• Grease a 20 x 20cm baking tin and line the base with baking paper.
• Preheat the oven to 200C (180C fan).

Make the date filling

• Chop the dates finely and place in a microwave safe bowl with 3 tbsp of water.
• Microwave for 60 seconds, then mash with a fork to give a chunky paste.

Make the flapjack mix

• Put the butter, sugar, golden syrup and vanilla extract in a large microwave safe bowl.
• Microwave for 30 seconds, stir and repeat until the grains of sugar have pretty much dissolved into the syrup.
• Add the oats, flour, baking powder and cinnamon and stir to coat evenly.

Assemble your date flapjacks

• Tip half the oat mixture into the lined tin and press to level off.
• Spoon the date mixture all over the oats and gently spread to the edges.
• Add the remaining oat mixture in spoonfuls to cover evenly, then level off and press down all over.

Bake and serve

• Bake the flapjacks in the centre of your preheated oven for 20 mins until golden brown.
• Run a cutlery knife and the inside edges of the flapjack, then place the tin on a cooling rack to cool completely.
• Once cool, turn out on a board and cut into 16 pieces in a 4 x 4 pattern.