Chocolate Orange Oat Bars
Ingredients
- finely grated rind of 2 oranges
- 250 gram unsalted butter
- 250 gram caster sugar
- 175 gram golden syrup
- 425 gram porridge oats
- 100 gram sultanas
- 100 gram ready-to-eat dried apricots, roughly chopped
- 2 Tbsp sunflower seeds
- 50 gram plain chocolate chips
- 75 gram plain chocolate
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180C / 350F / Gas 4. Lightly oil and base line a 20 x 30 cm shallow cake tin. In a large pan, heat the orange rind, butter, sugar and golden syrup together over a low heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat and stir in the oats, sultanas, apricots and sunflower seeds. Allow to cool slightly, then stir in the chocolate chips. Spoon into the prepared tin. Level the surface and bake for 20 - 25 minutes until golden. Mark into 14 bars, then leave to stand in the tin until almost cold. Melt the plain chocolate in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Turn the oat bar out on to a wooden board and discard the lining paper. Break into bars as marked. Spoon the melted chocolate into a greaseproof paper piping bag, snip a tiny piece off the end and drizzle the chocolate randomly over the oat bars. (Or just drizzle the chocolate from a teaspoon.) Store in an airtight tin for up to one week. Makes 14 Variation: Try making them with a couple of chopped apples and mixed spice instead of the chocolate, orange and fruit.