Fruity Flapjack

Okay- über long time no see (for MoFo anyway!!!!), however moving house, starting uni, all that jazz. Hopefully it will be a bit better now! 

And you would think (considering that I only moved in over the weekend) that this would be a super good time to share some yummy vegan food with my new flatmates- but instead I took some stuff into the place where I was volunteering a few weeks ago instead. Apart from the fact I wasn't sure I would be cooking for the first few days- I am currently suffering from a serious lack of vegetables. It's serious guys. What am I going to do? Apart from like, go to the shops real soon. Obviously. 

So my Dad used to work in a bookshop - and he would bake stuff to take to work practically every week. And I decided that I would take two of the all time favorites for feeding people 'at work' and veganize them. Which wasn't particularly hard as I subconsciously chose two recipes that didn't contain eggs. Even without thinking about it I apparently go for egg free. 

In junior school there was 'clubs' each met for an hour one day a week after school. Cookery club was were all the cool kids hang out. Which is obviously why I went to sewing club. The epitome of not cool. But my brother was apparently a cool kid. He went to cookery club. I have no idea why - because he is the pickyest eater you will ever find. He wouldn't even it the pizza. But he did bring home (wrapped in one of those industrial green paper towels) the best flapjack that this family had ever eaten. And considering this flapjack had been cooked on a mobile cooker- that's saying something!!!!!! 

My parents wrote to the teacher the next day to ask for the recipe. I don't know where it came from originally- I wish I could give credit but I can't. Who ever did create it- it's the best flapjack ever. 

The local grocery store sell something they call 'granola bars' in the fresh baked section. My Dad call's them sugary carpet tiles. I don't know. Sometimes he does things that the rest of the human population doesn't understand. 

I don't know why- I mean- it's not as if he doesn't like them. We used to find a packet in the kitchen practically every week!!!!! So.... But these were essentially a 'fruity flapjack'. They feature a lot of dried cranberries and pumpkin seeds. 

This recipe is kind of a cross between the two. The best flapjack ever crossed with the 'healthful' properties of a granola bar. 

Please note that to be honest - these bars are really not 'healthful'. They're jam packed with sugar- they just have a bit of 'birdfood' in them so you can go around kidding yourselves that they're healthy. But I mean - they are full of oats. 

Fruity Flapjack 

Depending on how big you want your bars- makes 9-16

• 1/2 cup vegan sunflower spread (I'm pretty sure that coconut oil/soya spread would work as well- but I haven't tried it)
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar
• 3 Tablespoons of syrup (e.g. agave, golden syrup, date - I used Sweet Freedom)
• 2 cups oats
• 1 cup mix of dried fruit and seeds- go heavy on the pumpkin seeds and dried cranberries (I prefer a brand that's not sweetened with sugar but with apple juice) but you could also include what you have in (e.g. raisins, sunflower seeds). If you don't like either dried cranberries or pumpkin seeds- don't worry- just make up the cup with what you do like. 

• Preheat oven to 190C and prepare an 8" square baking pan 
• On a gentle heat (or in the microwave) melt the vegan spread, sugar and syrup together. 
• When they are completely melted and combined, stir in the oats, fruit and seeds
• Transfer the mixture to the baking pan and press down with the back of a wooden spoon (leaving lots on the spoon to lick of later)
• Bake the flapjack for about 20 minutes- it should be golden and coming away from the edges slightly. 
• The flapjack is often fairly crumbly- but if you leave it to cool before cutting into pieces this can often be avoided some.

Okay- I feel real stupid saying this- but my Mom said I should (which is a bit weird considering that she won't read it) but you can sign up to the e-mail list on the sidebar. In case you want a real good cure for insomnia. Or want a laugh.