Banana, Walnut and Chocolate Flapjacks

Imagine my surprise when I discovered that “flapjacks” in the USA meant something completely different to the UK.

One day when I suggested making flapjacks as a sweet treat snack, Scott screwed his face up. “Flapjacks? For dessert??”I quickly came to realise that in the US, flapjacks are another name for a pancake. In the UK, flapjack refers to gooey, oaty squares usually made with plenty of sugar, butter and syrup.

For many years in my teens and early twenties, this was often how I got my weekly oat fix – by consuming at least one flapjack a week (which probably had a thick layer of chocolate on top. Still healthy, right?)

But a couple of weeks ago we found ourselves with a big tub of oats and no desire to make porridge (oatmeal) in the mornings. It was just too hot.I wanted to make a flapjack that we could eat for breakfast and wouldn’t feel too guilty about consuming. This meant that I had to modify the usual ingredients and substitute the syrup for natural honey and add in bananas for extra sweetness.

These flapjacks may not be totally healthy (I did still add a layer of chocolate on top! I just couldn’t help it), but without the topping they are definitely healthier than, say, cinnamon roll cake, which is what I was consuming for a lot of my time in the US. They are full of fibre and of course cholesterol-lowing oats, plus walnuts for some essential fatty acids.

Banana, Walnut and Chocolate Flapjacks

Recipe by Julia

Servings

9

servings

Prep time

20

minutes

Cooking time

25

minutes

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup (100g) unsalted butter

• 3/4 cup (100g) granulated sugar

• Pinch of salt

• 2 tbsp honey

• 1 1/4 cups (180g) oats

• 2 bananas, peeled

• 1/3 cup (50g) chopped walnuts

• 200g dark or milk chocolate

Directions

• Preheat your oven to 190C (375F) and line and grease a square baking tin, roughly 8×8 in size.
• Melt your butter in a saucepan and pour into a bowl with the sugar, honey and salt. Stir with a wooden spoon until everything is combined.
• Mash the bananas with the back of a fork and then add to the melted butter/sugar mixture along with the oats and walnuts.
• Spoon the mixture into your greased tin and bake for around 20-25 minutes. The flapjacks should be golden and slightly brown around the edges, but should not be hard. When you remove them form the oven they should still feel soft on top (but not runny). Set aside to cool.
• Once the flapjacks have cooled, break your chocolate into pieces and melt – either in a microwaveable bowl in the microwave for several seconds (keep checking so it doesn’t burn), or over a pan of simmering water (my preferred method). Pour the melted chocolate over the top of the flapjacks and leave to cool or refrigerate overnight.
• Once the chocolate has hardened and cooled, cut the flapjacks into squares and serve.