Home » Scottish Flapjacks – Or The Only Reason You Still Subscribe to Graze
Written by Chris-Rachael Oseland in Geek Cookies, Recipes and Tasty Goodness
Until I subscribed to Graze, I thought Flapjacks were a quaint 24 hour diner name for pancakes. All my UK readers are no doubt giggling at my naivety, for they know that Flapjacks are, in fact, the delicious ancestor of modern craptastic granola bars. Here in the states, we’ve managed to convince ourselves that something with the same sugar and calories as a Snicker’s bar is actually health food as long as it also contains some oats. In the UK, they’re honest about their oaty sugar snacks, and as a result their version is both higher in fiber while also being a gazillion times more delicious, for there, the oats are acknowledged as merely being a texture vector for multiple types of sugar.
In celebration of Capaldi’s run as the new Doctor, try adding these fast, easy, gosh darn delicious snacks alongside your fish fingers and custard when laying out a spread for your next watch party.
Scottish Flapjacks
1 stick/ ¼ cup unsalted butter
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup golden syrup or corn syrup
¼ cup powdered sugar
generous pinch of coarse or kosher salt
2 ½ cups oats
This is a disgustingly easy recipe for what amounts to a home made candy bar.
Before you even think of touching your stove, generously butter a small pan. I used a 9X9 glass cake pan, but you can use a round one or whatever you prefer. When you think you’ve buttered it enough, add some more. You’ll thank me later.
Now you’re ready to start on the real recipe.
Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
Add the brown sugar, powdered sugar and golden syrup or corn syrup plus a generous pinch of kosher salt.
Stir. Do not walk away. Stir and stir and stir until all the sugar is completely melted. If you stop stirring, you’ll probably end up with a nasty burned caramel permanently stuck to the bottom of your pan, so just keep stirring.
Luckily, this only takes 3-5 minutes.
Once the sugars are melted, add the oats and any additives. Turn off the heat and keep stirring until the oats are completely coated.
Dump your oaty mix into the pre-buttered pan.
Use a spatula and/or your hands to firmly press the mix into the pan.
Bake it at 350F for 25 minutes, or until the edges start to turn a dark brown.
As soon as it comes out of the oven, use a knife or spatula to loosen the sides. Now leave it alone until it cools.
Once cool, cut the giant mound of flapjacky goodness into wedges, sticks, or your preferred shape of choice.
ORANGE CHOCOLATE GRAZE CLONE VARIATION
Traditionally, you get oats and sweets and a pinch of salt. My best Graze recipe clone is for the Orange and Chocolate Flapjacks.
1 tbsp orange extract (NOT orange juice)
¼ cup Nutella
Add the orange extract when you’re melting the butter. You want to use extract instead of actual orange juice because more than a tablespoon of additional liquid will really throw off the final product. Trust me. I’m a professional. (Okay, I’m a flapjack lover who has experimented with a lot of versions. “For science.”)
Follow the rest of the recipe. Once the flapjacks are cooled and cut, gently microwave your Nutella until it turns into a liquid. Now drizzle it over the surface. Let it cool completely before serving. Or, just shove it right in your face. Try to save a few pieces to share, though.
OTHER TASTY ADDITIONS
* ½ cup minced candied ginger (my favorite)
* ½ cup minced dried cherries and blueberries
* ½ cup minced dried figs and dates
* ½ cup minced dried apples plus 1 heaping tsp cinnamon
WHAT THE HELL IS GOLDEN SYRUP?
Golden Syrup is a popular sweetener in the UK. I’m not entirely sure what it’s made of, though I suspect they harvest angel tears as part of the manufacturing process. You can find it on the international aisle of larger groceries or in British import shops. Most Americans substitute light corn syrup instead. It’s not the same, but hey, we also drink sodas made from corn syrup instead of sugar. If you never taste the real thing, you’ll never know what you’re missing.
Illustrated Geek Recipe Posters with Artist Tom Gordon
Search
