Can I make the Magic Cookie Bars without coconut? Actually, how can I always substitute something else for any baked goods that calls for coconut?

Not a huge coconut fan either so I make these with the graham cracker crust and one cup of each of chopped walnuts, dried currants and chocolate chips. Pour the can of sweetened condensed milk over top, bake and enjoy.

I had to google these, and they look like what I recognize as "7 Layer Bars". You make a graham cracker crust, layer on a be=unch of stuff, pour over a can of sweetened condensed milk, and bake.

King Arthur Flour did a version of this in its "King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion" (2004) that they call Build-a-Bars. The recipe is a little different, but the same idea. (It's worth looking for that recipe, I think.)

That recipe suggest combinations like
- white chocolate chips, dried cranberries, pecans
- M&Ms, chocolate chips, peanuts
- miniature marshmallows, peanuts, chocolate chips
- chocolate chips, cappuccino chips, toffee chips
- a layer of raspberry jam on the crust, with white chocolate and bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips
- a layer of orange marmalade on the crust with lots of semi-sweet chocolate chips
and so on.
Figure out how many cups of stuff your recipe calls for, and make that up in combinations of whatever you want to use. You could replace the coconut with diced dried apricots, or any kind of nut, or another type of flavoured chip (white chocolate, caramel, bashed up candy bars -- whatever.

But as far as substituting for coconut generally, I'd say it depends on what makes sense for the recipe as a whole.

I guess this isn't much help...

I love coconut so haven't done a lot of subbing, but I think that ground nuts would work in a lot of cases.