipe a go as my Mum remembered making it once or twice before. The base was absolutely delicious, but the filling was another story… Following the recipe word-for-word produced a lemony condensed milk filling that simply did not work. I was very disappointed and started looking into traditional Nanaimo Bar recipes to see where I’d gone wrong.

Turns out, a lemony condensed milk filling is not the norm when it comes to Nanaimo Bars. Not at all.

After comparing different Nanaimo Bar recipes and testing variations of my own, I settled on the custard filling you’ll find in this recipe. It keeps everything I loved about the original chocolatey base while delivering the flavour and texture most people expect from a traditional Nanaimo Bar.

If you’re a lover of no-bake tray bakes, Nanaimo Slice sits somewhere between a classic Tiffin and a Caramel Slice. It has the same easy-to-share appeal, but with the addition of a creamy custard layer that makes it feel a little different and somewhat more indulgent. And the best part is that there’s no baking required. Once the layers are made, all that’s left to do is let everything set before slicing.