Flapjacks With Hidden Vegetables

My recent lack of blogging reflects my recent lack of healthy eating. I've not had the desire or inclination to really stick to a diet for longer than a few days so needless to say I've put on a few Easter lbs which I know are going to be a struggle to shift. It's a rubbish excuse and I should just stick to a blooming diet but I seem to be juggling way to many things right now.

One of my biggest concerns is about my 2 year old boy. He has for some time been behind his peers in terms of communication, speech and understanding. We are now beginning what looks to be a long process to understand his developmental delay. He does have some glue ear and hearing loss but it is my concern, and also the concern of the professionals, that they may also be an underlying problem. With an autistic nephew I cannot help but recognise many of the signs in my own little boy. I am trying to stay positive but a mothers gut feeling is most often the right one.

His eating has steadily got worse and worse. He refuses 'wet' foods, eats no meat, fish, eggs or cheese or any fresh fruit or vegetables at all. He is very picky about the texture of foods and lives off of toast, dried fruit, fruit smoothies & yogurts. He also loves those organic cereal bars which have proved to be life savers. When I looked carefully at the ingredients they are mostly a mix of oats and raisins. Since he loves raisins already I wanted to see if I could make my own bars filled with lots of other nutrients that he is currently missing out on. This is my first attempt to make some flapjacks / cereal bars and success was achieved with a cleared plate!

These flapjacks are moist which are perfect for kids. You can also replace the ground almonds and sesame seeds with pumpkin seeds for a more grown up texture.

Makes 16 bars

• 100g unsalted butter, diced
• 50g golden syrup
• 25g soft light brown sugar
• 150g porridge oats
• 1 large grated carrot
• 50g dried cranberries / apricots /  raisins or dried fruit of your choice
• 35g ground almonds
• 15g sesame seeds
• 1/2 a ripe banana, mashed
• Pinch of cinnamon (optional)

What to do:

• Pre-heat the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3.
• Grease and line a square 9cm tin
• Melt the butter, syrup and sugar in a large saucepan over a low heat
• Add the remaining ingredients and stir well together
• Press into lined tin
• Bake for 40-45 minutes
• Remove tin from oven and mark into bars with a sharp knife
• Allow to cool in the tin and then cut through with the knife again
• Store in an airtight container for 3-4 days

WeightWatchers ProPoints Per Bar: 3