FLAPJACKS (Oatmeal cookies)
This is a healthy version of a commonly found snack , using a low fat spread instead of butter , and malt extract replacing most of the sugar .........(make sure you get a plain version of malt extract from the health foods shelf NOT containing cod liver oil).........

Of course the advantage of baking your own snacks means you know exactly what is in them , if you prefer it a little sweeter simply add more sugar or honey ...........none of the proportions is critical.....

As the honey and malt extract are so gooey , it is hard to be precise about the quantity , but I just get a spoonful and twirl it around to collect the dribbles . My tablespoonsful of runny honey weighed around 38 grammes and the malt extract weighed 64 grammes .....

Cooking time depends a lot on your oven , we aquired a new oven last year and had to cut the cooking times......

Check after 25 minutes , if the flapjack is cooked and darker in colour around the edges , then it is probably done .

My own preference is for slightly undercooking if anything , as once overcooked it can be very hard and crunchy and the flavour suffers...

I usually cook 500 grammes at a time , and bake in 11 inch by 7 inch trays which I found at Homebase....

When the mix is transferred to the baking tray , press down with the back of a tablespoon to compact and push into the corners.....as it cools a little it should be possible to slide the back of the spoon up and down and 'polish' the surface to get a smooth
even top .

If the mix sticks to the back of the spoon here , wipe/scrape off the residue and then dip the clean spoon into cold water and try again.
Any parts sticking up will cook first , cook more , and may burn slightly......

If it is not compacted adequately it will tend to be more crumbly and hard to cut cleanly after cooking....

Once removed from the oven I leave for 15 minutes to cool a little , then turn upsidedown on a wooden chopping block , the flapjack usually falls out within seconds . If it is stubborn tap the bottom of the tray .

If you just leave it , it will shrink a little as it cools more , and eventually fall out .
I leave another 20 minutes at least to cool more , then when it is manageable cut down the middle in the long direction with a thin blade serrated knife . Ours is a Kitchen Devil .

Using a rocking motion as you saw helps to prevent crumbling ...(.let the tip of the blade drag along the chopping block as you pull the knife toward you , then lift the tip of the blade and use the 'heel' to cut mostly as you push the knife away from you.......)
Then cut across both halves across the short way , making fingers about
three inches by one inch .

Transfer to an airtight container when cooled completely .



BASIC MIX.... for a 6" by 6" baking tray (250g of oats)

125g St.Ivel Gold , Flora or similar spread...if you dont have scales this is a quarter of a small tub ....
1 tablespoon soft brown sugar (or dark brown if you like a slight hint of treacle)
1 tablespoon honey
1 1/2 tablespoons Malt extract..

(make sure you get a plain version from the health foods shelf NOT containing cod liver oil , the brand which I normally find is Meridian or Health Store , but I have been given another brand once , purchased in the Midlands somewhere , I think the brand was Parks , which had a more intense flavour and I ended up using almost half the quantities mentioned here)

250 g porridge oats ...again without scales...Tesco do 500g bags so judge half ....(budget brands may contain more dust/powder/flour but this is not a bad thing as it helps to bind the mix together and produces a less crumbly product)

Melt the St.Ivel gold in a saucepan , add the sugar , the honey and the malt extract , stirring to mix it together...............
I usually let it get to the point where it boils to make sure the sugar is melted......
Turn the heat down low and add half of the oats , stirring ........
remove from the heat and add the remainder of the porridge oats...
......stir fairly vigorously to ensure it all gets 'wetted' by the mixture......
Turn out into a greased baking tray , press it down to compact the mixture , I use the back of a tablespoon ........
Bake in an oven for 25 to 35 minutes at gas mark 3 .......
it should just be going a little darker in colour around the edges when its ready .

I found it better to cut it before it is completetly cold ........I use a thin bladed knife with a serrated blade with a slight sawing motion.........

Very nice whilst still warm.....it will keep in an airtight tin for at least a week (not in our house) but the harder crust
around the edge will become soft after a day or two as the moisture re-distributes itself..................

DATE AND GINGER .......for a 7" by 11" Tray .......(500g oats)

250g Gold or Flora
Two tablespoons Honey
Two tablespoons Malt extract ...........
60g chopped dates.....any pieces larger than ones little finger nail should be cut in half...(60g = 2/3 cup or three tablespoons).
60g Crystallized ginger(is best , though you can use glace or the pieces immersed in syrup)chopped into small pieces ..
500g porridge oats

Note there is no sugar added as both date and ginger are sweet ingredients....
Melt the spread as before , then add all the other ingredients , bring to boiling temperature as this melts any sugars and softens the dates and ginger......
Add half the porridge oats and stir before removing from heat as this softens the oats and generally seems to make it more yummy.....
Compact into a baking tray as above and bake for 25 to 35 minutes checking carefully for progress....

RAISIN AND COCONUT ........for a 7" by 11" Tray......(500g oats)

250g Gold or Flora
Two tablespoons Honey
Two tablespoons Malt extract....
80g californian raisins
40g-60g dessicated coconut(60g = 2/3 teacup or three tablespoons)
as an option replace some of the dessicated with puree , this is usually found in small blocks in the chinese food section..
500g porridge oats

Note there is no sugar added as the raisins provide adequate additional sweetness.....
Melt the spread as before , then add all the other ingredients , bring to boiling temperature as this melts any sugars and softens the mix.............
Add half the porridge oats and stir before removing from heat as this softens the oats and generally seems to make it more yummy.....
Compact into a baking tray as above and bake for 25 to 35 minutes checking carefully for progress....


APRICOT

Use the same recipes as above , just change the fruit to 120g dried apricots...and add a tablespoonful of brown sugar . Even with the honey , it is not quite sweet enough hence the added sugar . Dried apricots can be a little tough and chewy , so cut them quite small and bring the mixture to the boil in order to soften them ..

OTHER COMBINATIONS

You can use your imagination to create a favourite of your own , apricot , date and ginger works well . Try 40g of each in the 500g mix.....In this case it turned out sweet enough with no added sugar .......