Scottish Banana, Coconut & Chocolate Chip Flapjacks

Chewy banana, coconut and chocolate flapjacks. A new take on a traditional Scottish recipe and the history of Stirling Castle with photos.

Scottish Banana, Coconut & Chocolate Chip Flapjacks

We recently had a family day out with friends to Stirling Castle.

I wanted to bake something to take with us, but it had to be something easy to nibble on as we explored the castle and the castle grounds.

I baked these chewy banana, coconut and chocolate chip flapjacks.

Scottish Flapjacks

Flapjacks seemed ideal for our day out.  They are a popular Scottish traybake made with oats.

I wanted to make them with banana, so I scoured the internet for recipes and read a few to get an idea of how much to use, then set about experimenting.

I'm happy to say the first batch came out beautifully, well at least if you ignore the fact that I poured in the liquid while it was still hot and melted my chocolate chips. Doh!

Melted chocolate or not they were a hit especially with the toddlers.

Note to self, wait until the wet ingredients have cooled before pouring into the oat mix, then add the chocolate chips last!

For more Scottish recipes have a look at my recipe index of Scottish Recipes for Vegans and Vegetarians

Bananas

Adding bananas to flapjacks help with the chewy texture and it helps sweeten them. It means you can reduce the amount of sugar, there is still some in there, but not as much as the traditional recipe.

Bananas are also full of antioxidants, fibre, potassium and vitamins B6 & C.

Oats

The main ingredient in Scottish flapjacks is oats.

The prefect oats for these oat bars are porridge oats, as jumbo oats are too course and don't give the same texture and oatmeal is just too fine.

Coconut

I added coconut to these flapjacks for flavour. They go really well with the chocolate and banana.

For this recipe I used dessicated (dried flakes) coconut, which was easily mixed into the oats.

Chocolate chips

For the chocolate in these flapjacks I added dark chocolate chips.

I advise waiting until the mixture has cooled before adding the chocolate chips. I added them while it was still hot and it ended up melted chocolate instead of chips. 

Still tastes good but doesn't look as good.

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Stirling Castle

Stirling Castle sits on a huge volcanic rock overlooking the River Forth at the point where the lowlands of Scotland and the Highlands of Scotland meet.

It's stood there for centuries and has been both a royal residence and a stronghold for soldiers.

Two famous battles took place in or near the castle.

The famous battle of Stirling Bridge (the first battle for Scottish Independence for Scotland in 1297 where William Wallace and his men defeated the English invaders) and the Battle of Bannockburn (where Robert the Bruce and his men took back the castle from the English monarch King Edward II in 1314.

When the Scots weren't fighting for their independence, Scottish royalty visited the castle to hunt and hold court. It was also the meeting place for the Scottish government, which now sits in Edinburgh.

Stirling Castle was also the childhood home of Mary Queen of Scots and her son James the 1 and  VI,  who was the first King to rule Scotland and England. The castle later became a military castle housing the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders.

Try these next

If you like these flapjacks, try my chocolate and banana flapjack cookies.

flapjack, banana flapjacks, Scottish flapjacks, chocolate chip flapjacks, coconut flapjacks, oat bars

baking

Scottish

Yield: 16 flapjacks

Author: Jacqueline Meldrum

Scottish Banana, Coconut & Chocolate Chip Flapjacks

Chewy banana, coconut and chocolate flapjacks. A new take on a traditional Scottish recipe.

prep time: 10 Mcook time: 25 Mtotal time: 35 M

ingredients:

• ½ cup soft butter or dairy free spread
• 3 tbsp light brown sugar
• 5 tbsp golden syrup
• 2 cups porridge oats
• ½ cup desiccated coconut
• 1 ripe banana
• ½ cup dark chocolate chips

instructions:

How to cook Scottish Banana, Coconut & Chocolate Chip Flapjacks

1. Heat the oven to gas mark 3/325f/160c/140c fan.
2. Grease a tray or brownie pan.
3. In a large bowl mix together the oats, sugar, coconut and chocolate chips.
4. Mash a banana until it is squidgy and soft.
5. In a small pan, melt together the butter and golden syrup and mix in the banana.
6. Leave the melted butter mixture to cool slightly and then mix into the oats. I was too impatient and my chocolate melted. Whoops! It still tasted good, but choc chips would have been nice.
7. Bake for 25 minutes. Take out near the end and test with your finger, it should be slightly springy if you want a chewy flapjack. Leave it in longer if you want a crisper flapjack.
8. Cut into squares while still warm.
9. Enjoy!

NOTES:

These are the chewy type of flapjacks. If you prefer a crisper flapjack you simply bake them for longer, but I love them just the way they are.

These will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.

Calories
149.33

Fat (grams)
8.90

Sat. Fat (grams)
5.67

Carbs (grams)
16.36

Fiber (grams)
1.18

Net carbs
15.18

Sugar (grams)
9.07

Protein (grams)
1.85

Sodium (milligrams)
72.55

Cholesterol (grams)
17.74

Created using The Recipes Generator