A Hello Dolly by any other name still tastes as sweet
Anyhoo, after I graduated from the Easy Bake Oven to the actual kitchen stove, Hello Dollies were some of the first baked treats I mastered. Considering that they’re nigh impossible to mess up, I think they ought to be adopted as the entry level Home Ec project as opposed to the more challenging Rice Krispies treats, which can potentially be disastrous. (Ok, maybe not for most people. But perhaps most people when faced with the conundrum of using large marshmallows instead of the traditional mini version might ignore their Home Ec partner when she suggests melting the marshmallows one at a time and thus avoid making “treats” that resemble concrete, only slightly more difficult to bite into.)
I can.
For Hello Dollies, you’ll need just a few staples that are most likely already in your cabinet/fridge/deep freeze. Namely, graham crackers, butter, chocolate chips, flaked coconut, pecans, and sweetened condensed milk.
Once you’ve gathered all that and a baking dish (I prefer 8 1/2” x 11″, but they’re nearly impossible to find so a 9” x 13” will do), melt a stick of butter and put it in the bottom of said baking dish. Then crush up about one sleeve of graham crackers and mix them in with the butter to make a crust. I just keep adding more till I get a firm, not too buttery-looking foundation. Then layer on a package of chocolate chips, some shredded coconut (the pre-sweetened kind), and some pecans that have been chopped and toasted (forgot to mention that step).
Serving size: 1
Once you’ve drizzled all that will drizzle, carefully remove the top from the can with a can opener (beware the sharp points!). Scoop up the remaining sweetened condensed milk with your finger and lick. Repeat as necessary. Sometimes a plastic spatula is helpful for getting out those elusive last drops. Please note that eating sweetened condensed milk from the can like this is dangerous for children under, say, 27 so you should perform this task yourself. Oh, and also, you should put the pan in the oven and bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes or until it looks brown and bubbly on top. I recommend eating this while it’s hot (also not advised for children) but room temperature also works.
Courtesy of sweet and talented Jessie aka CakeSpy. Click to visit her fabulous blog.
Sometimes when I’m feeling a little extra spendy, I’ll do a version of these I learned from my friend Gina (of the add-marshmallows-one-at-a-time debacle). Follow the same (half-ass, I know) directions but also add a package of butterscotch chips, a package of peanut butter chips, and a package of mini baking M & M’s.
When serving Hello Dollies, you might want to make sure there’s an adequate number of comfortable horizontal surfaces nearby because they’ve been known to cause sudden and prolonged sugar comas. Consider yourself warned.
Hello Dollies Quick Reference Recipe
1 stick melted butter
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 cup coconut
12 oz. package chocolate chips (more or less to taste)
1 cup nuts
1 can sweetened condensed milk
Make crust with the melted butter and graham cracker crumbs. Layer other ingredients as listed. Drizzle sweetened condensed milk over the top and bake at 350 until tan on top.
Ok, show of hands, who likes eating sweetened condensed milk straight from the can?
stuff southern people like 
I’m older than Southern dirt, and I’ve never heard of Hello Dolly cookies. I’ve eaten a ton of “tea cakes, sugar cookies, soft gingerbread, and berry cobblers,” but nary a Hello Dolly.
I think you ought to rectify that situation right quick like.
Love these cookie bars. Have you thought about crumbling some Frosted Flakes to add crunch? (My typing had an accent when I keyed in that last sentence!) I’m a total fail at Rice Krispey Treats.
Funny! I type with an accent, too. Frosted Flakes might make a good addition. My sister is queen of the rice crispy treats. She always adds about twice as many marshmallows as the recipe calls for and probably extra butter, too. They’re yummy!
I would eat the em up minus the plastic which some folks call coconut. Sounds yummy!
What is with y’all hating on the coconut? It’s the best part, aside from the chocolate and the pecans and the sweetened condensed milk and…
I have never laughed so hard from reading a danged recipe!
Wooo, lawdy girl!
Thanks, Hope! I aim to amuse.
Kim you put the coconut before the chocolate chips…I think they are much better that way…especially since you know I don’t like chocolate all that much.
Hello Dollies were such a big hit back in our day that I actually gave Deana a “Hello Dollies” kit as a wedding present (she had always made me make them so I decided that if she was old enough to get married she was old enough to cook her own.) She was so very excited to see it.
I also made them for a bake sale at one of my hotels, I made about 5 different variations of them (no coconut, butterscotch, no pecans, etc.) They were such a hit that employees for weeks asked me if I would make them some more.
Good to know about the freezing…since I live with a non-coconut and pecan eater as well. 🙂
It’s funny, when I first typed the recipe in from memory, I listed the coconut layer first. Then when I looked at an actual recipe, it listed chocolate first so I changed it. Gotta learn to trust my instincts.
Now I’m thinking we ought to make up some hello dollies kits and sell them from our future FFF food truck. Notice how I’m speaking in code so nobody takes our culinary creations to market first.
I have not tasted these yet, but from the looks of your recipe I am in for one heck of a treat! I think I’ll be extra spendy with these, I’ll add all those yummy stuff for an extra sweet kick. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks! Hope you enjoy them!