Easy Chewy Flapjacks Recipe - Traditional Home Baking (2024)

These soft and chewy flapjacks are delicious oat bars (similar to American granola bars) that won't fall apart. This easy recipe only calls for melted butter, sugar, syrup, porridge oats and a little flour.

I love this flapjack recipe, I've made it a few times. Adding a little flour to the mixture helps your flapjacks turn out soft and chewy, rather than hard and brittle as they sometimes can.

Once you've mastered this recipe and learned how to make Soft Chewy Flapjacks, you can add just about anything you like to customize these granola bars.

You can add chocolate chips, nuts, or mixed dried fruits like in this Fruity Flapjack recipe. If Apricots are your favourite dried fruit snack, try this Apricot Flapjack recipe.

These Coconut Chocolate Squares have a very similar texture to Flapjacks, but without the golden syrup. They have added coconut in the base with a thick topping of firm chocolate that slices easily when set.

How to make Soft and Chewy Flapjacks

To make basic flapjacks, start by greasing and lining the base and sides of an 8" square loose bottomed baking tin with baking parchment. The baking parchment is essential as it makes it easier to lift the flapjacks out of the tin once they have cooled.

If you don't have an 8" square tin, use one of a similar volume in size eg 8 x 8 = 64 square inches. 9" round cake tin is a good, readily available substitute.

Melt the butter, sugar, and syrup in a large pan over a very gentle heat until all the sugar and butter have melted. DO NOT BOIL THE MIXTURE. This will turn the sugar into a caramel, which is what makes many flapjacks turn out hard and difficult to eat.

Add the flour, salt, and oats. Mix thoroughly until everything is covered in the syrup mixture. It helps to give the dry ingredients a little mix before adding to the syrup.

Spread the mixture evenly and firmly into the prepared tin. The mixture is a little runny, but you will still need to press the mixture down firmly as this will help prevent the flapjacks from falling apart after baking.

Bake in the centre of the oven for 25 – 30 minutes or until baked and golden brown in colour.

Remove from the oven. Leave to cool a little before scoring the top into bars. DO NOT CUT ALL THE WAY THROUGH. You need these oat bars to set and cool completely before doing that.

The mixture will still be hot and very sticky, so take care, especially when baking with children.

Now that the flapjacks have cooled completely, you can complete the process of slicing them into bars. They will feel soft and chewy, and will not fall apart. The perfect simple granola bar recipe is within your reach!

Keep in an airtight container with a sheet of baking parchment wrapped around them, to help keep them moist and chewy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do my Flapjacks Fall Apart?

There could be many reasons why your flapjacks may fall apart after baking. I find using Porridge Oats rather than whole jumbo oats results in a better product.

Slicing them into bars while still warm can often cause them to fall apart. Instead, if you partially score them and then pop them in the fridge, this will speed up the cooling process and result in solid granola bars.

Packing the mixture down firmly in the baking tin before baking also helps. This removes the possibility of any air being trapped in between the oats, causing them to fall apart.

Finally, I know I'm probably stating the obvious, but I have to ask: did you weigh the ingredients correctly? Using improper amounts can result in the oat bars not setting up correctly.

Why are my Flapjacks Hard?

Over-boiling the sugar, butter and syrup, is one possible reason for flapjacks being so hard. Simmering the butter-sugar-syrup mixture on low heat is better.

Adding flour helps make them chewy and soft. If you missed the flour, that could be the reason.

If they do turn hard, leave them in the open air for a few hours to help soften them a little. TIP: You can also store them with a slice of bread to keep them soft, or to help soften hard oat bars.

Should Flapjacks be Soft when they come out of the Oven?

Flapjacks will appear to be soft when you first take them out of the oven. They are not underbaked, so don't worry about that. They will firm up but still have a deliciously chewy texture, once they have cooled down.

Should I cut Flapjack Hot or Cold?

You should ideally wait until the flapjacks have cooled down completely before you slice them. But as mentioned above, you can score the top of the flapjacks when they have cooked a little, but wait until they have cooled completely before slicing the flapjack bars all the way through.