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Apricot, Nut & Seed Oat Slice

With nutritious oats, fruity dried apricots plus chewy coconut, crunchy peanuts and toasted pumpkin seeds, you make this lovely, sweet treat with an all-in-one method similar to flapjacks. But it's lighter and less sticky thanks to an egg and a little flour to lighten.

Cut into bars or squares once cold, eat just as it is or with an optional drizzle of melted chocolate plus more apricot, nuts, and seeds.

Please read the accompanying blog post before starting, and use metric measurements and digital scales as these were used to test the recipe.

Course Dessert, Snack, Cake, Biscuit
Cuisine British, European, World
Keyword oats, easy, oat bar, oat square
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings 8 - 16
Author Moorlands Eater

Ingredients

  • 150 g butter
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
  • 1 med-large egg (beaten)

Dry ingredients

  • 200 g dried apricots (roughly chopped: if liked, set aside 25 g finely chopped for decoration)
  • 180 g rolled or porridge oats
  • 150 g light brown soft sugar (can be replaced with white caster sugar)
  • 100 g self-raising flour (or plain/all-purpose flour + 1 tsp baking powder sifted together)
  • 50 g peanuts, roasted and salted, or raw (roughly chopped: rinse and pat dry if using very salty roasted peanuts)
  • 35 g coconut shavings (or desiccated coconut)
  • 35 g pumpkin seeds (optional: toast in a dry pan first) (roughly chopped)
  • 1 pinch salt (optional)

For the topping (optional: can be left plain)

  • 50 g dark or milk chocolate (or 25 g of each)
  • 25 g finely chopped apricots (set aside from the 200g in the dry ingredients above)
  • finely chopped roasted peanuts
  • finely chopped pumpkin seeds
  • finely chopped coconut shavings (or a little desiccated coconut)

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C /160°C Fan /Gas 4 / 350°F with a shelf in the middle position.

  2. Take a baking tin with an approximately 20cm square base and line it with baking paper so it comes above the sides of the tin: this will make the slice easier to remove later.

    Melt the butter and use some of it to grease the paper using a pastry brush.

    Set aside the rest of the butter.

  3. Put ALL the ingredients listed under 'Dry ingredients' into a mixing bowl and stir together.

  4. Add the vanilla extract to the remaining melted butter, tip into the mixing bowl, and stir well to combine with no dry flour or oats visible.

    Add the beaten egg and stir again until everything is thoroughly mixed.

  5. Transfer the mixture to the prepared tin and spread it evenly, ensuring it goes right into the corners, and smooth the top.

  6. Put in the preheated oven and bake for approx. 23 - 25 minutes or until set, golden brown, and the edges slightly pulling away from the sides of the tin.

    Tip: if in doubt, turn off the oven and leave for a further 2 - 3 minutes.

  7. Remove the tin from the oven and use a sharp knife to cut into 8 bars (or 16 squares) while hot and still in the tin.

    Set aside for 10 minutes then, using the baking paper as 'handles' lift out of the tin and leave on a cooling rack until cold.

Add the topping (optional)

  1. Peel away the sides of the baking paper.

    Break the chocolate into pieces and put in a microwave-safe bowl.

    Melt on full power in 10 second bursts, stirring between each one, until just a few small pieces of un-melted chocolate remain. Stir vigorously until completely smooth.

    Alternative: on top of the stove. Melt in a heatproof bowl above a pan of gently simmering water. Stir constantly and make sure the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl.

    Drizzle the melted chocolate all over the cold oat slices or squares.

    While the chocolate is still wet, sprinkle over your chosen finely chopped fruit, nuts, and seeds. Add another drizzle over the top if liked.

    Set aside until the chocolate topping has set (put in the fridge to speed up if liked).

  2. Use a sharp knife to cut down all the way through the lines you made earlier and separate into bars or squares.

    Should keep for at least a week in an airtight container. Can be stored in the fridge if liked and brought back to room temperature before eating.