Not quite Anzac

If you have noticed, I have been baking lotsa cookies lately. No particular reason, just that when there are only two people in the house, baking a cake is definitely not a wise idea. Especially when these two are trying to abstain and lose weight. I’m not saying that cookies are helping in that sense, but the plus abt them is that they are able to keep longer, wherelse for cakes, there is an obligation to finish within 2-3 days.

Well well haha, to be perfectly honest, I am craving for a chocolate cake as I’m writing this post. Moist, chocolatey n the bite that just slides through your throat giving that ‘ahhh’ satisfaction. Don’t know why I seem to find pictures of chocolate cake everywhere on the recipe books I’m currently engaged in, and I almost, (90% almost) gave in to the temptation. Yeah, the loser me who’s trying to lose 5kgs am now craving for a big slice of chocolate cake. Sigh, life is cruel sometimes, isn’t it?

Anzac is not something new to most of us, n I remember myself first being introduced to the cookies during my undergraduate years. I had thought it was sth to do with Australasian (with exception to Fiji and Papa New Guinea) and sure I was right. This cookie remains very significant after many years, n with Easter coming soon (Anzac Day follows after Easter Monday), most supermarkets n bakeries are promoting the cookies on high. I have tried some from Woolworths, which I didn’t like at all. To me, a good anzac shd be crispy, n butterscothy with this crunch that you get as a result of the coconut and oats. But the ones I tasted was soft n chewy, which tasted more like coconut macaroons, n they are (I must again emphasize) overly too too sweet. Eventually I found out that there are two types of Anzac, just like chocolate chip cookies; chewy and the crispy version. So they are not wrong after all!

Few days ago, I was telling hub about Anzac and the significance of these cookies. Anzac which falls on the 25th April marks the anniversary of the first major military action fought by the Ozzie and Kiwi forces during WW1. The cookies came about when someone created a new recipe that uses golden syrup as a natural preservative. This enabled the cookies to be transported to the European battlefronts and arrive fresh even after several weeks at sea.

By telling him the story, I sort of got inspired to bake a batch of these cookies. Also as part of the project I mentioned earlier. In the end, I made some ‘not quite Anzac but still Anzac anzac’ cookies which I have improvised (sth which I like doing instead of following blindly to recipes). Why not quite? Check the recipe below if you wish to know:

Not quite Anzac
Makes about 44
125g butter
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup of mixed dried fruits eg sultanas, tropical mix (papaya, banana n pineapple), raisins, or apricots (dice into very small pieces) **
1/4 cup processed bran and wheatgerm (mix together)
1 tbsp of genuine maple syrup (or honey) (original recipe calls for golden syrup)
1 cup dessicated coconut (do use good quality ones)
1 tsp bicarbonate soda
1/2 cup of wholemeal flour (sift)
1/2 cup of plain flour (sift)
2 tbps of boiling water***

3/4 cup of firmly packed brown sugar (I reduced it to 1/2 cup because the mixed dried fruits add further to the sweetness)

1. Preheat oven to 150oC.
2. Melt butter and golden syrup in a large saucepan. Add bicarbonate of soda mixed with boiling water.
3. Combine all dry ingredients then add in melted mixture.
4. Mix to a moist but firm consistency.
5. Drop teaspoonfuls of the mixture onto a tray.
6. Bake till golden brown approximately 15-20 minutes.
7. Cool for a few minutes before placing on a wire cooling tray.

** I mixed in some sunflower seeds also.
*** for thinner crispier biscuit, add an extra tsp of boiling water. 2 tbsps of water works just fine for me.

This recipe is definitely a keeper. N I believe healthier? My hub munched away half the container few hours after I baked these goodies, telling me how good they are. Best part is they are so easy n I don’t even have to take out the mixer!

More cookies up next!