ANZAC Buiscuits

ANZAC is an acronym for Australia New Zealand Army Corps. If you saw the movie “Gallipoli,” you know who these guys are. The corps served with distinction in World War I but ceased to exist when Australia and New Zealand were no longer lumped together by the British as a single entity. There are several stories about the origin of these cookies (which the Aussies, like the Brits, call “biscuits”). Some claim that a group of women created them for care packages for soldiers, another story suggests that they were making a dish that didn’t use eggs, which were dried and sent to soldiers over seas. Whatever the real story is, there is no doubt that their purpose was to honor the brave ANZAC soldiers of World War I.

One note regarding measurements: I got this recipe in Australia, which means that it used a mix of British Imperial measure and European metric. I’ve translated it into American standard measure, but thought you’d wonder why some measures are a little inexact. For example, one cup Imperial is 10 ounces, while in American a cup is 8 ounces, and tablespoons are the tiniest bit bigger in Imperial measure. However, being off one way or the other by a couple of shreds of coconut or drops of golden syrup won’t really make a difference.

Anyway, these are among the most delicious cookies on earth. Enjoy.

1-1/4 cups rolled oats
1-1/4 cups plain flour
1-1/4 cups brown sugar, lightly packed
1 cup shredded coconut (or a pinch less)
one stick butter (125 grams, to be exact, so a smidge more than one stick, really)
2 slightly overflowing Tbs. Lyle’s Golden Syrup (available in the baking section of most stores)
1 tsp. baking soda
3 Tbs. boiling water

Combine oats, flour, sugar, and coconut, blending thoroughly. In a small saucepan, combine butter with golden syrup, melt over low heat, and remove from heat. Add baking soda to the boiling water, then add this to the butter/syrup mixture. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and stir in the liquid. Mix thoroughly.
Drop mixture by the tablespoonful on to a greased cookie sheet, approximately 3 inches apart, to allow for spreading. Bake at 300-310 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 to 17 minutes. Allow to cool on cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then remove to wire rack to cool completely. Makes approximately 36 cookies.

I am a culinary historian, world traveler, and freelance writer specializing in food, travel, and history. I am also the author of Waltzing Australia.

	Cynthia: Glad you enjoyed them. I think they're quite splendid. comment left Apr 07
	Pinckney: Cookies were big desert hit. I made them a little too big and they needed to cook a little longer, but taken all in all, a very good cookie. comment left Apr 07
	Pinckney: I have just made a batch of these cookies and am waiting to see what they turn into as they cool completely. They are very nice so far. I think I might add a pinch of salt next time. Also, I think that Maple Syrup could be used if reduced a bit. I recognize the taste of Lyles now that I have a bottle. Probably will use a bit more Lyles next time in addition to the salt. We are going to have them as part of desert tonight with berries and cream .... comment left Apr 06
	Cynthia: The reason it's not clear whether or not ANZAC biscuits appeared during or after the war is that they are simply a variation on existing confections, so something similar was definitely being made during the war (and before), but there is much disagreement as to whether or not the new version occurred during the war and just got named after the war or if the actual alteration occurred after the war. That's why I left it vague. The only things that are certain is that they honor the ANZACs and they are delicious. comment left Apr 01
	MZanger: In Greg Parents new book on ethnic Baking he says that Anzacs were actually created after the war for Anzac Day. I had the war cookies story in my American Ethnic Cookbook for Students and may have to make a website correction. --Mark Zanger comment left Mar 31
	Cynthia: Alas, no -- maple syrup would not work, as it's too thin. The Lyle's Golden Syrup is so thick it can almost stand on its own. However, Lyle's Golden Syrup is a product of sugarcane, not of corn. So while it's still not suitable for diabetics, it doesn't pose the health issues that high fructose corn syrup does. (And it really is the high fructose corn syrup that is the problem. Even from corn, unaltered fructose is less of a problem -- kind of like the difference between oil and hydrogenated oil -- and fructose from other sources is quite safe. So I definitely encourage you to avoid all the high fructose corn syrup you can; you'll live longer and healthier for that. But other fructose is, in moderation, not a health hazard.) comment left Mar 22
	Pinckney: A good sounding recipe and it has been filed in the favorites to be made. Hard to go wrong with coconut. Do you think Maple syrup would work as well as Lyles? I see Lyles has fructose which is often used for corn and I try to use as little of that as possible. Yes. I know fructose is a sugar, but ... comment left Mar 22