This is a “non commercial” post. I was in with my friend, James Lawlor, the butcher over in Rathmines. James recommended Harry’s Nut Butter to me and gifted me the jar you see in this post. He also suggested I do a post about it as the producer is a start-up who is doing great stuff in the local marketplace. That’s reason enough for me. (The free jar of product had no influence. I’m cheap, but not that cheap).
The recipe is so easy as to not really qualify as a recipe at all. It is more of an assembly. Here’s what you will need:
Ingredients
- 250gms of porridge oats
- 250gms of jumbo oats
- 125gms of butter
- 125gms of dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons of golden syrup
- 3 tablespoons of Harry’s Nut Butter
The assembly
Tip the porridge oats into a big bowl. Don’t do it as I did in the photo as you will get oat dust all over everything in the kitchen. Still, it was worth it for the photo.
Lots of oat flour dust everywhere!
Place all the remaining ingredients, bar the nut butter into a saucepan and heat until everything is melted and combined. Be very careful, this mixture is extremely hot and can give awful burns.
It’s very difficult to not eat the nut butter off the spoon.
Turn off the heat. Add in the nut butter and stir to combine. Then pour the whole lot into the bowl of oats. Stir this too, to combine. It will take a bit of stirring, but there is enough of everything to get the right mixture.
Lots of nuts and other good flavours in there.
Pour the mixture into a lined baking tin. pat it down until you have a compact, even layer of flapjack.
The mixture needs to be flattened down well.
Place it in a 180ºC 350ºF fan oven for 25 minutes or so. The time will vary depending on the oven. Keep an eye on them. Don’t let them burn. Experience tells me that they are ready to come out a few minutes after there is a bit of bubbling going on in the middle of the mixture.
It is also difficult to leave this until it cools completely. The aromas are lovely.
Place the baking tray on a wire rack and allow to cool completely. This may take a while. Don’t be tempted to slice these while they are still warm. They will tear and make a mess in the kitchen and wherever you decide to eat them. When they are cool, cut them with a big sharp knife. The size and shape is entirely up to you. I made 16 generous bars from this recipe. A more “balanced diet” approach might yield 32 bars.
The finished (non commercial) product. Delicious.
I use them as fuel for cycling. They are perfect for that and are a delight with a cup of coffee. The nut butter adds a lovely umami note to the proceedings. Thew were a big hit with a few of my cycling buddies when we met for a socially distanced coffee after doing our solo rides (we are responsible!).
These will keep in an airtight container for longer than they will last. They are that good.
Do give these a try. I admire any young business making a go of it in these times. The website is at https://harrysnutbutter.com/.
Footnote on commercial relationships: I have no commercial relationship with anybody mentioned in this post. I have never met the nut butter guy. When this pandemic is behind us, that is a treat in store.
Eha | 19th February 2021
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Just as well I went and talked to Mr Google first ! In Australia as I believe in the States a flapjack is a pancake, so looking at yours ? . . . Oh, there may be a difference in thickness but it certainly is not a traybake as I have now been taught it is in the British Isles !! Well, as you know, this is not quite my forte in the kitchen but yours looks so appetizing . . . and just might last me in my more-or-less lockdown single state awhile, so . . .thanks ! Of course your nut butter will be a missing ingredient to be replaced with some local plebeian one but . . . what nuts does your talented butter maker use ? just to know and envy !! . . . keep well, glad you are cycling . . .
Conor Bofin | Author | 8th March 2021
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There is a lot of hazelnut in there Eha. Also some caffeine and other stuff. They actually do a range of butters. I have gone back to using peanut butter for the most recent batches. I’m working my way through a jar of crunchy and a jar of smooth, in the interests of experimental science, of course. In my experience, peanut butter is something on which one has to spend the dollars. The cheap ones are full of palm oil and not a good idea on numerous levels.
Linda Duffin | 19th February 2021
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I’ve never tried nut butter in a flapjack, that may well be a stroke of genius on your part, Conor. Perfect cycling fuel.
Conor Bofin | Author | 8th March 2021
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They were very tasty Linda. I’m having a bit of fun cooking these and other tasty treats for my constricted and restricted cycles during lockdown.
Sybaritica | 19th February 2021
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I remember that sort of Flapjack from childhood in Yorkshire. Over on this side of the pond, Flapjacks are Pancakes..
Conor Bofin | Author | 8th March 2021
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Hi John,
Eha tells me that it’s the same in Australia. It’s funny how the name manages to change with a bit of distance.
katechiconi | 19th February 2021
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I must look up the contents of that jar! It’s comparatively easy to get good nut butters here, but I imagine that different variants would give a different flavour. I’m a great fan of flapjacks, which aren’t very common here, being a bit simple. There’s a big Australian culture of ‘the slice’, but they tend to be a bit fancier and involve some sort of topping or two on a pastry, biscuit or occasionally oaty base.
Conor Bofin | Author | 8th March 2021
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I have looked at toppings for my flapjacks. They end up being rejected purely on practical grounds. As we use them primarily as cycling fuel, they need to last for a few hours in a plastic bag in a sweaty cycling top pocket. Being a bit robust is one of the features that make these popular just as they are. I would be afraid of the topped ones as they would just be more unnecessary lockdown desk fuel for me.