I must have got my baking mojo back this weekend. As well as having another batch of homemade muesli ready for the working week ahead, I've been busy baking my favourite lemon cake, this time done as a slice instead of a cake. I was on a roll by then and thought my daughter and her flatmates might appreciate a bit of homemade baking.
I remembered this slice. I pestered someone for the recipe after tasting it at work many years ago. A mother had made it for a school camp, or some other trip. I'm not sure (or don't remember!) how it found its way to the staff room but I'm glad it did. It's a wonderfully gooey mix of crunch and caramel that we all fell in love with that day and still tastes as good as I remember.
Sweet Caramel & Oat Slice
Makes approximately 24 small slicesFor the filling
385g tin sweetened condensed milk
50 grams butter
2 tbsp golden syrup
For the base
175g butter, softened
1/4 cup caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 1/2 cups standard flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
Place the condensed milk, butter and golden syrup in a medium sized saucepan and stir over a low heat for about 5 minutes until the butter has melted and the mixture is golden. Leave to cool.
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. Grease and line a 23cm x 23cm slice tin with baking paper.
In a cake mixer, or by hand, beat the butter, sugar and vanilla together until pale and creamy. Sift the flour into the mixture, along with the oats and mix them in until incorporated. The mix will be moist and crumbly.
Press three-quarters of this mix into the base of the prepared tin, ensuring you have an even surface without gaps.
Pour over the caramel filling and spread out evenly with a palette knife.
Scatter the remaining quarter of the crumble evenly across the top.
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden.
Cool in the tin for 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool (you should be able to lift out the whole lot by holding onto the overlap of baking paper. You can refrigerate it for a few hours or overnight and it will be easier to slice.
Once cool, cut into small slices or squares. You don't need to cut the slices too large as it is quite rich.
