canny granny

It’s been a while since I shared a recipe and, inspired by the Anzac posts over at Downunder Update, I offer here my Great-Aunt Sadie’s famous Anzac biscuits. Sadie would belt me for revealing a family secret if she could but, as she’s been dead for forty years, I’m pretty safe.

Let me briefly tell you about Anzac biscuits. They were baked by wives and mothers during World War I, packed in food parcels, and sent to the Australian soldiers serving overseas. Can you imagine the love packed inside one little tin?

Anzac biscuits sound austere, plain and ordinary but, believe me, if you can knock up a batch of them you will find them eaten before you get much of a chance to taste one yourself.

I think the coconut is the key.

Or maybe it’s the Golden Syrup an amazing addition you will find irreplaceable. Those of you who, sadly, have no access to Golden Syrup can make do with Maple Syrup, which is a pale imitation of the real Australian thing.

Ingredients

1 cup of sifted plain (all-purpose) flour

1 cup uncooked rolled oats

1 cup desiccated coconut

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup butter

2 tablespoons golden syrup

1 teaspoon baking soda (bicarb of soda)

2 tablespoons boiling water

Method

Combine flour, oats, coconut and sugar in a bowl.

Melt butter and Golden Syrup in a saucepan over a low heat.

Mix baking soda with water and add to butter and Golden Syrup.

Let cool slightly. Pour liquids into dry ingredients and mix well.

Spoon dollops of mixture, about the size of a walnut shell, onto a greased tin leaving as much space again between dollops to allow for spreading.

Bake in a preheated 180°C (350° F) oven, for 15-20 minutes.

Cool on a wire rack and seal in airtight containers.

Tags: ANZAC, food

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008 at 3:29 pm and is filed under Recipes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.