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| Apricot, Sultana and Oat Slice |
A slice built for busy days
This kind of oat slice is wonderfully straightforward. Everything happens in one saucepan: melt the butter with the golden syrup, fold through the oats, flour and dried fruit, and press it into a tin. There’s no creaming, no mixers, and no complicated steps. The dried apricots bring a gentle tang, the sultanas add sweetness, and the oats give it that chewy, comforting texture that makes a slice feel hearty rather than sugary.
Because it’s sturdy and not too sweet, it’s ideal for lunch boxes, tramping snacks, or keeping in the tin for after‑school nibbling. Wrapped individually, the pieces freeze beautifully — you can pop a frozen square straight into a lunch box in the morning and it will thaw by morning tea.
Why slices became such a staple
Slices became popular because they were portable, economical, quick to make and bake, and reliable — perfect for busy households and school lunches.
Early cookbooks from the late 19th and early 20th centuries are full of “tray bakes,” “bars,” and “slices,” many of which were designed for busy family or working kitchens and community fundraisers. The tradition carried on through the 1960's and '70's church cookbook fundraiser era, where slices emerged as a backbone of Kiwi home baking - ginger crunch, tan slice, Louise cake, muesli slice, and all the variations that home cooks customized over the years with whatever was handy in the pantry.
This apricot, sultana and oat slice sits squarely in that lineage: simple ingredients, minimal fuss, maximum usefulness.
🥄 One‑pot ease - The beauty of this recipe is how little washing up it creates. Everything happens in one pot and a swiss roll tin. Once cooled, it slices cleanly into pieces that hold their shape — no crumbling, no sticky edges, just tidy squares ready to pack.
❄️ Freezer‑friendly and lunch‑box ready - Slices like this are made for batch‑baking. Once cooled, you can cut into squares or bars and keep in an air-tight tin, or individually wrap and pop in the freezer to pop in lunchboxes.
🧡 A slice that adapts to your pantry - Part of the charm of slices is how flexible they are. You can swap or add:
- Chopped dried apricots → dried apples, cranberries, or dates
- Sultanas → raisins or currants
- A handful of seeds → pumpkin, sunflower, or chia
- A sprinkle of coconut → for extra chew
- A pinch of cinnamon → for warmth
It’s the kind of recipe that evolves with whatever you have on hand.
Ingredients:
- 100gm butter, chopped and melted
- 1/2 cup golden syrup, melted with the butter
- 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
- 1/2 cup sultanas or raisins
- 1/2 cup desiccated coconut
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 2/3rd cup plain flour
- Pinch of salt
Method:
Heat the oven to 180°C fan and grease a Swiss roll tin.
In a saucepan over low heat, melt the butter and golden syrup. Add the remaining ingredients and stir until everything is evenly combined.
Scrape the mixture into the prepared tin and press it firmly into an even layer using the back of a spoon or your fingers. Lightly dust the spoon or your fingertips with flour to stop them sticking.
Bake for 15–20 minutes, or until the top is lightly golden.
Take care not to overbake — this slice can dry out quickly, so it’s better to pull it from the oven a little early than a little late.
While still hot, brush the surface with 1 tablespoon of melted apricot jam for a glossy finish, or spread over a thin layer of lemon icing.
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