Sticky Plum Flapjack

I came home from visiting family a few days ago with a*huge* bag full of plums from my Sister-in-law's farm. My usual fail safe recipe is a crumble cake or muffins, but I fancied trying something different. I turned to Google and discovered a recipe for Sticky Plum Flapjack which you can find here on the BBC Good Food website.

Now, I'm not great at following recipes and I was out of a couple of ingredients, so I made a few tweaks! Don't be fooled into thinking it's good for you because it's a fruit flapjack- it's packed with butter and sugar. Still, everything in moderation! Here's my version. Afterwards, I thought how amazing it would be with an extra 50g or so of crumbled amaretti biscuits over the top. Good job I have lots of plums left!

• 450g fresh plums, halved and stoned
• ½ tsp mixed spice
• 300g soft brown sugar
• 350g butter, plus extra for greasing
• 300g rolled porridge oats
• 140g plain flour
• 100g pistachios
• 3 tbsp golden syrup

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Tip the plums into a bowl. Mix with the spice, 50g of the sugar and then set aside.
•  Gently melt the butter and syrup in a saucepan. In a large bowl, mix the oats, flour, pistachio nuts and remaining sugar together, making sure there are no lumps of sugar, then stir in the butter and golden syrup until everything is combined into a loose flapjack mixture.

 Grease a square baking tin about 20 x 20cm (I used a tinfoil baking tray from Asda, these I think). Press half the oat mix over the base of the tin, then tip over the plums and spread to make an even layer. Press the remaining oats over the plums so they are completely covered right to the sides of the tin. Bake for 45-50 mins until dark golden and starting to crisp a little around the edges. Leave to cool completely, then cut into 18 little bars. Will keep in an airtight container for 2 days or can be frozen for up to a month.

 

I couldn't wait until it was cold, so it was very soft when I photographed our afternoon snack. It tasted amazing- sweet flapjack and sharp plums, what's not to love?! But, and there is a but, it is *very* sticky and *very* soft. Almost too soft to eat as a slice. It would be fabulous with a dollop of vanilla ice cream as a pudding though. Next time (there will definitely be one!) I'll fiddle with the amounts a bit and bake for longer to get it a little more firm. If you try it, please do comment to let me know how yours turns out.