Step foot into Canada, specifically on the East Coast, and you will find butter tarts everywhere. You can even walk the Nanaimo Bar Trail for the ultimate sugar rush, which includes 39 stops to taste classics, modern takes and drinks, and even marvel at inedible tributes to the classic dessert. The treat has transformed over the years to include a variety of flavors (mint, red velvet, peanut butter, mocha) and forms (ice cream, martinis, cupcakes, lattes, even spring rolls). The earliest published recipe is said to date back to 1953, but if you ask around town, locals will tell you stories of their grandmothers making them long before.

A layer of chocolate ganache sits atop of a layer of thick yellow custard that sits atop of a chocolate-graham-coconut layer creating a triple-threat dessert bar. Named after the city it was invented in ( Nanaimo, British Columbia on the west coast of Canada), this no-bake dessert has been hailed as Canada’s most iconic treat. So let us introduce you to the wonderful and wonderful life of Canadian desserts, all made with love and compassion. Someone could be born and raised in Vancouver and never try, let alone flan or butter pie, two iconic Canadian desserts. When you have a space as big as Canada, dessert has a regional touch. Made from easy-to-find ingredients that use simple techniques, they are made with love and care.

Sweetie pie recipe