MUM'S ANZAC BISCUITS FROM FOOD FOR THOUGHT

If there was a cookie of my childhood, this would be it. They were such a prolific staple of my schoolyard days that they made it into the Franklin Elementary Cook Book, somewhere between Carol Beitcher's fabulous Mandel Broit and another mother’s Choco Peanut Butter Dreams. I remember devouring the warm sticky dough by the handful and the incredulous looks on my classmates’ faces when I offered them these foreign biscuits. They’re not the most attractive cookies for kids--no shapes or chunks of chocolate—but once they get past the exteriors, these cookies make for a perfect recess snack.

Originating from the World War I Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, Anzac Biscuits became popular for their durability due to the lack of eggs and milk (sort of an Aussie version of Lembas Bread); the basis of the recipe are rolled oats and other ingredients that do not spoil easily. But it's not like that really matters, as within a day of baking them they're entirely devoured. Enjoy!

The following is a original recipe is the one my Great Grandma used, originally by Bob Lawson, an ANZAC present at the Gallipoli landing.
Ingredients

1 cup each of plain flour, sugar, rolled oats, and coconut
4 oz butter
1 tbls golden syrup (you can find it on Amazon, here)
2 tbls boiling water
1 tsp baking soda (add a little more water if mixture is too dry)

Method

Grease biscuit tray and pre-heat oven to 350 F. Combine dry ingredients. Melt together butter and golden syrup. Combine water and bicarbonate soda, and add to butter mixture. Mix butter mixture and dry ingredients. Drop teaspoons of mixture onto tray, allowing room for spreading. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool on tray for a few minutes before transferring to cooling racks.