Honey & soy glazed almonds & seeds

I’m trying to quit my Christmas chocolate habit (thanks Covid), so I thought I’d make something healthy to pick at instead of reaching for the sugar! These crunchy almonds and seeds are great to have to hand as they’re super tasty and filling whilst being full of nutrients. So far all of us have been eating them, even the kids, as we all like the sweet and slightly salty flavour. They’re also a good snack to make for friends when they come round for garden drinks or sprinkle on a salad to add some crunch. Try them out, they take about 10 minutes to make and are so good for you!

Ingredients

Makes a medium sized bowl full

• 100g sunflower seeds

• 100g pumpkin seeds

• 100g whole almonds, skin on

• 50g flaxseeds

• 1 tbsp coconut oil

• ½ tbsp maple or honey

• ½ tsp ground ginger

• ¼ tsp cinnamon (I used 1/8th as I only like a bit!)

• ½ tbsp low salt soy sauce

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180ºc.

• Measure all the nuts and seeds into a medium sized bowl.

• Put the coconut oil on a large baking tray and melt in the oven for 2-3 minutes.

• Mix the ground spices and soy into the nuts and seeds, then tip them on to the tray and stir well to combine with the coconut oil.

• Then mix in the honey and place in the oven for 8 minutes, turn and put back in for another 2 minutes.

Honey flapjack

Switching golden syrup for honey in flapjacks has been a game-changer for me as the flavour is so much better. I realise that this is a more expensive way of making them, so you could always cut the cost a little by going 50:50. This recipe makes a big tray though, so they will last a while (in theory!). I froze half to: a/ stop me eating it all, b/stop anybody else eating it all so I could save some for packed lunches. That way you have a little stock of sweet treats hidden away when there’s nothing else in the cupboard.

Ingredients

Makes a large 21x32cm tray, but you could halve the ingredients to fit 20x20cm

• 400g unsalted butter

• 400g demerara sugar

• 400g honey

• 800g porridge oats

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180 °c and line the tray with baking parchment.

• Melt the butter, sugar and honey in a large pan, stirring to mix well.

• Add the oats and stir well to combine.

• Scrape the ingredients into the tray and pack down fairly tightly, I use a cake slice to flatten the mix down.

• Bake for 15-20 minutes, you’re looking for a golden colour with slightly browned edges. The flapjack should still feel quite soft when it comes out of the oven if you want it to be chewy not crunchy like me.

  Tip

• If you scrunch the baking parchment into a ball first and then open up it’s much easier to line you tray with it.

• I’ve used demerara sugar to give the flapjacks a little crunch, but you can always switch to normal caster if you don’t have it.