Scottish Fresh Blueberry Oat Flapjacks

Scottish oaty snack bars studded with fresh blueberries, banana and seeds.

SCOTTISH FRESH BLUEBERRY OAT FLAPJACKS

We love flapjacks in this house. 

They are filling, but healthy snacks and they're great for a breakfast on the run. They should not be confused with American flapjacks which are actually what we call Scotch Pancakes.

No, Scottish flapjacks are oaty snack bars made with porridge oats which are also known as rolled oats.

ENERGY BARS

Flapjacks are the perfect snack when you need something to keep you going for long time. The oats in these bars give you slow released energy.

I carry some around with me for for my wee boy.

He's always hungry on the way home at night, especially on the way home from his kickboxing class. It must be all that energy that he burns off.

also try - No Bake Peanut Butter & Cornflake Chocolate Tiffin

VEGETARIAN OR VEGAN OAT BARS

Scottish flapjacks are traditionally made with butter and honey but they are just as good made with dairy-free butter and agave nectar or maple syrup instead of honey for a tasty vegan snack.

You can decide depending on your diet and preferences.

WATCH YOUR BAKE TIME

I do think the flapjacks could have had a little longer in the oven. I took them out a bit early.

You want a good golden colour.

Don't leave them too long though unless you like a crispy flapjack. Personally I like them to be chewy.

It's a fine balance.

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

PORRIDGE OATS

Porridge oats are a staple here in Scotland. They are one of our main crops and used in many of our recipes.

For making flapjacks you want to use porridge oats, which are also known as rolled oats.

Oatmeal is too fine for making flapjacks and jumbo oats are too coarse, which makes them harder to bind together.

BLUEBERRIES

Blueberries grow wild and are cultivated on farms in Scotland. The season runs from July to October, but some farms can extend this with underground heating in tunnels.

Scotland has the perfect climate for berries, with long warm summer days (but not too hot) and long hours of sunlight.

These flapjacks contain fresh blueberries, but if you don't have any fresh you could use dried blueberries or frozen blueberries.

The blueberries in these flapjacks were a triumph. Little pockets of squidged blueberries, in among all the oats and seeds.

Mmmmmmm!

Frozen Blueberries

If you are using frozen berries, take them out of the freezer and leave in a bowl in your fridge overnight to defrost. 

Pat gently with kitchen paper to remove any excess liquid before adding.

Dried Blueberries

If you are using dried blueberries, you can add them straight into the recipe in place of the fresh berries. 

The dried berries will give you more of a chewy quality instead of little pockets of soft fruit.

BANANAS

I've been adding bananas to flapjacks for years. They are not part of a traditional Scottish flapjack recipe, but I add them for a few reasons.

Add bananas to flapjacks becaause:

1. It's good to get as much fruit into your diet as possible.
2. They add to the chewy texture.
3. They sweeten the mixture so you don't need as much sugar. Traditional flapjacks are very high in sugar.

FLAX SEEDS

It's really important to include seeds and nuts into your diet, so I like to include them when I can. 

I added the seeds whole to these flapjacks, although they are actually more nutritious when they are ground. 

Do be careful when adding ground flax seeds to a recipe as 4 tbsp of these seeds ground would make quite a lot of powder and can dry out a recipe.

If you were adding this quantity of ground flax seed powder to a cake you would have to remove the same quantity of flour to even out the recipe. 

So for this recipe stick to adding the flax as seeds.

Top Tip for Flax Seeds

Flax seeds can be quite expensive to buy. However they are also called linseeds. Buy them as linseeds and you will find the are usually much cheaper.

also try - Scottish Carrot, Banana and Chocolate Chip Flapjacks

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MORE FLAPJACK RECIPES

Blueberry & Lemon Oaty Breakfast Bar

Peanut Butter & Dark Chocolate Flapjacks

Pineapple, Banana & Chocolate Flapjacks

Scottish Banana, Coconut & Chocolate Chip Flapjacks

Scottish Oaty Walnut & Raisin Flapjacks

READERS BAKING

UPDATED 30 JUNE 2020

I love when readers let me know they've enjoyed a recipe. 

Every day readers share photos of things they've made from my site and get in touch to say how much they love my recipes. It really cheers me up and makes all the hard work worth it.

Lorraine, who is in my Living on the Veg Facebook group made these fresh blueberry flapacks and loved them. She said "I was particularly drawn to them for the low sugar content. We follow a low carb diet here (not completely sugar free) and these really fitted our treat criteria!".

Scottish Fresh Blueberry Oat Flapjacks

Yield: 16

Author: Jacqueline Meldrum

Prep time: 10 MCook time: 25 MTotal time: 35 M

Scottish oaty snack bars studded with fresh blueberries, banana and seeds.

Ingredients:

• 315g/3½ cups porridge oats
• 100g/½ cup dairy free spread
• 1 large banana, mashed
• 2-3 tbsp agave nectar
• 125g fresh blueberries
• 4 tbsp flax seeds (linseeds)
• pinch of salt

Instructions:

How to cook Scottish Fresh Blueberry Oat Flapjacks

1. Preheat oven to 160c/140c fan/325f/gas mark 3 and line a brownie pan or baking tray with greaseproof paper. I like to use foil backed parchment as it moulds to the pan nicely and is less fiddly.
2. In a small pan melt together the dairy free spread and agave nectar, then stir in the mashed banana and set aside to cool.
3. Measure the oats into a large bowl then mix in the blueberries and seeds.
4. Pour in the cooled wet mixture and stir until well combined. If the mixture seems a little wet, you may add more oats.
5. Pour the mixture into your prepared pan and press down with the back of a spoon until even.
6. Bake for 25 minutes until golden, but slightly springy to the touch. Leave to cool in the pan.
7. Cut into 16 squares and tuck in.
8. Enjoy!

Notes:

If you don't have fresh blueberries you can use frozen blueberries. Just defrost them in the fridge overnight and pat with kitchen paper to remove any excess juice.
You can also use dried blueberries instead of fresh for a chewy finish.
If you don't have agave nectar you could use maple syrup, golden syrup or honey.

Calories
78.63

Fat (grams)
2.25

Sat. Fat (grams)
0.70

Carbs (grams)
12.23

Fiber (grams)
1.64

Net carbs
10.59

Sugar (grams)
3.74

Protein (grams)
2.94

Sodium (milligrams)
33.05

Cholesterol (grams)
3.61

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baking

Scottish, vegan

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