ANZAC oat and golden syrup biscuits
Golden, crunchy biscuits made with rolled oats, desiccated coconut and golden syrup. Designed without eggs to travel without spoiling, they keep for weeks in a tin.
Golden, crunchy biscuits made with rolled oats, desiccated coconut and golden syrup. Designed without eggs to travel without spoiling, they keep for weeks in a tin.
On 25 April, we get up before dawn for the dawn service, and it's cold. These biscuits tell a story: our great-grandmothers made them without eggs on purpose, so they'd survive the journey to the boys at the front. You mix the oats, coconut, that good golden syrup that smells like caramel, and the house fills with fragrance. Crunchy or a bit chewy, it depends on your baking — in our family we like both. Lest we forget: we remember, and we pass it on, even through a simple biscuit.
- •Rolled oats — abundant (cereal base)
- •Flour — a measure (structure)
- •Desiccated coconut — generous (texture and flavour)
- •Sugar — a measure (sweetness)
- •Butter — a good knob (melted binder)
- •Golden syrup — a few spoonfuls (caramel flavour and binder)
- •Baking soda — a pinch (leavening)
ANZAC oat and golden syrup biscuits
Golden, crunchy biscuits made with rolled oats, desiccated coconut and golden syrup. Designed without eggs to travel without spoiling, they keep for weeks in a tin.
Why this dish? Every year on 25 April (ANZAC Day), New Zealand commemorates its soldiers. As Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern presided over these remembrance ceremonies. These biscuits, made without eggs to keep better when sent to soldiers, are a national symbol — and naturally vegetarian.
On 25 April, we get up before dawn for the dawn service, and it's cold. These biscuits tell a story: our great-grandmothers made them without eggs on purpose, so they'd survive the journey to the boys at the front. You mix the oats, coconut, that good golden syrup that smells like caramel, and the house fills with fragrance. Crunchy or a bit chewy, it depends on your baking — in our family we like both. Lest we forget: we remember, and we pass it on, even through a simple biscuit.
Ingredients (period version)
- Rolled oats — abundant (cereal base)
- Flour — a measure (structure)
- Desiccated coconut — generous (texture and flavour)
- Sugar — a measure (sweetness)
- Butter — a good knob (melted binder)
- Golden syrup — a few spoonfuls (caramel flavour and binder)
- Baking soda — a pinch (leavening)
Ingredients
- Rolled oats — 100 g (cereal base)
- Flour — 100 g (structure)
- Desiccated coconut — 75 g (texture and flavour)
- Sugar — 100 g (sweetness)
- Butter — 100 g (melted binder)
- Golden syrup — 2 tbsp (caramel flavour and binder)
- Baking soda — 1/2 tsp (leavening)
- Boiling water — 1 tbsp (activates baking soda)
Method
- Preheat the oven to 160°C and line a baking tray with paper.
- In a bowl, mix oats, flour, coconut and sugar.
- Melt the butter with golden syrup over low heat. Dissolve baking soda in boiling water, then add to the butter (it will foam) and pour over the dry ingredients.
- Mix, form walnut-sized balls, flatten slightly on the tray, spacing them apart.
- Bake for 12-15 min until golden. Leave to firm up on the tray for 5 min before transferring. Store in an airtight container.
How it was made : During World War I, New Zealand and Australian families made these biscuits without eggs — a scarce and perishable ingredient — so they would survive the long sea voyage to the ANZAC troops. Their exceptional keeping quality made them a symbol of remembrance, still baked every 25 April.
The contemporary twist : Offer them in a vintage tin decorated with a red poppy, the flower of remembrance, for ceremonies.
Jacinda Ardern · Charactorium