Baking the iconic Aussie Anzac biscuit is an annual tradition, and a wonderful way to commemorate Anzac Day. With a respect for tradition, these must be called biscuits, not cookies. It's almost Anzac Day, always the 25th of April in Australia, and a long weekend, when we remember the soldiers and family members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, those who also fought during World War II, the Vietnamese War, and others who bravely went away to war to defend our freedom, and also those who are still serving in many capacities to protect our country.
Whether you like your Anzac biscuits chewy or crunchy, both are achievable by following a couple of different procedures. I prefer mine on the crunchy side, and as I live in a more humid environment on the Queensland tropical coast, I opt to bake the crunchy type of biscuit as after a couple of days if they last that long, the biscuits can become a bit chewy anyway because of the humidity, so it's best to start crispy. Either crispy or chewy, they are still delicious. My biscuits tend to be crisp on the outside, and a little chewy in the centre.
Whilst I'm talking about the weather, it's well known that in our part of the world Anzac Day will more often than not be wet and rainy, it's always been that way. There's a lot of rain around the North East Coast of Australia at the moment, and this morning when I made these biscuits with rain showers still hovering around, I was thinking nostalgically of all those years when our children were still at school, and they would all proudly participate in the Anzac Day March through the City Centre with their school, sometimes in the rain. And we would stand there proudly as parents, watching them all march.
To achieve crunchy Anzac biscuits if that's your preference, there are just a few steps to follow:-
- Bake them at a higher temperature, 180 deg. which is a moderate oven
- Use white caster sugar
- And some cooks say to use vegetable shortening rather than butter, however I always use butter.
Method:
- Melt the butter over a low heat in a small saucepan and then add the syrup
- Add bicarbonate of soda to the melted butter and syrup.
- Combine the oats, sifted flour, sugar, salt and coconut together in a large separate bowl
- Add the frothy syrup and butter mixture to the dry ingredients while still warm
- If the mixture seems to be a bit too wet, just add a little extra flour and mix into the dough until it is a good consistency to form into balls. Or add a little water if it is too dry
- Place a tablespoon of the biscuit mixture onto a baking tray lined with baking paper, about 5 cm apart. I use an ice cream scoop to do this.
- Press down the biscuits slightly with a fork which may need to be dipped in flour, until they are the shape and size that you want. This is important if you proceed with the next step, of chilling them in the refrigerator
- Place your biscuit trays filled with biscuits in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes, this will stop the biscuits from spreading on the tray which can happen with Anzac biscuits
- Bake in a moderate oven, 180 deg. C, for 15 minutes until nicely browned. They will crisp up when they are taken out of the oven to cool. Leave them to cool on the biscuit tray until they firm up, as they will be quite delicate when hot out of the oven. If your oven is a really hot one though, reduce the temperature slightly for cooking.
Thanks for dropping by,
Pauline
I love oatmeal cookies, chewy or crisp. Good to know that symbol of rosemary on Anzac Day.
ReplyDeleteThanks Angie, you would be easy to bake Anzacs for, chewy or crisp. Hope you've had a great weekend.
DeleteI am so glad that I tried these! Have a wonderful day...not I am off to bake some more (which will not last a week)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your feedback Anne, my Anzacs are doing the disappearing act as well.
DeleteI've never baked these! Really should one of these days -- a great cookie. And they commemorate something so, so important. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteThanks KR, yes we love these biscuits, and such an important reminder of the sacrifices made.
DeleteRemembrance is so important… Thanks for sharing the recipe — I really must try an ANZAC biscuit soon!
ReplyDeleteThanks David, these biscuits are great at anytime of the year as far as I am concerned. Take care and thanks for your comment.
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