This year may possibly be the year I get my act together and attend a dawn service on Anzac Day.
Growing up, Anzac Day has always been another holiday like Waitangi Day. Facts may have been droned on at school but nothing sparked an interest in me. Now a teacher, I know the passion needs to be ignited from within me for the significance to come alive in the children. Very much inspired by the Gallipoli exhibition at Wellington Te Papa I attended earlier this year, the poignant stories of the soldiers and nurses have still stuck with me. Through story-telling, the reality of the war came alive and I was keen for this to flow onto my children. One of my favourite teaching experiences always comes through sensory learning in cooking (aka I would take any excuse to use the kitchen).
Before we made these Anzac cookies at school, one 10 year old genuinely thought the C in Anzac stood for cookies! Ah, the confessions during baking time.
If you have children, I encourage you to make it together with them. It’s a super easy recipe adapted from Food in a Minute, and no eggs or nuts are used so it’s a safe one to use around allergy prone children.
Ingredients
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 1 cup desiccated coconut
- 1 cup flour
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 125 g butter
- 2 Tbsp golden syrup
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tbsp water
Steps
- Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a cookie tray with baking paper.
- Combine the oats, coconut, flour, and sugar together in a bowl.
- Melt the butter and golden syrup together.
- Dissolve the baking soda in the water and add to the butter mixture. Pour the butter mixture into the dry ingredients and mix together.
- Roll into balls and place on the tray, making sure there’s enough room for them to spread.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes, cooking one tray at a time.
