Gran’s ANZACs

ANZAC biscuits

Gran's ANZAC

I have  inherited a few things from my grandparents, my favourite things are my Gran’s cookbooks. I have a few of them (including a 1952 edition of the PMWU cookbook complete with an ad on the inside cover for a kerosene powered fridge, so convenient!), but there is one that is easily my favourite. It’s a little recipe filer that Gran filled with various handwritten and newspaper/magazine clipped recipes. Most of the recipes look like they’re from the 1950s and 60s and they were used by Gran right up until she passed away in 2006. I remember her teaching me to cook things using recipes from this book when I stayed at her house during school holidays, so it’s pretty special to me.

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I also love the handwritten index page (maybe in my mum’s handwriting? she is pretty organised) which includes a little key up the top for recipes to be marked as ‘very good’ or ‘not much good’. FYI the ANZAC recipe is marked as very good, but is apparently not as good as the scone recipe which has a tick and excellent in brackets after it.

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Coming up to Australia day I’d been having a serious ANZAC craving so I decided to find the recipe book and make some from Gran’s recipe to take to our Australia Day BBQ. I think that the biscuits turned out really well and were popular at our BBQ. They were nice and thick, as I believe a good ANZAC always should be, a little crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. There’s nothing worse than a super dry ANZAC.

Using recipe/phone

Gran’s ANZACs – makes 24
(original source unknown, appears to be clipped from a newspaper in the late 50s)

1 cup plain flour
1 cup sugar
1 cup coconut (I used shredded but I think desiccated might be better)
1 cup rolled oats
2 tablespoons water
4 tablespoons golden syrup
6 tablespoons butter (I melted mine)
1 teaspoon bi-carb soda

  • Add all ingredients to a bowl.
  • Mix well.
  • Roll into small balls (about 1 tablespoon per ball) and place on a lined baking tray.
  • Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in a ‘moderately low’ oven (I baked them at 160 degrees).

I had Gerard with me while cooking so there are a  lot of photos of me pouring ingredients etc, so here’s a little visual of the process (and yes, I use babuska doll measuring cups and prep food in the dining room when I run out of kitchen bench space):

Flour

Coconut

Sugar

Rolled Oats

Golden syrup

Ready to go

Mix

Mixed up

Rolling

Cooking time

ANZACs cooked

It pleases us have also tried to make ANZACs from a vintage family recipe, have a look here.

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