Anyone who knows me well will tell you that my pet hate is food waste. Well, any waste really, but especially food waste. So, after I make my fermented berry drinks, I’m always trying to find creative ways to use up the delicious leftover berries.

 

Today’s treat is fermented blackcurrants from the garden, fermented ginger and coconut raw flapjack. I wanted to make a raw rather than cooked flapjack to preserve the goodness of the seeds and oils and keep the good bacteria from the fermented ginger and blackcurrant alive. Cooking changes the structure of essential fatty acids and kills off bacteria. Packed full of seeds, good oils, fruit and spice mix and smooshed together with some honey and banana then left to set in the fridge overnight. The perfect teatime treat.

 

Ingredients:

 

The dry stuff

375g rolled/porridge or jumbo oats

175g mixed seeds, e.g. pumpkin, sesame, linseeds, sunflower (or chopped nuts, whatever you have in the cupboard).

40g dried and powdered/finely chopped coconut

100g chopped un-sulphured apricots

100g raisins or sultanas

1tbsp mixed spice

 

The wet stuff:

 

250-300g fermented berries & ginger

50g Virgin coconut oil

100g pitted dates

2-3 very ripe bananas (peeled)

100g raw honey or maple syrup

 

Method:

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1. Soak your dates for ½ hour in a small amount of boiling water.

2. Meanwhile line a baking tin or roasting tray with baking paper and measure out all your other ingredients ready.

3. Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl.

4. Reserve 50g of your fermented blackcurrants then place all the other wet ingredients into a food processor, including the soaked dates (reserving the water) and blitz until you have a chunky paste.

5. By hand, mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and add the whole blackcurrants.

6. Stir really well.  If your mix is too dry, add some of the soaked date water.

7. Press into the lined baking tin and cover with a beeswax wrap or cling film.

8. Leave to set overnight in the fridge.

9. Slice with a hot knife in the morning and enjoy!

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This salad is great served warm, make double and enjoy the rest cold the next day.