Saturday 15 May 2010

Cooking for Kids: English Flapjacks


These biscuits are a specifically English recipe.  In England (unlike the US and elsewhere) Flapjacks are a chewy syrupy oaty biscuit that is baked in the oven. They are great for kids to take to school in their lunchboxes as the oats are a slow release carbohydrate (although you do get the instant buzz from the syrup and sugar).  This is the basic recipe but you can make countless variations some of which are suggested below.  Best of all a lot of the "cooking" is done in the microwave so it is easy for the kids to help to make.
fat for greasing
100 g brown sugar
60 ml golden syrup
100 g butter
200 g oats
Preheat the oven to 160 degrees centigrade or 325 Fahrenheit.
Grease a swiss roll baking tin.
Take the butter and place in a large microwaveable bowl.  Heat in the microwave until just melted.  In my microwave this takes 1 minute but this will vary according to the power of your machine.
Add the sugar and syrup and give another 20 seconds to heat together slightly (this makes it all mix together easily otherwise the syrup can crystallize and the sugar will not dissolve and you get a biscuit with crunchy crystals in patches).
Add the oats and stir well.
Press into the prepared tin and bake in the oven for about 25 minutes.  
Whilst it is still warm cut into squares.  Leave to cool in the tin before turning out.
VARIATIONS:
what can't you add to the basic mix? Well not a lot!
dried fruit
fresh fruit
nuts 
seeds
chocolate chips white/ plain/ or milk
butterscotch chips
honey instead of syrup
chocolate on top
toffee and chocolate on top (like millionaires shortbread) the variations are only limited by your imagination.

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