A sweet tribute any day of the year

Alrighty then, before you say anything, I am fully aware of the time difference between now and last week - specifically Anzac Day April 25th. Yes, these biscuits were invented for the Anzacs during World War I, hence their namesake. And yes, these biscuits are the official sweet tribute to the Anzacs' sacrifices - so much so that you may only call it Anzac Biscuits if they follow the correct recipe with no alterations or additions (so put those sultanas and chocolate away!). And god help you if you call them a cookie!


But seriously, who should say that Anzac Biscuits should only be enjoyed, made and blogged about on Anzac Day? These gorgeous biscuits should be a permanent snack fixture every day if you ask me! It's certainly mine, about every month to be exact, and ever since childhood, it has remained a firm favourite in the biscuit stakes. Besides I was never the type to follow convention. So feel free if you ever want a Christmas Pudding in July or Anzac Biscuits five days late. Timing isn't an issue in my household.

Is it me or does it look like Mr S. is flipping me the bird?

By now you would've read a myriad of Anzac Biscuit recipes in all your favourite food blogs, most of them a family recipe or from a food website. But you should most definitely try this one, if only for the sentimental and historical value.


It is an actual Wartime original recipe from Bob Lawson, an ANZAC veteran who was present at the Gallipoli landing (taken from the book Discovering Gallipoli: Research guide by Robin McLachlan, Anthea Bundock and Marie Wood). This is about as authentic of a recipe as you are going to get. All in all, it's a delicious homage to the Anzacs, made to be enjoyed any day of the year.



Anzac Biscuits: a wartime original recipe

Ingredients

1 C plain flour
1 C sugar
1 C rolled oats
1 C shredded or dessicated coconut
4 oz butter
1 Tbl treacle (golden syrup)
2 Tbl boiling water
1 tsp bicarbonate soda

Method

1. Grease biscuit tray and pre-heat oven to 180°C. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl.


2. Melt together butter and golden syrup in a pan.

3. Combine water and bicarbonate soda in a separate bowl and add to butter mixture.

4. It will start to foam up and when it does, immediately add to the dry ingredients and mix together.



5. Drop teaspoons of mixture onto tray, allowing room for spreading.



6. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden.

7. Allow to cool on tray for a few minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Source: Australian War Memorial and Department of Veteran Affairs