Fruity flapjacks

I have never made flapjacks before today, in fact, I was never really that keen on them before either, but these have completely blown me away! I looked up a few different recipes and decided on the ingredients that I thought would work best (and with what I had in the house!) These are prune flapjacks, but the prunes can easily be swapped for apricots, dates, cranberries etc. They are incredibly moist, yet still crispy and crunchy when you get an edge piece. I used mainly margarine so I was shocked that they tasted so satisfyingly bad for you and buttery - obviously they're still not particularly 'healthy' but the marg does help a bit... I nearly always say this about the recipes I post, but these really were so easy to make as well! A brilliant treat to make if you're having friends or family over, everyone's bound to love them. I would probably modify the recipe if I was making chocolate flapjacks because the textures would be different, but you could always try just swapping the dried fruit for chocolate chips although I don't know if the texture would be as perfect! I will definitely stick to this recipe in the future and make these again and again - hope you like them as much as me.

Makes about 9 flapjacks

- 125g margarine, plus extra for greasing

- 50g butter

- 75g soft, brown sugar

- 55g runny honey

- 100g dried prunes (pitted), chopped

- 40g mixed dried fruit (raisins, saltanas etc.)

- 1 tsp sesame seeds

- 1 tsp golden linseeds (flax)

- 225g oats

1. Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 4 / 180 degrees and grease a square or rectangular tin (e.g. 10.5 x 6.5 inches)

2. Over a low heat, melt the margarine, butter, sugar (leaving a little bit left) and honey in a pan, stirring until fully melted and the sugar dissolved.

3. Stir in the prunes, dried fruit, seeds and oats until fully mixed and coated.

4. Spoon the mixture into the tin, flattening with the back of a wooden spoon. Sprinkle over the remaining sugar and bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.

5. Remove from the oven and cut into squares/rectangles, and leave to cool in the tin.

Enjoy :)

Jam butterfly cakes

 I think these are so cute, and I love making cupcakes where you don't have to then make a buttercream or other frosting after - less washing up! These are perfect if you want something a bit more special than just a plain vanilla cupcake, and, like the smartie squares, these would be brilliant to bake with kids. With it being spring, and the summery weather emerging, the butterfly design is very fitting - make sure you use pretty, coloured cupcake cases! You can use any flavoured jam you like and fruit or sweet to decorate, so these are versatile as well.

Makes 12-14 cupcakes
- 125g soft margarine
- 125g caster sugar
- 2 medium eggs
- 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
- 125g self-raising flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- spoonfuls of jam (e.g. raspberry or strawberry - I used damson)
- fruit, to decorate
- icing sugar, to dust


1. Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 5/190 degrees.
2. Cream together the butter and the sugar. Gradually stir in the egg and add the vanilla essence.
3. Sift the flour and baking powder and fold into the micture.
4. Spoon into cupcake cases on a baking tray, filling half of the case.

5. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes or until golden. Place on a wired rack to cool.

5. Once cool, carefully cut the tops of with a knife and spoon jam into the centre. Cut the top in half to make butterfly wings and place on top of the jam.

6. Repeat until all done, place a raspberry, or another fruit or sweet, on top (optional), then dust with icing sugar!

Enjoy :)