Angelina's Maple Flapjacks

My lovely friend Angelina sent me some delicious Vermont maple syrup this Christmas and it's inspired me to come up with this maple flapjack recipe. I've added pecans and dates, which I think work really well with the deep, almost burnt butterscotch flavour of the maple syrup. However you can mix it up a bit if you want to try other things. Some ginger, lemon zest, dried fruits or even chocolate chips would also work beautifully. You can even try other syrups and types of sugar, it's up to you!

Prep Time: 10 Mins

Baking Time: 25 Mins

200g Maple Syrup

150g Light Muscovado Sugar

200g Unsalted Butter

200g Dates (Pitted and roughly chopped)

150g Pecans (Roughly chopped)

350g Jumbo Rolled Oats

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4 line a 22cm square tin (or similar) with baking or greaseproof paper. Pour the maple syrup into a large saucepan then add the sugar and cubed butter. Stir with a wooden spoon over a medium heat until the sugar is dissolved and the butter is completed melted. Throw in the dates and nuts, stir for another 30 seconds or so, then remove the pan from the heat and tip in the rolled oats. Mix the whole lot together until combined, making sure you get right to the bottom of the pan. Tip the mixture into the lined tray and press the mixture down, compacting as much as you can and ensuring it's worked right into the corners of the tray. Bake in the oven for around 25 minutes, until the top is golden and the edges are just starting to darken. Leave to cool completely in the tin, then tip out, carefully remove the paper and cut into equal squares. Done!