Nanaimo Bars [Vegan] – One Green Planet

1. Very lightly grease a 9-inch square cake or casserole pan and line the bottom with a strip of parchment paper. The grease helps the paper to stay in place while spreading the batter out and you can use the paper to lift everything out of the pan afterwards. This makes cutting the bars much easier and you won’t scratch up your pan.
2. In a small bowl, beat the flax meal and water together until frothy and set aside.
3. In a sauce pan over low heat, combine 1/2 cup Earth Balance, sugar, cocoa and vanilla. Add the flax mixture and stir constantly until the mixture thickens. Add graham cracker crumbs, coconut and chopped nuts, stirring to combine.
4. Transfer mixture to prepared pan and use a silicone spatula to press the mixture into it firmly and evenly.

To make middle layer:

1. In a large bowl, beat together 1/4 cup Earth Balance, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla custard powder (or vanilla pudding powder, if using) and non-dairy milk until creamy.
2. Spread custard mixture over graham cracker base in pan. Refrigerate until firm (at least one hour).

To make top layer:

1. Melt semi-sweet chocolate and 1 Tbsp Earth Balance. Pour over chilled bars and spread evenly over top.
2. Return to refrigerator to chill until firm (at least 30 minutes) – but be sure to check the setting of the chocolate layer after only 5-10 minutes of cooling: as soon as the chocolate has firmed enough to hold a score mark, use a clean, sharp knife to score the entire top into the amount of squares you desire (to make 9, 12, or 16 squares, for example). Clean your knife after each score mark, and be sure to cut right through the chocolate layer. Doing this will ensure neat, easy cutting of the final squares and will prevent your hardened chocolate layer from shattering or cracking when it has cooled completely.
3. When cooling is complete, gently run a knife along the sides of the pan to release the squares and use the parchment paper to careful release them from the pan. Following your score lines, use a clean, sharp knife to press straight down and complete cutting the squares.