A fun sweet treat, these maple syrup flapjacks are perfect as a mid-afternoon snack for school or work! Super easy to make, they come together in around 30 minutes with minimal 'hands on' cook time.
Who doesn't love a little sweet snack now and again (or maybe quite frequently . . . !). I made these for my family, and they went down so well with both kids and adults alike. Much like my honey spelt cookies and my turmeric energy balls, they can easily be packed up for a day out too.
Making these maple syrup flapjacks couldn't be more simple, and they are so much better than those from the store! The maple syrup gives the best sweetness for a decadent snack or dessert.
Love the maple flavours? Do check out my maple syrup popcorn too!
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⭐ Why this recipe is so good
Perfect texture. These chewy flapjacks have the best texture, with a bit more of a crunch than those made with golden syrup.
Made with pantry staples. We use just a few ingredients, and all tend to be in our kitchen cupboards already.
Quick and easy flapjack recipe. There's minimal 'hands on' time, and the oven does most of the work for you!
🍯 Ingredients
All the ingredients and their quantities are set out in the recipe card below.
Some notes on a few of them:
- Oats - you want to use rolled oats rather than the very fine quick-cook oats to make flapjacks.
- Light brown sugar - personally I like to use demerara sugar.
📖 Swaps and variations
Not a fan of ginger? Perhaps try a pinch of cardamom or cinnamon instead!
If it works for you, adding some broken pecans to the mixture gives a nice crunch.
🔪 Step by step instructions
Making these chewy maple syrup flapjacks is very easy to do, with just a few steps and minimal ingredients:
Step 1
Melt butter and sugar. In a large saucepan, melt the butter, sugar and maple syrup. Keep stirring so the sugar dissolves (image 1).
Step 2
Add the oats. Tip the oats and ground ginger into the pan and stir really well so the oats are all coated in the maple syrup mixture (image 2).
Step 3
Spoon the flapjack mixture into a lined baking tin. Use the back of a wooden spoon to press the flapjack mixture down evenly, ensuring it spreads into the corners of the tin (image 3).
Step 4
Bake the flapjacks. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes. The flapjacks should be light golden brown in colour, with a little more browning around the edges.
After about five minutes out of the oven, use a sharp knife to slice the mixture into squares (around 12 for this recipe) (image 4). Then set the tin aside to cool completely. Try not to touch while they are still warm as they will likely crumble! Then enjoy.
💭 Recipe tips and notes
- Pack the flapjack mixture down with the back of a wooden spoon. This will help prevent them from crumbling once cooked and keep them a square shape.
- Add more ginger if you like a hint more spice.
- Slice the flapjacks while they are warm in the tin, but don't try to remove them at this point. They will still be very soft and will crumble. Allow to completely cool, during which time the flapjacks will harden into their squares.
📋 Frequently asked questions
You want to pack the flapjack mixture down in the tin with the back of a wooden spoon before baking them. This will help them stick together and not crumble. It's also best not to cut them right away, and leave them to cool for a bit first.
This seems to be a debated question! Personally I leave the tin to cool for about five minutes, then slice the flapjacks into squares (still in the tin) with a very sharp knife.
The flapjacks will be soft to the touch and slightly bubbling when you remove the tin from the oven. They will harden as they cool!
No, leave out the ginger and just enjoy the maple flavour if you prefer!
Yes, these flapjacks are sweetened just with maple syrup and there is no golden syrup in them. Using maple syrup makes the flapjacks more crunchy in texture, which is very delicious!
🍽 Serving suggestions
Taking a break to enjoy these maple syrup flapjacks? I definitely think you should! Why not:
- Pair with a cosy warm drink such as my honey ginger warm milk or my cardamom spice warm milk.
- Add some delicious fruit on the side such as berries or sweet pears.
- Drizzle with some caramel sauce, or enjoy a scoop of ice cream on the side!
🍪 More tasty snacks
Find so many fun ideas on my snacks page, including my popular turmeric spice cookies and my oatmeal energy balls. Some recent recipes to enjoy:
I'm always in the kitchen, so come join me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest to be the first to hear of new recipes! And I love to hear from you - so please do leave a star rating ⭐ if you've tried the recipe!
📖 Recipe
Maple Syrup Flapjacks
Equipment
- Baking tin *approximately 20x25cm
Ingredients
- 300 g oats (3 cups) *gluten free if required
- 200 g butter (2 sticks / 1 cup)
- 125 g light brown sugar (½ cup) *I use demerara sugar
- 4 tablespoon maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C / 360F and line a baking tin with parchment paper.
- Melt the butter, sugar and maple syrup in a large saucepan on a low heat. Stir fairly frequently until the sugar dissolves.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat and tip in the oats and ground ginger. Stir well so the oats are fully coated in the maple syrup mixture.
- Spoon the flapjack mixture into the lined tin. Use the back of a wooden spoon to press it down evenly, and ensuring it spreads into the corners of the tin.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes. The flapjacks should be light golden brown in colour, with a little more browning around the edges.
- Once baked and after about five minutes, use a sharp knife to slice the mixture into squares (around 12 for this recipe) while it is still warm. Set the tin aside to cool. Try not to touch while they are still warm as they will likely crumble.
- Once completely cooled, remove from the baking tin and enjoy!
Notes
- Pack the flapjack mixture down with the back of a wooden spoon. This will help prevent them from crumbling once cooked and keep them in a square shape.
- Add more ginger if you like a hint more spice.
- Slice the flapjacks while they are warm in the tin, but don't try to remove them at this point. They will still be very soft and will crumble. Allow to cool, during which the flapjacks will harden into their squares.
- Please note that nutritional information is offered as a courtesy. It is auto-generated and should be understood to be an estimate.
- ginger, which scores 1.
- brown sugar specifically isn't rated, but cane sugar scores 0.
Madi says
How long do these stay good for? Is this a recipe I can prep and freeze or is it make it and eat it?
Claire says
They should freeze well in portions, just don't leave them in the freezer for too long!
elizabeth roberts says
Just wondered whether you could use a sunflower spread instead of butter?
Claire says
I haven't ever tried it I'm afraid.
Roger Hayford says
Made these today with slight changes more oats and butter to fill larger baking tin. Also added finely chopped glazed cherries and apricots and cinnamon for flavour. Such an easy recipe for such a delicious snack my first time effort has turned out perfectly, so thanks for publishing!
Roger (79😀)
Claire says
Oh so lovely to hear that you enjoyed them! And love the additions of the fruit too. Thanks for taking the time to comment Roger!
Miss Rebecca Gornall says
Thank you. I made these today with hald butter , half coconut oil. Delicious. So nice to have a sweet treat.
Claire says
So lovely to hear that you enjoyed them Rebecca, and that the half butter half coconut oil mix worked well!
Sheryl says
Thanks for the recipe it turned out more delicious than I thought, and the texture was perfect. I really appreciated the extra tips and step by step instructions and photos too by the way. Thank you!
Claire says
So glad you like the flapjacks Sheryl, and that the tips were helpful!
Shruti says
Flapjacks! Reminds me of school dinners - I am now going to relive those memories and make this - plus it's low-histamine too so no excuses to not make it! I'll let you know how it goes. And O' yes... thank you for creating this for us low-histamine people.
Claire says
It's a very British snack isn't it Shruti! Although my school dinner were more custard and cake rather than flapjacks! Hope you enjoy 🙂
Angela Madine says
Just started making your flapjacks on a regular basis due to a low histamine diet and they are so easy, tasty and healthy. Thanks for sharing. Angela
Claire says
So glad you like them Angela! Always nice for a sweet treat I think! Thanks so much for taking the time to comment, really appreciated 🙂
Laura says
Wow they taste amazing!! I didn’t have maple syrup so used honey instead. Is there a specific time frame you have to eat them by? Can I refrigerate? Thanks
Claire says
Hi Laura, so glad you liked them! I haven't tried them with honey myself, but on another site it says they can be kept at room temperature for a few days in a sealed container.
Gs says
I made this with slight changes (below) and it came out great
Jumbo oats
Canadian maple syrup
Muscovado brown sugar
Thanks for recipe
Claire says
I haven't tried it with jumbo oats - will have to give it a try! So glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Rebecca says
They taste fantastic. Easy to make.
Claire says
So glad you liked them Rebecca!