Molly’s anzac cookies

As a small child I would often attend the Anzac dawn parade with my grandparents.  We’d arise in the wee hours of the morning, rug up warm and head down to the local RSA where other men, who had served our country, and their loved ones waited in hushed silence for the march to begin.  It was a day of recognition and commemoration for all the soldiers who had sacrificed their lives to protect our nation. 

Being so young I knew there was an importance surrounding the day but I didn’t fully grasp the significance until I was much older.  At that age, my five year old mind was in a hurry for it to all be over so we could get back home to the warmth of an open fire and fill our grumbling bellies with hot cocoa and cookies.  Shame on me!

Now, decades later, I have taken over the tradition of baking those very same cookies.   Not only in remembrance of the sacrifice made of men I never knew but in memory of my loving Nan.

Lest we forget.

Anzac cookies

Ingredients:
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
pinch of salt
2/3 cup desiccated coconut
3/4 cup rolled oats
50 g butter
1 Tbsp golden syrup
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 Tbsp boiling water

Method:
Preheat oven to 180°c and line an oven tray.
In a large bowl mix together the flour, sugar, salt, coconut and oats. 
Melt the golden syrup and butter together in a small pot over a low heat.  Add the baking soda and boiling water to a cup and stir till dissolved then mix into the butter/golden syrup.
Pour the butter, golden syrup and soda mix into the large bowl containing the dry ingredients and mix well to combine.
Using moistened hands, roll tablespoons of cookie mix into balls before flattening on the oven tray.  Bake for 12-15 minutes until golden.  Cool cookies on a wire rack before storing in a biscuit tin.

Makes 12-15 cookies