Oaty ginger maple crunch

You may have eaten ginger crunch with an oat base at The Wholemeal Cafe in Tākaka. This version is made using maple syrup and has the same wonderful crunchy-yet-still-a-little-chewy base.

MAKES 24 SQUARES

BASE

150g butter

2 Tbsp maple syrup

¾ cup soft brown sugar

¾ cup plain flour

1½ tsp baking powder

2 tsp ground ginger

1½ cups rolled oats

½ cup desiccated coconut

ICING

50g butter

2 Tbsp maple syrup

¾ cup icing sugar

3 tsp ground ginger

1 Heat the oven to 180C. Line a 30cm x 20cm slice tin (no larger) with baking paper.

2 Place the butter, maple syrup and brown sugar in a small heavy-based saucepan. Place over low heat and gently melt together.

3 Sift the flour, baking powder and ginger into a large bowl. Stir in the rolled oats and coconut. Pour in the butter mixture and stir to combine.

4 Press mixture evenly into the prepared tin using a small metal spatula. Place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes until golden brown.

5 To make the icing, place the butter and maple syrup in a small saucepan. Sift in the icing sugar and ground ginger then place over low heat and stir gently until combined. Remove from the heat and stir a little more vigorously until smooth and thick.

6 Remove the cooked base from the oven. Pour the icing over the hot base, spreading with a small metal spatula until you have a thin coating. Allow to cool before cutting into squares.

7 Store in an airtight container.