Family Favorite Recipe

Seven-Layer Bars

Makes 36 bars

Lauren Cauthorne Bladen-White of Washington contributed this childhood favorite to a compilation of Cauthorne and Brooks family recipes. She got the recipe from a co-worker of her father's when she was 10 years old and has made it dozens of times since.

We can attest that variations of this recipe, also known as "Hello Dolly Bars," have turned up at many a school fundraiser. Proportions of the ingredients are flexible.

Adapted from "Help Yourself! There's a God's Mighty Plenty," edited by Herman L. Brooks and Bessida Cauthorne White (Fundcraft Publishing, 2000).

4 ounces unsalted butter (1 stick), melted

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

6 ounces butterscotch chips

6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

4 ounces shredded sweetened coconut

One 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk

4 ounces chopped pecans, toasted*

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat the sides of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray oil.

Add the melted butter to the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle with graham cracker crumbs and pat down into the butter. Layer the other ingredients in the following order: butterscotch chips, chocolate chips, coconut, condensed milk and pecans. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the coconut is lightly browned. Transfer to a wire rack and cool before cutting into bars.

*NOTE: To toast nuts, spread them on a baking sheet and bake at 350-degrees, shaking the pan occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes. Watch carefully because nuts burn quickly.

Per bar: 154 calories, 2 g protein, 16 g carbohydrates, 10 g fat, 4 mg cholesterol, 4 g saturated fat, 79 mg sodium, 1 g dietary fiber

Recipe tested by Marcia Kramer; e-mail questions tofood@washpost.com