Vegan Fruit Flapjacks {Oat Bars}
These energy-packed vegan fruit flapjacks are made with super simple wholesome ingredients and, above all, are really easy to make.
Flapjacks are such a quintessentially British food. As many of you know I grew up in Italy, and I'm pretty sure no Italian there has ever heard of tried something like flapjacks.
So, the first time I had a bite of this delicious oat bar was few years ago here in London, and I absolutely loved it.
But I never attempted to make my own until a couple of days ago, and I'm so glad I did, these homemade vegan fruit flapjacks are a million times better than store-bought.
How To make flapjacks
These vegan fruit flapjacks are surprisingly easy to make, and simply great when you crave something sweet but kind of healty-ish.
All you need for these vegan fruit flapjacks are super simple ingredients: flour, sugar, coconut oil, agave nectar, spices, and your favourite dried fruit.
For the spices, I used both ginger and cinnamon, which give a nicely spiced aroma, that definitely brings these fruit flapjacks to the next level.
For the dried fruit, I used a combo of dried apricots, pears, prunes and cranberries, but feel free to use your favorite mix.
The recipe for making these vegan fruit flapjacks is just as simple as the ingredients used.
All you have to do is stir together sugar, coconut oil, and agave nectar, and heat until melted. Then, add in the remaining ingredients: flour, spices and dried fruits.
Once all the ingredients are stirred together, just transfer the mixture into a baking tray and bake for 30 minutes.
Et-voilà, before you know it, you'll have a batch of delicious, gooey homemade flapjacks to snack on during the week.
This recipe is deliberately inspired by the Ginger & Fruit Flapjacks made by a lovely food blogger friend, Izzie King from Coriander Queen.
She was the biggest ginger fan ever, and she always tried new creative ways to incorporate it into her recipes, including these flapjacks.
I made a few changes to her original recipe, to make it conveniently vegan and a bit more loaded in fruit.
Also, Izzie recommended to add glaced ginger pieces into the mix (which unfortunately I didn't have), so if you have it on hand, make sure to add it too.
Recipe
Vegan Fruit Flapjacks
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon agave nectar, or date syrup
- 140 g coconut oil
- 110 g caster sugar
- 115 g all purpose flour
- 150 g rolled jumbo oats
- 2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
- 140 g dried fruit, finely chopped ( I used a mix of dried apricots, pears, cranberries and prunes)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 160°C/ 320°F. Line a small square or rectangular baking tray or tin (about 18-20 cm large) with baking paper.
- Add agave nectar, coconut oil and sugar into a medium saucepan and heat over a medium heat. Stir everything together until the sugar has melted and you have a syrupy consistency, then remove from the pan.
- In a large bowl, mix together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, oats and mixed dried fruit until combined.
- In a small bowl mix the bicarbonate of soda with a tablespoon of hot water, stir until dissolved and add into the bowl with the dry ingredients.
- Pour in the prepared sugar mixture and mix all the ingredients together until evenly combined.
- Spread the mixture into the prepared baking tray, using a wooden spoon to push the mixture into the corners and flatten the top.
- Bake in the middle of the oven for about 20 minutes or until golden brown on top and nicely crisp on the edges.
- Leave in the tray until cool.
- Once cooled, cut into slices and serve. Transfer to an airtight box and store for up to 5-7 days.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
**This post was originally published in April 2017 and updated with new info**
Made these the other night but turned the mixture into cookies because my dough/mix was too wet. Nonetheless, a nice recipe! Thank you 😅
Trying flapjacks for the first time. My mum makes them all the time but with butter. I wanted to try a vegan recipe as I'm not a huge fan of butter. The coconut oil and sugar didn't combine but I managed to use it anyway. I added some mixed seeds to top for a bit of crunch and cocao drops for my chocolate fix.
They turned out really well. A bit crumbly but the bars have held their shape.
Thanks for your reply. It did make a tasty granola in the end yes! 🙂
Aww so happy to hear that Sarah! I hope it turns out better next time 🙂
I wouldn't recommend this recipe. Firstly, it doesn't say what size pan (precise measurements) to use which is a little unhelpful.
The coconut oil and sugar mixture never combined, so it was just oil with lumps of sugar sat at the bottom. I even tried to mix it using a hand mixer but no joy.
I added it to the dry ingredients anyway and mixed as best I could. It didnt come together well but I pressed it down and put in oven hoping for the best. After 15-20mins, any raisins that happened to be on the top of the mixture had burnt so I had to take it all out of the oven. I've since picked them off. What remains is crumbly and not able to be cut into flapjacks unfortunately, as well as not being cooked properly.
Hi Sarah, I'm so sorry to hear the recipe didnt work out for you. Thank you for mentioning the missing pan size, I've added the correct measurement :). It seems really weird that the sugar didn't dissolve. If you heat it with the coconut oil and agave syrup, eventually, it has to dissolve( just like when you make caramel). Unfortunately, I can't say precisely what went wrong, but it sounds like your oven might have been too hot or with the fan on. However, I can totally suggest repurposing the flapjacks. Crumble the mixture with your hands, and bake for about 10 minutes or until crunchy, and you basically have a big jar of just-like-granola to eat for breakfast tomorrow!
Thanks for the vegan receipe, is there a way to receive notifications for new recipes ??
Just the other day I had flapjack for the first time, I bought it in the local Deli. It was super delicious. I came home and said to my hubby that I must get the recipe to make this at home. And here I find your recipe that I absolutely can't wait to make. These bars sound soooo super delicious!
What a fantastic coincidence 🙂 I still can't believe it took me 20 years to try flapjacks, and I'm so so glad I did in the end, they're so yummy!
I always thought that flapjacks were pancakes, so I definitely learned something new! These look like a great snack, perfect for those busy on the go days
You're so sweet for doing this recipe in Izzy's honor! This looks like such an amazing recipe! Cant wait to try it and I'm loving the healthy ingredients!!
I'm so glad I found this recipe! I was trying to find a good recipe to have on hand as snacks throughout the week, and I already have all of the ingredients for this one! Yay! 🙂
Yay!! Let me know how they turn out :))
These vegan flapjacks look like a great afternoon snack! I like the addition of ground ginger, perfect compliment to the dried fruit.
I haven't made flapjacks in so long! These were my childhood! Love how you made them vegan. 🙂
These look and sound delicious! And such a lovely tribute to Izzie, she would have loved these I'm sure x
What a great grab and go breakfast. I could freeze a load of these and have them for busy days. Superb idea.
These vegan fruit flapjacks are tasty yummy and chewy and simple to make. A good breakfast or a snacker at any time during the day.
Flapjacks are such an awesome sweet snack! So easy to make and so delicious!
They look quite yummy, and sound easy to make. I love having healthy snacks around when the tummy starts to grumble!
Vegan and delicious! Count me in. I will be saving this for breakfast next week.
I was just talking to my sister about how frustrating it is to try to find a good cereal bar recipe for the kids... until now! Stumbling across this recipe makes me super excited to give these a try! They not only look delicious, they are also nutritious!
They taste amazing, but the oil and caster sugar mix never combined? Remained separate? Any need to have these in together? Or is there something going wrong with that?
These look delicious and are perfect for the on the go snack.
Love your interpretation of Izzie's flapjacks, I'm sure she would have loved it too:-)
I can't resist flapjacks, a real favourite, and a lovely way to remember Isabella by recreating one of her recipes!
Flapjacks are one of my favourite things to bake when I'm in need of something sweet. They're quick to make and not too unhealthy. Love your vegan version and your beautiful photographs - a fitting tribute to Izzie.
A lovely post and such a great way to use Izzie's recipe. Such fitting tribute.
I think Izzie would love you interpretation of her recipe, yum!
I love a nice flapjack and these look like high quality snacks! I'm sure Izzie would love your version of the recipe as much as her own.
These look delicious and are perfect for the on the go snack. Lovely Tribute to Isabella.
Love your take on the recipe, a lovely tribute to Izzie x
A gorgeous looking take on Izzie's recipe xx
These look awesome, I'm sure Izzie would have approved of your version!
Love your variation on Isabella's recipe, looks so delicious. Lovely post.
Such a beautiful words and delicious recipe. I'm sure Isabella would love your interpretation very much.
A lovely tribute Andrea <3
That's a lovely tribute to Izzie. A beautiful version of her recipe. x