Mrs. Kolbert's Coconut Bars

This recipe appeared in the Christmas issue of Gourmet Magazine in 1993. After holding on to the magazine for 16 years I finally found the time to make this very simple, homey bar cookie. The impetus was my discovery of bags of flaked coconut sitting in my cupboard. Has this ever happened to you? You see an item in the supermarket and think it would be a good idea to buy it in case you need it. You have a problem when you do exactly the same thing several times. Not only do I have sweetened coconut but I have three bags of unsweetened coconut in my freezer. What to do? Yes, these sweet, adorable cookies present a lovely way of reducing the coconut overstock in my kitchen. But there is no need to wait until you have a coconut glut. Make these and enjoy their old fashioned goodness any time.

1 1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar

1 cup plus 3 tbl. flour

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut

1 cup chopped blanched almonds

2 large eggs, beaten lightly

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl with a fork, stir together 1/2 cup of the brown sugar, 1 cup of the flour, and the butter until the mixture is combined well. Press the mixture evenly onto the bottom of a 13 by 9 inch baking pan (it may look as if there isn't enough dough but work on spreading it evenly and it will cover the bottom of the pan). Bake in the middle of the oven for 10 minutes.

In the bowl with the fork combine the remaining 1 cup brown sugar, the remaining 3 tbl. flour, the coconut, the almonds, the eggs, the vanilla, and the salt and blend the mixture well. Spread the coconut mixture evenly over the crust and bake for 20 minutes or until it is pale golden. Cut the mixture into 48 bars and let the bars cool completely in the pan on a rack.

Makes 48 small bar cookies

Notes: The next time I make these I will make 24 larger cookies. These were so small that I ate 6 of them in a flash. They can be frozen in airtight containers for 1 month. I froze half of my batch and Henry and I ate the rest very quickly.