The ANZAC army biscuit which is also referred to as an ANZAC wafer or tile is a hardtack biscuit with a long shelf life, used as a substitute for bread. The biscuits are very hard and some soldiers would grind them up to use as porridge – add water, sugar and cook then serve with a generous dollop of jam.
The following recipe has been supplied courtesy of Arnott’s Biscuits Limited through the good offices of Frank Townsend, Chief Chemist. Originally, the biscuits were baked in large industrial ovens, but the recipe has been altered so that they can be baked in a domestic oven.
Ingredients sufficient for 6 biscuits:
• Flour 200 gm, about 1.5cups or 300 mls
• Flour Wholemeal 400 gm, about 3 cups or 600 mls
• Sugar 40 gm, about 5 tablespoons
• Milk Powder 20 gm, about 3 tablespoons
• Salt 1.5 gm, a good pinch
• Water 220 mls
Use self-raising flours. If self-raising flours are not available, sieve 10 grams of baking powder together with the dry flour before adding other ingredients.
Method
1. Place flour, sugar and milk powder in a large bowl and blend with finger tips.
2. Form into a pile and scoop out a hole (well) in the centre.
3. Add all of the water in which the salt has been dissolved.
4. Thoroughly work the flour from the inside of the well into the water until the whole is a mass of lumps of flour and water.
5. Once the dough is formed, transfer it to a table top or pastry board.
6. The dough should now be torn apart, rubbed into balls and thrown together and the process repeated until the mass is well mixed and in the form of a really hard dough.
7. The dough is then rested for about half an hour.
8. Now roll the dough in 8 mm thick sheets using a rolling pin and two 8 mm thick guides (wooden slats are ideal) – the dough being rolled down between the two guides until the rolling pin rests on the guides during each traverse.
9. The rolled sheet of dough is then cut into 90 mm squares, preferably by pressing with the edge of a steel rule rather than slicing with a knife. The pressing action helps to join the top and bottom surfaces and will improve the lift on baking.
A cardboard square, 90 mm on each side, can be used as a pattern to ensure uniformity in your tiles.
10. Next, the biscuit square should be docked by having a regular horizontal and vertical pattern of holes pushed into them at, say, 18 mm centres with a flat ended pin or rod. Push it in until it bottoms, twist slightly and then withdraw. Repeat at the next position. Each biscuit should have five vertical and five horizontal rows of docker holes, 25 holes in all. There are those at the AWM who argue for 49 holes (7 x 7) as the authentic number of docker holes.
11. Place on a lightly greased steel baking sheet, with the biscuits about 6 mm apart and form a wall around the load with scrap dough to avoid edge burning of the biscuits.
12. Bake at about 200 degrees centigrade for 30 to 40 minutes on a low shelf in the oven. Take care not to burn them.
13. To achieve a suitable hardness in your biscuits, store for a time in an air tight container.
From: Discovering Gallipoli: research guide. Robin McLachlan, Anthea Bundock and Marie Wood. Times Past Productions Bathurst, NSW for The Australian War Memorial, 1990
ANZAC Biscuit Popular Version
(From a original recipe provided by Mr Bob Lawson, an ANZAC present at the Gallipoli landing)
Ingredients
• 1 cup each of plain flour, sugar, rolled oats and coconut
• 4 oz butter
• 1 tablespoon treacle (golden syrup)
• 2 tablespoons boiling water
• 1 teaspoon carbonate soda (add a little more water if mixture is too dry)
Method
1. Grease biscuit tray and pre heat oven to 180C
2. Combine dry ingredients
3. Melt together butter and golden syrup. Combine water and soda add to butter mixture.
4. Mix butter mixture and dry ingredients.
5. Drop teaspoons of mixture onto tray allowing room for spreading.
6. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool on tray for a few minutes before transferring to cooling racks.
So make, bake and enjoy these treats at this years ANZAC day celebrations.