Anzac Biscuits

Anzac Biscuits (a.k.a. Crisp Coconut Oatmeal Cookies)
recipe adapted from Lazy Cat Kitchen

makes about 22

100 g / 1 cup oats
85 g / ¾ cup (slightly heaped) desiccated coconut*
100 g / 1 cup + 1 tbsp all purpose flour*
100 g / ½ cup + 1 tbsp caster sugar*
1 tsp baking soda
2 tbsp water, hot
100 g / 3.5 oz vegan butter, margarine or refined coconut oil*
1 tbsp maple syrup or golden syrup*

*Notes:

100g unsweetened coconut chips, pulsed

50g white whole wheat flour + 50g AP flour

75g coconut sugar

40g coconut oil + 60g unsalted butter

maple syrup

1. Preheat oven to 180° C / 355° F.
2. Put oats, desiccated coconut, flour and sugar in a medium mixing bowl and mix well.
3. Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat (or in microwave), add maple syrup and stir until combined.
4. In a small bowl, dissolve baking soda in 2 tbsp of hot water and add to melted butter mixture.
5. Add melted butter mixture to dry ingredients and stir gently until it is mixed well.
6. Roll mixture into balls with your hands (it should make 20 at 25 g each), flatten each ball so that you have 1 cm / 0.4″ high cookies, and place them 2 cm / 1″ apart on a paper lined baking tray.
7. Bake for 18-20 minutes until golden and transfer to a wire rack to cool.

I wasn't at all familiar with Anzac Biscuits nor Australia Day until I came across a couple posts on these cookies while looking for an oatmeal cookie recipe.

An Anzac biscuit is a sweet, hard tack biscuit, popular in Australia and New Zealand, made using rolled oats, flour, sugar, butter, golden syrup, baking soda, boiling water, and (optionally) desiccated coconut. Anzac biscuits have long been associated with the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) established in World War I.
(source: Wikipedia) 

What's not to love about these biscuits from down under which are pretty much oatmeal cookies with loads of coconut chips mixed in? They turned out exactly as I have anticipated - crisp and chewy with a wonderful aroma!

I adapted the recipe to balance between wholesome and indulgent. I substituted half of the flour with white whole wheat flour and nearly half of the fat with coconut oil. I also opted for coconut sugar and maple syrup which I have readily on hand.

I added 15g more coconut chips unintentionally and forgot that the recipe called for desiccated coconut. I only briefly pulsed my coconut chips which resulted in larger pieces mixed into the batter. The dough was a bit crumbly and took some time to form into balls, but nonetheless turned out delicioso!

Taste: 4 stars out of 5
Fragrant, buttery and rich!
Texture: 4 stars out of 5
Crisp with loads of oatmeal and coconut chips which added some chew!

Waffle Cookies - Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Walnut

Walter was put to work this past Saturday! He churned out some crispy and light EVOO waffles, delicious oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, grilled cheese, and even fried an egg. I am absolutely impressed with how versatile waffle makers are.

The EVOO waffles turned out just as tasty as my previous blogged Macadamia Oil waffles - light, crispy, and fluffy. I simply replaced macadamia oil with EVOO, used organic coconut palm sugar instead of granulated, and added 1 tbsp flax seed for added nutritional value. You won't be able to stay away from these waffles once you have a taste.

The waffle cookies were a fun experiment, as were the grilled cheese and egg. The chocolate chips that were directly in contact with the waffle maker did burn, but the taste weren't affected much. The burnt parts gave the cookies a smoky caramelized note.

Waffle Cookies - Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Walnut
recipe adapted from 12 Tomatoes
makes 10 cookies

1/4 cup (57g) unsalted butter
1/4 cup (55g) organic coconut palm sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
3/8 cup (48g) all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp fine sea salt
3/4 cup (60g) old fashioned oats
1/4 cup (45g) semi sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup (30g) chopped walnuts

Step 2: Add wet into dry.

Step 3: Fold in oats, chocolate chips, and nuts.

Step 4.

Cool and enjoy!

1. In large bowl, combine melted butter and brown sugar, then whisk in egg and vanilla until smooth.
2. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to wet ingredients in increments until well combined.
3. Fold in oats, chocolate chips, and nuts to cookie batter until just incorporated.
4. Preheat waffle iron at high heat, grease with nonstick spray, and place a heaping tablespoon of cookie dough into each quadrant of waffle iron.
5. Cook for about 2 minutes depending on waffle iron's heat setting, or until golden brown and cooked through.
6. Transfer cookies to wire rack and let cool. Repeat with remaining dough, re-greasing iron as needed.

These cookies were slightly crisp when fresh and got softer overtime. Either way, they were yummy, and not to mention, super quick to make for cookie craving emergencies. The clean up for the burnt residues were a bit annoying though.

Taste: 5 stars out of 5
Buttery and not too sweet.
Texture: 4.5 stars out of 5
The oatmeal in these cookies gave them a chewy bite, and walnuts provided the perfect crunch surprise.

And in case you were wondering how my waffled egg turned out..

It worked!