Fruity oatbars - a yummy recipe with no added sugar

Long hard days in the garden - of which there are many at this time of the year - require something filling and sustaining as a snack. This recipe absolutely fits the bill - it's hearty, tasty, sweet & satisfying and wonderfully wholesome.

Filling
1/2 cup dried figs, chopped small and closely packed into the cup
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup currants
juice and rind of an orange (1/2 cup of orange juice is fine, or just use extra water)
1 cup boiling water
1/4 cup chopped almonds (optional)

Pastry
2 cups of rolled oats
2/3 cup whole wheat flour (doesn't seem to matter whether it's plain or SR)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg (a few scrapes of freshly ground)
90g butter (from the fridge - cut into lumps)
1/3 cup water
2 tbsp maple syrup (optional)

Preheat your oven to 180C/Gas 4. Grease and line an 8x8cm baking tray. Place all the filling ingredients (except the nuts) in a small pan a bring to a simmer. Simmer until the ingredients are very soft and well amalgamated (20-30 mins). Remove from the heat and stir in the nuts.

Place the dry pastry ingredients and butter in a food processor or mixer and pulse until the mixture looks like lumpy breadcrumbs. This is quite a buttery mixture - don't worry it it looks a bit claggy. You can do this stage in a bowl with your fingertips too. Then mix in the water.

Press a little more than half this mix into your tray then spread the fruit and nut mixture on top. Then sprinkle the rest of the pastry mix over the top and press into the fruit so it's quite firmly compacted (otherwise it's a very crumbly bar!). Drizzle the maple syrup over the top.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until the cake is lightly browned. Leave to cool from the tin, and then cut into 9-12 bars (depending on how greedy you feel). Enjoy!

Cook's Note
This is just as nice with other combinations of dried fruit - apricots and prunes can be substitued for the figs, but I think that the raisins and/or currants are necessary for that contrast of flavour.