For traditional Aussie tucker try our chewy ANZAC Biscuits recipe ANZAC biscuits range from super-chewy to extra-crisp. They’re buttery, with golden syrup, coconut and oats – they’re totally delicious, and perfect to dunk into a cup of tea or coffee.

Each year on April 25 it’s Anzac Day in Australia and New Zealand a public holiday for national remembrance. ANZAC day includes traditions such as the Last Post, the laying of wreaths, and a reading of the ‘Ode of Remembrance’. Marches are held, including veterans from all past wars, members of the Defence Force, and other uniformed service groups. The day falls on the anniversary of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) landing at Gallipoli, in Turkey which caused a great loss of life. The day was originally observed to honour the soldiers who died in that conflict, but now commemorates and honours all Australian and New Zealand servicemen and women, past and present, who have served and died in all wars, conflicts and peacekeeping efforts.

Contrary to popular belief there were no ANZAC biscuits at Gallipoli. The standard Army biscuit at this time was a rock hard jaw breaker. The majority of rolled oats based biscuits were in fact sold and consumed at fetes, parades and other public events at home, to raise funds for the war effort.

The simple nature of these cookies makes them perfect for kids or for beginner bakers. All you really need is a mixing bowl, a spoon and baking paper and you’re less than 30 minutes away from ANZAC ‘biccie‘ heaven.Ingredients for ANZAC Biscuits

ANZAC Biscuits Ingredients

1 cup rolled (porridge) oats
1 cup plain (all-purpose) flour
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup desiccated coconut
125g butter, chopped
2 tablespoons golden syrup (treacle)
2 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)Traditional ANZAC biscuit recipe

ANZAC Biscuits Method

Step 1

Preheat oven to 160°C. Line oven trays with baking paper as the mixture is quite sticky.

Step 2

Combine oats, flour, sugar and coconut in a large bowl.

Step 3

Place butter, syrup and the water in a small saucepan; stir over low heat until smooth. mind the butter does not get too hot or it will bubble up considerably. Stir in the baking soda once the butter has melted.

Step 4

Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and pour in the butter and golden syrup mixture. Stir gently to incorporate the dry ingredients.

The dough will be very crumbly, scoop level tablespoons of mixture into balls, for best results use your hands; place 5cm apart on trays, flatten slightly.

Step 5

Bake until golden brown and firm but not hard, about 15 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool.ANZAC Biscuit Baking Tips

Anzac biscuits must feel soft to touch, even when they’re done; they will become firm and as they cool they become chewy. The less you bake them, the softer they turn out.

There are plenty of modern takes on the Anzac biscuit, you could experiment with adding dark chocolate, mixed peel, macadamias, apricots or even cranberry and white chocolate Anzac biscuits – yummy!

Gorgeous ginger biscuits made with ground ginger and golden syrup. Ginger biscuits are one of the nations favourite biscuits – we have been eating them for centuries! This traditional British recipe makes the perfect partner to a nice hot cup of tea as once cooled after cooking, they become super-hard, so the perfect tea-dunking biscuit.

To add additional ‘ginger zing’ try adding another 1/2 teaspoonful of fresh ground ginger.

This is also a suitable recipe to swap the wheat flour for almond flour to make it gluten-free.

Time : 15 to 20 minutes

½ lb. flour
a pinch of salt
2 oz. butter
½ teaspoonful ground ginger
2 tablespoonful’s of golden syrup.

Ginger Biscuits Recipe – Rub the butter well into the sifted flour, salt, and ground ginger, adding sufficient golden syrup to form a stiff paste. Roll the mixture to about a quarter of an inch thick on the floured board, cut into rounds, and cook on a greased baking sheet in a moderate oven until well browned.

Time to put the kettle on!

Try this basic recipe for fail-safe chocolate biscuits every time.

Make a batch of chocolate chip cookies for an emotional pick up, get the kids to help for added success, adapt it to include fruit or almost any other goodies in the pantry.

Ground almonds are the most popular flour used in gluten-free baking but swap to wheat flour for ‘nut free’ bake sales for selling at school fetes.

Time : About half an hour.

Chocolate Biscuits Ingredients

½ lb. icing sugar
2 oz. powdered chocolate
vanilla essence
2 oz. ground almonds
whites of 2 eggsHow to make chocolate biscuits:

Pound the almonds and chocolate and mix them well with one white of egg. Add the sugar, vanilla essence to taste, and enough of the second white of egg to form a smooth paste. Put the paste into a lined saucepan, and, stirring all the time, heat until the mixture is lukewarm. Now, using a piping bag, force out small fancy-shaped biscuits on a tray which has been previously greased and floured.

Let the biscuits dry for three or four hours, and then bake them in a cool oven until crisp.

Macarons are not to be confused with macaroons! Macaroons are small and slapdash coconut or almond stacks, sometimes dipped in chocolate. Macarons are cute dainty little sandwiches that are made with meringue, almond flour, and buttercream filling.

Macaron is the French word for macaroon, but are never the coconut-based biscuit – confused yet? Macarons are one of the most amazing pastries, with hundreds of flavours and fillings. Macarons are made from almond flour and meringue the macaron as we know it now, made up of two meringue cookies brought together by a smooth flavored filling, was created in Paris during the 1830s. They also have a reputation for being tricky to make.

Traditional Recipe for Macaroons:

Time 30 to 40 minutes.

1/4 lb. ground almonds or coconut
1/2 lb. castor sugar
whites of 3 or 4 eggs
a few drops lemon juice
wafer paper
a few blanched almonds.

Mix the almonds and sugar in a bowl, and, beating well all the time with a wooden spoon, add the lemon juice and whites of eggs very gradually until the mixture is sufficiently thin to drop from a spoon. Using a forcing bag with a plain pipe, force small portions on to rounds of the wafer paper, and dredge a little icing sugar on top : this will make the mixture crack. Place half a blanched almond split lengthwise on top of each, and bake in a moderate oven until the macaroons are well risen and lightly browned. Place on a grid or sieve to cool and trim the edges of the paper.

Modern French Macaroon (or Macaron!)

4 extra large egg whites
1 ⅔ cups confectioners’ sugar
1 ⅓ cups almond flour
⅛ teaspoon salt
¼ cup superfine (castor) sugar

Place egg whites into a metal mixing bowl and refrigerate overnight. The next day, bring egg whites to room temperature.
Preheat oven to 280 degrees F (138 degrees C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk sugar and almond flour in a bowl. Beat the egg whites with salt with an electric mixer on medium speed until foamy (for about 1 minute); on high gradually beat in the sugar, a tablespoon at a time, until the egg whites hold stiff peaks.

Gently fold almond flour mixture into whipped egg whites. Pipe 1-inch disks of meringue onto the baking paper, leaving 2 inches of space between each one. Leave them to stand at room temperature for about 15 minutes.

Place the tray oven and bake with the oven door open slightly until the macarons’ surfaces are completely dry, about 15 minutes. leave to cool completely on a baking sheet before gently removing them.

Spread with any special filling, top with a second to make the sandwich then leave in the fridge for at least 2 hours to overnight to let them soften before serving.

Bon appetit!

This traditional almond biscuit recipe couldn’t be any easier to make it requires minimal clean up, leaving plenty of time for eating!

Almond Biscuits Ingredients
1/4 lb. flour;
2 oz. butter;
yolk of 1 egg;
l 1/2 oz. sugar;
1 or 2 tablespoonfuls cream ;
3 or 4 drops essence of almonds ;
a few sweet almonds.

Super quick recipe takes only 10 – 12 minuites

How to make yummy Almond Biscuits: Well sift and mix the flour and sugar, then rub in the butter and see that there are no lumps. Mix one tablespoonful of cream with the yolk of egg and almond essence, pour this into the centre, and work by hand into a fairly stiff paste, adding more cream if required.

Roll fairly thin on a floured board, cut into shapes, and bake to a golden brown on a greased and floured tin. Remove from the tin and allow the biscuits to cool, then brush them with a mixture of egg white and sugar and sprinkle with chopped browned almonds, replacing them in the oven for a short time to dry.