Can't stop eating ANZAC biscuits!

This was a total sleeper recipe. I was somewhat reluctant to put it on my recipe list, and not completely enthused when it popped up in my meal planning. It looked stodgy and dry and boring to me. Where was the glamor? Where were the chocolate chips??
But boy, was I wrong! These are nutty, buttery, coconut-y discs of deliciousness with a chewy/crunchy texture that is irresistible. They disappeared quicker than just about anything I bake. The girls walked out of the kitchen carrying stacks of them. I picked at them every time I walked through the kitchen. Fortunately, the recipe doesn't make a lot.
Heidi at 101 Cookbooks also has an ANZAC biscuit recipe, but hers uses more sugar. You can bet that made me feel smug!
The recipe is from the "reader recipe" section of a magazine that Shall Be Unnamed. The reader told about how these biscuits were sent to service members in the Australia-New Zealand forces and how the reader would be sending some to her husband stationed in Iraq. What a perfect Memorial Day recipe!

ANZAC biscuits
Adapted from Alison White's recipe

3/4 c. (3.75 oz.) flour
3/4 c. (5.25 oz.) sugar
1 c. (3 oz.) rolled oats
1 c. (3 oz.) coconut--it should ideally be unsweetened, but I used Angel Flake and it was fine
7 T. (3.5 oz.) unsalted butter
1 T. golden syrup--I used cane syrup, but corn syrup, honey, or maple syrup would probably be fine as well
1/2 t. baking soda
2 T. boiling water
Pinch salt
1/2 t. vanilla


Heat the oven to 350 and line baking sheets with parchment. Mix together the flour, sugar, oats, and coconut; I added a spoonful of wheat germ as well. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter with the syrup. While it is melting, dissolve the baking soda in the boiling water--that's fun! Take the butter off the heat and mix in the baking soda mixture, the salt, and the vanilla. Now mix in the dry ingredients and then drop the dough onto the parchment by rounded teaspoonfuls. Give them space because they spread. Bake for 15-20 minutes (mine only took 12, but my oven tends to run hot) or until deep golden brown and bubbly. Makes about 2 dozen.