Anzac Biscuits Recipe
Anzac Biscuits offer a unique flavour profile that is both sweet and slightly savory. The ingredients in this recipe combine to create a delicious treat that delivers hints of caramel and a subtle nutty taste along with a slightly chewy texture.
In This Article
Nutritional Benefits
Oats are the main ingredient in this recipe and the one that offers the most substantial health benefits. Oats contain beta-glucan, which is an important component of dietary fibre and the one with proven cholesterol-lowering and antidiabetic effects (1). This wonderful ingredient is also a valuable source of protein, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals and is known to support immune function, improve gut health and aid in reducing inflammation (1,2,3).
What Are Anzac Biscuits?
The Anzac Biscuits recipe is one of significance in Australia and New Zealand. They’re made and enjoyed on the 25th of April each year, as a way to commemorate military personnel in both countries who have served in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations.
This recipe was popularised during World War One because the ingredients were readily available and they didn’t contain eggs. This meant they kept well and lasted the long journey abroad when sent to the soldiers.
Ingredients – What You’ll Need To Make This Recipe
Minor amendments have been made to the original recipe here to make the biscuits dairy free, lower in gluten and to increase their nutritional value. As with the original recipe all these ingredients are easy to find. The only one that may be tricky is the oat flour though it does tend to be readily available in most supermarkets.
- Rolled oats – because it’s not Anzac biscuits without them! This is also the reason it’s not possible to make them gluten free. To clarify, some brands do label their oats as gluten free. At this time though, oats are not considered gluten free in Australia due to the risk of cross contamination.
- Desiccated coconut – the modern touch to the Anzac biscuit. As noted in the history above, this ingredient wasn’t in the original recipe. I love the added flavour though!
- Oat flour – this has a great nutritional profile so it’s one of my preferred when baking.
- Coconut oil – this is replacing butter in the original recipe, which makes them vegan and also means that those with dairy intolerances can enjoy them too.
- Maple syrup – a wonderful natural sweetener filled with minerals. It’s always my go to when baking.
- Rapadura sugar – this still contains molasses making it a less refined sugar.
- Baking soda – this acts as a leavening agent that helps the biscuits rise while baking.
There’s always some debate about whether Anzac biscuits should be chewy or crunchy. The original biscuits were crunchy. They had to be, to ensure they’d make it on the long journey to the soldiers on the front lines. These days people have their preferences though and many recipes – like this one – oblige by providing a chewier biscuit.
How To Make Anzac Biscuits
This recipe is quite simple and can be made in under 20 minutes. The biscuits come together in a few simple steps and bake quickly too.
- Preheat the oven to 170°C (325°F) and get your baking tray ready.
- Add the dry ingredients to one bowl and mix well.
- Combine wet ingredients, add in the combined baking soda and water then add the liquids to the dry mix.
- Take two heaped Tablespoons of the mixture, and form into biscuits on the prepared baking tray. Flatten slightly with your hand or the bottom of a glass before cooking.
- Bake for 12-14 mins or until golden.
These biscuits taste best when they’ve been left to cool briefly. It allows them to harden up just a touch so they don’t fall apart when you pick them up.
Substitutions And Variations
Plain flour, white sugar and golden syrup in the original recipe have all been substituted in this one. My recipe uses oat flour for plain flour, rapadura sugar for white sugar and maple syrup for golden syrup. You can of course use the original ingredients if preferred!
Tips For Success With This Recipe
The baking soda/water mix needs to froth up to give the biscuits their classic chewy texture. If it doesn’t do this when added to the oil and maple syrup, just put the saucepan back on the heat and stir vigorously to help it along. You can see the frothy action in the quick video below.
Storing/Freezing
Store any leftovers in an airtight container lined with some paper towel. The biscuits will keep like this for a couple of days before they start to soften. They’re still delicious, they’re just a little less chewy. Some of that can be restored by reheating them for 5-7 minutes at 350ºF/180ºC – but they really are best enjoyed fresh.
To freeze Anzac biscuits – once completely cooled, place the biscuits in an airtight container between layers of parchment paper. To enjoy – place the biscuits in the oven at 350ºF/180ºC and warm through for up to 10 minutes. Keep checking them to see that they’re just reheating, not cooking further.
FAQ
A wet batter can mean your biscuits become far too chewy, instead of crunchy. You may want this of course if you’re team chewy Anzac biscuits, which is fine! But if you want them crunchy, you can add a touch more flour or desiccated coconut to absorb the excess moisture.
When this happens, the mix is crumbly and it’s impossible to shape the biscuits. To fix this, add a touch more liquid, either maple syrup, some melted coconut oil or even a little water. Just do it a tablespoon at a time so it doesn’t flip the other way and become too wet.
More Snack Ideas
- Coconut Chocolate Slice
- 4 ingredient peanut butter cookies
- Chocolate Covered Dates
- Lemon Curd Muffins
If you try this recipe, I’d love to know. Leave a comment, rate it, and remember to tag @wholenaturalkitchen in your pics or reels on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok!
Anzac Biscuits
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups rolled oats
- 1.5 cups desiccated coconut
- ½ cup oat flour
- ¼ cup rapadura sugar (use brown sugar if it's what you have)
- 100 g coconut oil (roughly ½ a cup)
- ½ cup maple syrup (can also use honey or golden syrup if this is what you have)
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 Tbsp boiling water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 170°C (325°F) and line a biscuit tray with baking paper.
- Add the rolled oats, desiccated coconut, oat flour, and rapadura sugar to a bowl and mix well to combine.
- Melt the coconut oil in a small saucepan over a low heat, then add in the maple syrup and stir to lightly mix it with the oil and warm it. Remove the saucepan from the heat and set aside briefly.
- Add the boiling water to the baking soda to dissolve it then add to the oil/maple syrup mix. Stir until it froths up, then immediately add the liquid mix to the bowl with the dry ingredients. Stir well to combine. (see note 1)
- Take roughly 2 heaped Tablespoons of the biscuit mix and roll it into a ball. Place on the biscuit tray and flatten with the bottom of a glass or your hands. Repeat until all the biscuit mix has been used.
- Place the tray in the oven and cook for 12 to 14 minutes or until the biscuits are golden.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before enjoying!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Gabby Campbell
Gabby is a degree qualified Naturopath/Nutritionist (BHSc Nat) with a love of all whole foods. She started her Naturopathic career in clinical practice before making the move to recipe development and online education – a result of wanting to combat the misinformation that abounds on the internet about food and health. Whole Natural Kitchen aims to transform the way you think about healthy eating by helping you embrace an abundance of nutritious foods while leaving the health fads behind. MORE ABOUT GABBY