For a quick, sweet snack, try these easy microwave blackcurrant lemon flapjacks. These chewy oat bars are perfect for a fruity treat.
I always used to bake flapjacks in the oven, but since I created my strawberry jam flapjacks, which are baked in the microwave, I am completely converted.
They are so soft, chewy, and unctuous!
Quick to make too, and these microwave blackcurrant lemon flapjacks are really rather special.
Love fruity treats? Try Vegan Strawberry Cake Muffins.
Jump to:
At a glance – microwave blackcurrant and lemon flapjacks
⏲️ Ready in: 14 minutes
👪 Serves: 8
🍽 Calories: 333 (cut into 16 squares to half the calories)
🧾 Main ingredients: oats, fresh lemon, golden syrup (or maple syrup), plain flour (all purpose flour), brown sugar, blackcurrant jam (you can change the jam flavour)
👩🏻🍳 Suitable for: vegan, plant-based, dairy-free, egg-free, vegetarian
Summarise & save this recipe:
♨️ Microwave flapjacks are so easy!
Melt the wet ingredients in the microwave and pour the buttery liquid into the dry ingredients, mix well, and press into a buttered microwave dish.
Then bake in the microwave for a few minutes.
And voila, that’s it, the most fruity flapjacks (oat bars) for an easy snack.
👩🏻🍳 Scottish-style flapjacks should be chewy
If you’re making flapjacks using a Scottish recipe, they should be soft and chewy.
None of this crispy nonsense like granola bars, oh no!
These traditional oat bars should be chewy and have a caramel flavour from the brown sugar and golden syrup (Tate & Lyle golden syrup of course) and taste very buttery, even if you are using a plant-based butter.
You can read about the porridge drawer, where flapjacks originated, in this Scottish walnut & raisin flapjack recipe page over at tinnedtomatoes.com.
♨️ Baking in a microwave
A microwave is a good tool for quick bakes like these flapjacks or mug cakes, like these gingerbread mug cakes.
You do have to be aware that microwaves vary in power, so do read the recipe below carefully and the notes which give the power of my microwave and tips for baking in a less powerful or more powerful model.
You also need to use a microwave-safe dish that is suitable for baking in the microwave.
Check the base of your dish for the microwave-safe logo.
Also, try these Apple and Cinnamon Flapjacks, that are baked in the microwave.
💭 Which dish to use for baking in the microwave
Ceramic dishes, glass dishes, plastic dishes or silicone bakeware are all safe options for using to bake in the microwave.
DO NOT USE metal, styrofoam, single-use plastic or crystal glass in the microwave.
I have a ceramic dish that works well.
It is 13 ½ cm x 18 cm (5 ½ inches x 7 ¼ inches) approximately. Your dish can be a bit bigger or smaller; the recipe is very forgiving.
📋 What you need to make blackcurrant flapjacks
Here are the simple ingredients you need to make these fruity flapjacks, which are very moreish sweet treats.
- Butter – plant-based butter (vegan butter) or margarine
- Golden syrup – Lyle’s golden syrup is the best, you could use maple syrup but it doesn’t take quite as good
- Lemon zest
- Lemon juice – freshly squeezed lemon juice
- Plain flour – all purpose flour
- Porridge oats – rolled oats
- Demerara sugar – brown sugar or light soft brown sugar
- Salt – just a pinch
- Blackcurrant jam – or blackcurrant preserves
See the full ingredient list, method and notes in the printable recipe card below.
If you have leftover lemons, try these Vegan Lemon Muffins.
📖 Variations to the recipe
Here are a few tweaks you can make to this recipe for easy jam flapjacks to change it slightly.
- Maple syrup – if you can’t get hold of golden syrup, I know it can be difficult to get hold of in the US
- Blueberry jam – or raspberry jam instead of blackcurrant jam
- Lime juice & zest – or orange juice and orange zest instead of lemon juice and zest
- Dried fruit – you can add some dried fruit to the flapjacks, think raisins, sultanas, dried cranberries or dried mango
- A drizzle of icing – mix 2 tablespoons of icing sugar (confectioner’s sugar) with 1 teaspoon of lemon juice, mix until you have a thick icing to drizzle over the cooled flapjacks]
- Drizzle of dark chocolate – alternatively, you could melt some dark chocolate and drizzle it over the cooled flapjacks
💭 Storing fruity oat bars
Once cool, the oat bars/flapjacks can be stored in an airtight container.
I like to line it with kitchen roll (kitchen paper), to catch any moisture.
Store them in the fridge for 4-5 days.
Although it’s unlikely they will last that long.
Eat them for an easy breakfast on the go, add them to lunch boxes or enjoy them with a cuppa in the afternoon when you need an energy boost.
Looking for other snack recipes made with oats? Try these:
Use the search icon or the recipe index at the top of this page to browse other easy recipes.
⭐ Save your recipes for free!
Hit the heart to save this and other recipes.
Once logged in, you can save your favourite recipes and access them by hitting the heart on any of my recipes or going to grow.me where they will be stored for you for free.
👩🏻🍳 How to make quick & easy microwave blackcurrant lemon flapjacks
These step-by-step photos will show you easy microwave flapjacks. The full printable recipe is below these photos.
Step 1
- Grease your baking dish well so the flapjacks don’t stick.
- Add the butter, lemon juice, lemon zest and golden syrup to a microwaveable bowl.
- Microwave for about 1 minute until the butter has melted.
Step 2
- Add your flour and oats to a large mixing bowl.
- Next, add the brown sugar and salt.
- Give it a good mix to combine well.
Step 3
- Pour the melted butter mixture into the dry ingredients and mix well until all the butter has been absorbed.
- Spoon just over half the flapjack mixture into your prepared dish and pack firmly by pressing down the mixture with the back of a spoon until firm and smooth.
Step 4
- Dollop jam onto the firmly packed flapjack base and spread evenly to cover the surface of the flapjacks.
- Crumble the rest of the mixture evenly across the top and once more press down firmly with a spoon, don’t worry if some of the jam shows through, it looks rather appealing.
Step 5
- Bake in the microwave until golden brown. The oat bars should be soft and springy to the touch for the most delicious, chewy flapjacks.
- Once cool, cut into bars.
- Serve and enjoy!
📖 Recipe
Quick and Easy Microwave Blackcurrant Lemon Flapjacks
For a quick, sweet snack, try these easy microwave blackcurrant lemon flapjacks. These chewy oat bars are perfect for a fruity treat.
Ingredients
Instructions
Keep screen on
-
Grease your baking dish well so the flapjacks don’t stick.
-
Add the butter, lemon juice, lemon zest and golden syrup to a microwaveable bowl.
-
Microwave for about 1 minute until the butter has melted. Set aside.
-
Add your flour and oats to a large mixing bowl.
-
Next, add the brown sugar and salt and give it a good mix to combine.
-
Pour the melted butter mixture into the dry ingredients and mix well until all the butter has been absorbed.
-
Spoon just over half the flapjack mixture into your prepared dish and pack firmly by pressing down the mixture with the back of a spoon until firm and smooth.
-
Dollop jam onto the firmly packed flapjack base and spread evenly to cover the surface of the flapjacks.
-
Crumble the rest of the mixture evenly across the top and once more press down firmly with a spoon, don’t worry if some of the jam shows through, it looks rather appealing.
-
Bake in the microwave (see notes below) for 4 minutes, allow to rest for 2 minutes, then microwave for another 3 minutes until golden brown.
-
The oat bars should be soft and springy to the touch for the most delicious, chewy flapjacks.
-
Once cool, cut into bars
-
.Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- You can cut the bars into 12 pieces for a lower calorie snack.
- You can change the flavour of the jam too!
- My microwave is 800 watts, if yours is more powerful the flapjacks will need a little less time and if it is less powerful, they will need a little longer. They should be springy but cooked to the touch.
- Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 barCalories: 333kcalCarbohydrates: 54gProtein: 5gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 40mgSodium: 134mgPotassium: 139mgFiber: 3gSugar: 26gVitamin A: 469IUVitamin C: 3mgCalcium: 35mgIron: 2mg
