Anzac biscuits
Anzac biscuits hold a special place in the hearts of Australians and New Zealanders. They are made with oats, desiccated coconut, butter and golden syrup (a light golden cane syrup), with no eggs at all. They are crisp at the edges, chewy in the middle and full of that signature buttery caramel flavor. They are about as easy as baking gets, mixed with nothing more than one saucepan and one bowl.
- Difficulty
- Very easy
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 15 min
- Rising or chilling
- 20 min
- Total time
- 50 min
- Method
- Oven-baked
Ingredients
Dry ingredients
Butter and syrup
Instructions
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 170°C and line two baking trays with parchment paper. Anzac biscuits spread quite a bit as they bake, so set aside plenty of room from the start. The oven is ready after about fifteen minutes of preheating.
Step 2
Put 90 g rolled oats, 150 g all-purpose flour, 65 g desiccated coconut, 200 g brown sugar and a pinch salt in a large bowl and stir well with a spoon. Mixing the dry ingredients first spreads the brown sugar evenly so it does not clump when the hot butter goes in. The mixture is ready when everything is evenly combined and there are no lumps of brown sugar left.
Step 3
Put 125 g unsalted butter and 40 g golden syrup in a saucepan and stir over low heat until the butter has melted completely. Butter and syrup blended together coat every oat flake, giving the biscuits their chewy crunch. The mixture is ready when it is liquid and golden with no pieces of butter left.
Step 4
Stir 3 g baking soda into 30 g boiling water in a small cup, then pour it right away into the butter mixture you have just taken off the heat and stir quickly. Baking soda reacts with the hot syrup and foams up, which is what makes the biscuits light and gives them their lovely brown color. The mixture is ready when it foams vigorously, puffs up and turns a paler gold.
Step 5
Immediately pour the still-foaming butter mixture into the bowl of dry ingredients and mix well with a flat spatula. Mixing before the foam settles keeps the air in so the biscuits rise slightly. The dough is ready when it is evenly moist, a little sticky and holds together when you squeeze a handful.
Step 6
Scoop up heaping tablespoons of dough, roll them into balls, place them on the trays about five centimeters apart and flatten them gently with your palm. Flattening first helps the biscuits spread evenly and bake at the same rate. You have shaped them well when the pieces are all the same size and about one centimeter thick.
Step 7
Bake at 170°C for about 12 to 15 minutes, turning the trays around halfway through. A shorter bake gives chewy centers, while a slightly longer one makes them crisp all the way through. They are done when they have spread out, the tops are evenly golden brown and the edges are darker than the middle.
Step 8
Leave the biscuits on the trays for about five minutes, then move them to a wire rack to cool for fifteen minutes more. Fresh from the oven they are very soft, and they only firm up as the sugar and butter set while cooling. They are ready when you can lift them without them breaking and the edges snap crisply.
Equipment
- Oven
- Small saucepan
- Mixing bowl
- Spatula
- Kitchen scale
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Wire cooling rack
Tips
- If you have no golden syrup, you can use honey, but the biscuits will brown faster and need closer watching.
- Use regular rolled oats, because instant oats are too fine and will make the biscuits lose their chew.
- Adding a handful of chopped macadamia nuts to the dry ingredients gives the biscuits a richer, nuttier flavor.
Storage
With no eggs, Anzac biscuits keep very well; store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks. If they soften from humidity, warm them in a 150°C oven for about five minutes to crisp them up again.
Common problems and how to fix them
- The biscuits spread too thin and run into each other.
- The butter mixture was too hot or the balls were placed too close together. Let the dough rest for ten minutes so the butter firms up a little, and space the biscuits farther apart.
- The biscuits do not rise and look pale.
- The baking soda was old or the water was not hot enough, so it did not foam. Use fresh baking soda and add it to the butter mixture as soon as it comes off the heat.
This recipe is based on the common ratios for this bake and is written entirely in our own words.
