Make A Memory

7 Layer Bars

Have you ever smelled a fleeting scent or taste, heard a song or laugh and were transported back to a memory? We make memories many ways, the linger of a touch, a taste, a kiss, a flavor. Memories come in all forms, good and bad. Sometimes I close my eyes in search of a particular memory. And if I'm very quiet, I can bring back the smell, the feeling, if only for a moment and smile. 
For some odd reason, the smell of resin instantly transports me back to the age of 4. I don't smell it often, who does? But when I catch that whiff, I am in a little French pre-school (not in France), making a paperweight. My grandma Grace, from Chicago, came out to visit us every year for Christmas. These 7 Ingredient Bars remind me of her. It's not a unusual recipe. There are dozens. You don't cut them into cute Christmas shapes or sprinkle them with red and green sugar.
But they still remind me of Christmas...and my grandma. They are a memory.
The yellowed scrap of paper in my recipe file, has to be at least 40 years old. 
7 Ingredient Bars
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 stick butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 6 oz. pkg. semisweet chocolate pieces
1 6 oz. pkg. butterscotch pieces
1/4 cup chopped nuts, ( the recipe says, "optional", but for me, nuts are NEVER "optional"!
1/4 cup shredded coconut


Combine crumbs, vanilla and melted butter in the bottom of a 9 X 9 in square pan, (I guess that would be redundant, what else would a 9 x 9 pan be if not square?) And I guess they technically aren't "7 Layer Bars" since vanilla would make them "8 Layer Bars", but who am I to argue with history?
Layer in order:
chocolate chips
butterscotch chips
nuts
coconut
top with sweetened condensed milk and bake at 350* F for about 25-30 minutes or until coconut is golden brown.