Sunday, 14 June 2026

Chocolate Banana Flapjacks

Adjusted from last one I tried, yet to try

Basically for using up bananas

Last time used walnuts but now nut free for after school snacks

Designed to use coconut sugar but originally BBC recipe used maple syrup

Double quantity from last time to try to fill our Pampered Chef tray

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Ingredients

200g butter, plus extra for greasing

50g coconut sugar

1/4 tsp fine salt (or 1/2 tsp if using unsalted butter)

4 tbsp water

400g oats

140g raisins

60g desiccated coconut

4 tbsp milled linseed

4 tbsp cocoa powder

620g bananas (about 5 to 6 medium), mashed

Method

Preheat the oven to 190C/170C Fan/Gas 5. Grease your tin (about 20x35cm) and line with baking paper.

Peel the bananas and mash well in a large bowl until mostly smooth. A few small lumps are fine.

Put the butter, coconut sugar and salt in a saucepan over low heat. Stir until the butter melts and the sugar mostly dissolves into a loose syrup, about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the water.

Take off the heat. Add the oats, raisins, coconut, linseed, cocoa and mashed banana. Mix well until everything is evenly coated, with no dry streaks of cocoa.

Press firmly into the tin and bake uncovered for about 30 minutes, until the centre is set. Check from 20 minutes and lay baking paper loosely over the top if it's darkening too fast.

Mark into 24 pieces without cutting all the way through. Leave until cold, then cut. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Notes

Add the water last and hold some back if the mix already looks workable; the coconut and banana between them carry a lot of moisture. Easier to add than to remove.

The mix fills a 20x35x2.5cm tin to about the rim. It won't rise, so press it level.

Sugar is deliberately low and the cocoa is bitter, so it tastes only lightly sweet. Push the sugar up to 70 to 80g next time if you want it sweeter.