Healthy Flapjacks – Perfect For Lunchboxes

So when I lived in Australia, I used to make these flapjack bars ALL THE TIME. They’re such a good way of piling in fruits and seeds into a yummy bar. The kiddies I used to look after loved them and always wanted more! We’d have so much fun thinking about what ingredients to use and it’s so exciting experimenting with flavours together!

You can use any array of dried fruits/nuts/seeds, whatever you fancy really, this time I opted for dried apricots, dried cranberries and pumpkin seeds, so lots of energy to get the brain and body warmed up!

The method is pretty simple, just remember you need to melt the butter, syrup and sugar on a low heat, you don’t want to burn it!

Have fun!

Ingredients:

200g butter (I used dairy free butter but you can use either)
150g light muscovado sugar
100g golden syrup
350g oats
100-150g chopped dried fruits/nuts/seeds

Method:

Melt the butter, sugar and syrup in a pan (you could microwave it if you like, whatever suits!) slowly, stir as it melts.
Once it has all melted and dissolved, take it off the heat.
Pour in the oats and the dried fruits/nuts/seeds and mix well.
Make sure all the oats are covered and the syrup is mixed well throughout all the ingredients.
Press into a lined/greased tin (I used a 12 x 8” tin) and bake for about 25 minutes at 180°C.
Let it cool in the tin for about 10-15 minutes before cutting it into bars.

Some yummy ideas for other fillings:

Coconut and a sprinkling of dark chocolate
Dried cranberries and white chocolate chunks
Almonds and sunflower seeds
Banana chips, crumbled pecans and chopped fudge
Tropical mix – dried pineapple and coconut
Coconut and dried raspberries or cranberries
Glacé cherries and sliced almonds

So have lots of fun making these whether it be with your kiddies or just a treat for yourself or a treat for your lunchbox, and feel free to show me 😀

Love,

Sophie xx

Calling all Early Years Teachers, Childcare Practitioners and Nursery Nurses!

I’ve never really written huge amounts about my job. It means a huge deal to me and I know there are so many of you out there that love working with children as much as I do! I’m an Early Years Teacher and Nursery Manager working in Nottingham and spend a lot of time working with the community, families and wider agencies. I always love going to conferences and training events as well as visiting other settings to build relationships and gain new ideas. Working in partnership is so important to me, and I love collaborating with practitioners.

My thoughts are maybe we could create a community where we can discuss ideas, issues and everything in between, giving advice and organising meetups where we as professionals can share ideas and websites; and meet new practitioners. I’m also thinking about hosting a Twitter discussion once a week where we can have topics to discuss?

We could share useful websites, links and events linked to Children’s education, share training opportunities and collaborate together!

If anybody would be up for that and would know others who might want to be a part of it, then let’s see what we can organise!

Share this post with your fellow Early Years Practitioners, let’s build a strong community.

If you want to be a part of this, comment below or send me an email on sophie_deacon@hotmail.co.uk with your name, job role and something you would like to discuss or share with other practitioners.

My twitter is sophie_d247

My Pinterest is sophietea24

So get in touch, I’m so looking forward to meeting lots of people with the same passion I have 😀

Love,

Sophie xxx