Years ago I was introduced to what was called Grizzleknuckles, a bar cookie. A woman I knew shared them at a gathering one holiday season. She challenged us to figure out what the 'secret' ingredient was in them. Most people had a terrible time trying to come up with at least a couple of the ideas. I just remember once I figured out there was no flour involved I had no trouble. I had guessed most of the secret behind these wonderful chewy bars. If I recall correctly she was a bit put out with me that I had correctly hit the nail on the head with my list of possible secrets. But she never did share the recipe. Sad but true.

Anyway, I had not thought about this bar cookie for many years. Until I stumbled on a book of treats using sweetened condensed milk. There it was; the complete recipe. I could not wait to try these.

This is from a cook book of recipes from the makers of Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk. I take no credit for this recipe it is all theirs. The sweetened condensed milk is one of the secrets involved. The other is the graham crackers in the crust. She had the crackers all jumbled throughout and not as a crust at all.

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (325°F for glass baking dish). In small bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs and butter; mix well. Press crumb mixture firmly on bottom of ungreased 13 x 9-inch baking pan.

2. Pour Eagle Brand evenly over crumb mixture. Layer evenly with chocolate chips, coconut and nuts; press down firmly with fork.

3. Bake 25 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool. Chill if desired. Cut into bars or diamonds. Store covered at room temperature.

Makes 2 to 3 dozen bars

Prep Time: 10 minutes Bake Time: 25 minutes

7-layer Magic cookie bars: Substitute 1 cup (6 ounces) butterscotch-flavored chips for 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips. (Peanut butter-flavored chips or white chocolate chips can be substituted for butterscotch-flavored chips.)

Magic peanut cookie bars: Substitute 2 cups (about 3/4 pound) chocolate-covered peanuts for semisweet chocolate chips and chopped nuts.

Magic rainbow cookie bars: Substitute 2 cups plain candy-coated chocolate pieces for semisweet chocolate chips.