double chocolate flapjacks

"Rickety Uncle" might very well have a long-lost British cousin. Here in North America 'flapjack' is simply another name for 'pancake' but in the UK and Australia  - so I am told - flapjacks are a type of oatmeal square or bar cookie, one that has a distinct familial resemblance to an uncle we love. And because we have loved Rickety Uncle (and the hacked uncle too) I thought it would be worth the whatever to play around with a recipe that I found online for flapjacks.

I wasn't there to witness it but apparently when Daylan took a first bite of the batch I sent home with Eden his reaction was "Kazowie!!!" (Not often that a comic book superlative is applied to something I make, so naturally I was pretty flattered.) Following the kazowie!! there were a few issues of sharing and hoarding that had to be addressed. That seemed like a good enough endorsement to share the recipe.

I made it two ways and simply can't decide which version I prefer.  The first is fudgier but a little messier. The second is a little more packed nutritionally. Both are pretty addictive.

double chocolate flapjacks v 1.0

1/4 cup butter

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

4 Tbsp honey*

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

2 cups quick rolled oats

1/3 cup Dutch process cocoa powder

1/2 cup slivered almonds

1/2 cup shredded coconut

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 tsp sea salt

3/4 cup dark chocolate chips

2 Tbsp water

Melt the butter and honey together, stirring well. Add the vanilla.

Combine the brown sugar, oats, cocoa, almonds, coconut, cranberries, salt, and chocolate chips. Stir until thoroughly mixed. Add the butter, honey, and vanilla mixture. Stir. Add the 2 Tbsp water and stir until all the ingredients are very well distributed.

Turn the mixture into a 9" square baking pan lined with parchment paper. Bake at 350 F for about 40 minutes - until the flapjack is bubbling and the edges are well browned. Cool in the pan on a wire rack. Don't try to cut these until they are absolutely cool - you will just end up with a terrible mess.

When the flapjack is completely cool, lift out of the pan and cut with a sharp knife into squares. Wrap and hoard store in an airtight container.

double chocolate flapjacks v 1.2

1/4 cup butter

1/2 cup coconut oil

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup honey*

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups quick rolled oats

3/4 cup rolled oats processed into oat flour in a blender or food processor

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1/2 cup finely chopped almonds

1/2 cup shredded coconut

2 Tbsp sprouted chia seed powder

1/4 cup hemp seed hearts

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 tsp sea salt

3/4 cup dark chocolate chips

1 egg white

Melt the butter, coconut oil, and honey. Combine with brown sugar and vanilla.

Mix the oats, cocoa, almonds, coconut, chia seed powder, hemp seed hearts, cranberries, salt, and chocolate chips. Add the butter/honey mixture. Stir well. Add the egg white and stir very well.

Turn the mixture into a 9" square baking pan that has been lined with parchment paper. Bake at 350 F for 45 minutes. Cool completely in the pan on a wire rack. Same warning as for v 1.0 - terrible mess (more like granola than a bar) if you try to cut this prematurely. Admittedly it still tastes pretty good but if you want a bar .... be patient! Cut and wrap and be as generous or as Scrooge-ish as you like. I have no idea how long these will keep - ours lasted about 2 days :)

*On the Lyle's website they insist that Lyle's Golden Syrup is the essential ingredient (no big surprise there!). Wanting to use as little refined sugar as possible I chose to use honey as an alternative. I must admit that I haven't tried the Golden Syrup so highly suggested - and it may be far superior in taste - but the honey worked very well. And tasted really good too!