These biscuits are symbols of the work carried out by the women at home, who relentlessly baked them for soldiers overseas to keep their morale high.
By Nandita Nataraj
My first encounter with ANZAC biscuits was two years back when I had been to India. I remember I had picked up the packet because the name “Anzac” was intriguing to me. I had never heard or read anything by that name before. But as they say “what is in a name?” For these cookies were absolutely mind blowing in flavour. They were not overly sweet and they had some healthy ingredients like oats and coconut. I remember polishing off the entire pack the same day. 
It is only recently I came to know that Anzac was actually an abbreviation for Australia and New Zealand Army Corps. The ANZAC legend has it that the mothers, wives and the sweet hearts of the soldiers lovingly baked these soldiers’ bicuits which later came to be known as ANZAC biscuits. The biscuits are symbols of the work carried out by the women at home, who relentlessly baked them for soldiers overseas to keep their morale high. Wasn’t that wonderful? Now how could I not bake this after reading so much?
I googled for the recipe and I found one on about.com. I made some changes to the original recipe. But in the end, I was extremely satisfied with the result. You can either make this thin and crisp or thick and slightly chewy. Either ways I assure you it will be as tasty.
PrintANZAC Biscuit
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 20 biscuits 1x
Description
Traditional Anzac biscuits, with oats and coconut, offer a delightful balance of crispiness and chewiness, perfect for a nostalgic treat.
Ingredients
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter (3 oz)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (8 oz)
- 1 cup oats (8 oz)
- 1 cup brown sugar (8 oz)
- 2 tbsp golden syrup
- 1 cup unsweetened desiccated coconut (8 oz)
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat. Once melted, add the golden syrup and baking soda, stirring well to combine. Remove from heat and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, oats, salt, and desiccated coconut. Mix thoroughly to ensure even distribution of ingredients.
- Pour the melted butter mixture into the dry ingredients and stir until well combined. The mixture should be moist and hold together when pressed.
- Using your hands, form the mixture into small balls, about the size of a walnut, and place them on the prepared baking sheet. Flatten each ball slightly with the back of a spoon.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, or until the biscuits are golden brown. For a chewier texture, bake for the shorter time; for a crisper biscuit, bake a little longer.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
These biscuits can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week. For a chewier texture, bake for a shorter time; for a crisper biscuit, bake a little longer. You can adjust the thickness of the biscuits to your preference before baking.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: Australian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 biscuit
- Calories: 120
- Sugar: 8
- Sodium: 75
- Fat: 5
- Carbohydrates: 18
- Fiber: 1
- Protein: 2
- Cholesterol: 10
Gorgeous cookies! Thanks for the recipe!
As an Australian, I make these religiously every April 25 (ANZAC day)! They’re somewhat of a national icon and I’m pretty sure that most Australians have grown up with these. There are two camps of Anzac biscuit fans: chewy and crunchy. I prefer mine chewier so I usually take them out of the oven a little earlier than required. Although they’re traditionally made for ANZAC day, they’re so popular that most coffee shops around Australia tend to sell them all year round.
It’s worth noting that this unusual cookie recipe has no eggs or butter in it (milk traditionally isn’t usually included) – not only were these ingredients hard to come by during the first world war, but also, without them in the recipe, the durable cookies lasted longer so they were the perfect thing to send over to the soldiers on the long voyage to Turkey where they were fighting!
it is great to read the real story behind the anzac biscuit…..i think more aussis [slang] to include new zealanders too] lost their lives in the first world war….the great war….1914-18 per capita, and they were all voluntaries….if i can find the original recipe…..i’ll post it here
found the following refs…the second one seems like what my great-great gran made
Anzac biscuit refs
1[ http://www.ladyshrike.com/recipes/id96.html
another recipe taken from
http://www.awm.gov.au/encyclopedia/anzac/biscuit/recipe.asp
The popular ANZAC biscuit is a traditional, eggless sweet biscuit.
The following is a original recipe provided by Bob Lawson, an ANZAC present at the Gallipoli landing,1915.
Ingredients
• 1 cup each of plain flour, sugar, rolled oats, and coconut
• 4 oz butter
• 1 tbls treacle (golden syrup)
• 2 tbls boiling water
• 1 tsp bicarbonate soda (add a little more water if mixture is too dry)
Method
1. Grease biscuit tray and pre-heat oven to 180°C.
2. Combine dry ingredients.
3. Melt together butter and golden syrup. Combine water and bicarbonate soda, and add to butter mixture.
4. Mix butter mixture and dry ingredients.
5. Drop teaspoons of mixture onto tray, allowing room for spreading.
6. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool on tray for a few minutes before transferring to cooling racks.
Also interesting details from arnotts biscuits…[.very large australian biscuit manufacturer ]…rolled –out dough, cut into .made squares, and without oats or cocunut
Thanks so much for all the recipes Maz. I will try the recipes soon :)
As a New Zealander, love your recipe! New Zealand had compulsory conscription in WW1 ( and WW2 ), Australians were all volunteers tho’
What a nice story associated with a cookie!
I’ve heard of these, but never tried making them. I like your recipe, they look great