It’s been a hectic couple of weeks, but my exams are finally over! As a final year student, I’ve now entered that limbo period between receiving my results and graduating, so I’ve taken some time out to relax, enjoy not having to cram my brain full of French and formulae, and now return to blogging.
I wanted to start off this new era of my life with something pretty special – this plant-based chocolate flapjack, to be exact. Thanks to Rawr Chocolate, I’ve had a substantial amount of raw goji chocolate chunks* sat in my cupboard begging to be snacked on during my revision season, so I decided to finally unleash it in a whirlwind of healthy ingredients that churned out this deliciously rich treat. If you haven’t tried Rawr, I’d definitely recommend it – I’ve been a convert to their chiefly plant-based, organic chocolate bars for quite a while now. It’s nice to see a company with a conscience for both their producers and their customers – regular chocolate was so bad for my skin, so their raw chocolate has been a heaven-sent alternative.
You also might question how such a large, stodgy-looking flapjack could be in any way healthy, but I suppose that’s the art of plant-based cooking. This cake, tasting just as great as the syrup-filled apple flapjacks my mum always used to make for me and my family, hits a nice balance between treat and mindful eating, meaning you’ll feel guilt-free and still satisfied upon eating it.
Plant-based chocolate flapjack
Serves: 10
250g oats
1 small banana
1 small apple
3 heaped tbsp almond butter
3 heaped tbsp date syrup
3 heaped tbsp maple syrup
20g cocoa nibs
1 heaped tbsp cocoa powder
+
160g Rawr Goji Chocolate Chunks*
Handful of dried goji berries
- Preheat your oven to 200°C
- In a bowl, mush the banana with a fork until barely any lumps remain
- Peel and grate your apple into a separate bowl
- Pour the mushed banana into a small saucepan with the almond butter, date syrup and maple syrup (I use these two so as to prevent a strong date flavour – you can change this to suit your taste)
- Heat the saucepan at a medium heat until all the ingredients have congealed together – remove from the heat immediately once they have
- In a mixing bowl, pour out your oats and mix in the grated apple, cocoa nibs and cocoa powder
- Pour over the banana-syrup mix and stir in thoroughly – it may seem like there’s not enough liquid at first, but keep stirring!
- Now put your flapjack mix into a tin to bake. I use a long bread tin that I don’t need to grease.
- Bake for 15 minutes and immediately plate once removed from the oven
- While the flapjack is cooling, heat the Rawr chocolate chunks using a bain marie. (To do this, fill a saucepan halfway with kettle-boiled water, and keep at boiling point by setting at a medium heat. Rest a glass bowl on the edges of the pan, so it will sit nicely above the water without touching it. Now pop your chocolate chunks in this.)
- Stir the chocolate until melted and spoon over the flapjack – the messier the better
- Now sprinkle over the goji berries while it’s cooling, and serve whenever you like!
