If you’ve never had a Congo Bar, you’re in for a treat. Rich, chewy, and loaded with chocolate chips and nuts, these golden bars are often considered the original blondie brownie. But what exactly is a Congo Bar—and where did it come from?
Quick History of Congo Bars
Congo Bars have been around for decades. They were especially popular in the mid-20th century, showing up in community cookbooks, bake sales, and boxed baking mix inserts. Some say the name “Congo” was meant to evoke something exotic, thanks to the use of brown sugar and coconut. I guess those ingredients were "adventurous" to American bakers at one point. Others think the bars just sounded fun and catchy, especially for children’s lunchboxes and potlucks.
The earliest published recipes for Congo Bars date back to the 1940s and 1950s, often including margarine, eggs, brown sugar, flour, chocolate chips, and nuts. Sometimes coconut was included, sometimes not. Over time, they evolved into a staple dessert bar. My guess is most people today would just call them Blondies with lots of add-ins. But calling them Congo Bars is way more fun.
What Makes Congo Bars Special?
Unlike traditional brownies made with cocoa or melted chocolate, Congo Bars are made with a generous amount of brown sugar, giving them a caramel-like chewiness. They’re incredibly simple to make and don’t require a mixer—just melt the butter, stir everything together, and bake.
Most recipes include:
- Brown sugar for chew and rich flavor
- Melted butter (or margarine in vintage versions)
- Eggs to bind and create structure
- A touch of salt and vanilla
- Chocolate chips (sometimes white, sometimes dark)
- Chopped nuts, usually walnuts or pecans
You can also mix in shredded coconut to really lean into the “tropical” angle—though modern versions often skip it for a simpler chocolate-and-nut combo
The original recipe calls for a 9x13 inch pan, but I like the bars slightly thinner so I use a 15x10 inch pan. Sometimes I halve the recipe and use a 9-inch square pan. The original recipe also calls for salted butter, but I almost always use unsalted so my recipe calls for unsalted and a bit more salt.
Recipe
Big Pan of Congo Bars
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter (salted), softened (230 grams))
- 1 ½ cup dark brown sugar (300 grams)
- ½ cup granulated sugar (100 grams)
- 3 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups all purpose flour (330 grams)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 ¾ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 3 cups assorted chocolate chips and chunks
- ½ cup nuts (walnuts, pecans, whatever you like)
Instructions
- Preheat to 350 degrees F. Grease a 15x10 inch pan or line with parchment. For thicker bars you can use a 9x13 inch pan.
- Beat the butter and sugar together until light and creamy. Scrape sides of bowl and add the eggs one by one, followed by the vanilla.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Mix the dry ingredients into the egg mixture, then stir in the chocolate and nuts.
- Spread the batter as evenly as possible into the prepared pan.
- Bake for about 20 to 25 minutes (for 15x10 inch pan) or 25-30 minutes (for 9x13 inch pan) until they appear set and golden and cracks form on the top. Let cool in the pan, then cut into triangles or squares.
AImee says
okayyy well this is really helpfull im 12
and doing a project on africa im bringing in some finger food and i heard this would be best everyone in my class can enjoyy but i havee to say im not the best cooker in the worldd but thankss i hope they turn out good!
Anna says
Hi Jennifer,
Thanks for the tip on the glass pan. I've noticed a lot of people like using glass, so now we know to turn the heat down and bake longer if needed. I hope people read the comment section here because people always post such good tips.
Blake, thanks for letting me know.
At some point, I'd like to try the Williams Sonoma version.
Last night I found another very similar version in The Wellesley Cookie Exchange Cookbook. The recipes is similar, but uses 2/3 cup of oil in place of butter. There's another difference two, but I can't remember. At any rate, someone wrote "blech" or "blah" next to the recipe, so I don't plan on trying the all-oil version.
Blake says
This recipe is awesome. I made them for family and coworkers, and they disappeared! Thanks!
Jennifer says
I made these last night. I don't have a 10 by 15 pan, so I split the dough (batter?) between two pans, an eight inch square and a nine inch square. I only added coconut to one as my kids are coconut haters (weirdos!). Since one of my pans was glass I turned the temp down to 325, and it seemed they took a bit longer to cook, 27-30 minutes.
Thanks for the recipe-so good!
Anna says
Chocolate Lover, is that your site? Those chocolates look amazing. I'm hungry now.
Jennifer, the texture is kind of like blondies, but not quite as rich and better suited to hold a bunch of good chocolate and nuts. In other words, the nuts and chocolate are what's showcased here so I probably wouldn't make these with every day chocolate. What's really surprising is that even with a pound of sugar, these aren't overly sweet. Or maybe my sweetness perceptions are askew. I did just make a Coca Cola cake! I think anything would seem less sweet next to that.
Sue, I'm posting the recipe here in the comments so people can choose which one they want to make. I will try this one too. Looks like it is
1) thicker -- pan size is smaller
2) less salt
3) little more butter
4) little more brown sugar
Congo Squares from Williams Sonoma
2 3/4 c.(345 g.) all purpose flour, sifted before measuring
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 c. (180 g) unsalted butter, at room temp.
2 1/3 cups (500 g.) firmly packed dark brown sugar
3 extra large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 c. semi sweet or milk chocolate chips ( I always use semisweet)
1 1/4 cups (155 g) pecan halves, coursely chopped
Preheat oven to 350
Grease a 9 x 13 pan.
Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
Place butter and brown sugar ina large bowl. Mix together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla.
Beat in the flour mixture. Fold in the chocolate chips and pecans. Pour and scrape the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with a rubber spatula.
Bake until the top looks dry. 40-45 min. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely, then cut into squares.
Makes about 4 dozen squares.
Enjoy!
Sue says
It looks like they turned out great! If you make the Williams Sonoma recipe, you'll have to either post about it, or let me know how they compare. I'm curious.
chocolate lover says
These sound wonderful! I can not wait to try them. I LOVE desserts like this!
Jennifer says
Mmm... those look so good. I don't have a 10 by 15 pan so I'll have to cut the recipe in 1/2, too.
Is the texture different than that of blondies?