They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old;
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
From For the fallen by Laurence Binyon (1869–1943).
Although I have attended a couple of dawn services in London with Mr G in the past, this was my first ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) Day in Australia. It is a bank holiday here, so people tend to go to their local RSL club or pub, drink beer and play two-up. Before this though, there is dawn service and the annual parade through the streets of Sydney. Although we didn't make it into the city ourselves, I made sure we watched it on TV. The parade was wonderful - it was so lovely seeing the servicemen, young and old, proudly marching through the city centre. Next year we will make sure we are there in person.
We did, however, go to our local RSL club in Kirribilli (just north of the Harbour Bridge) with friends after lunch. In the restaurant, at the bar and on the terrace, we 'civilians' mingled with the servicemen proudly displaying their medals on their chests. It really was a fantastic atmosphere.
I also decided to try my hand at baking ANZAC biscuits the day before. We've had Bill Granger's Sydney Food cookbook for years and have only cooked a few things from it, but I found a recipe for the biscuits and gave them a go. The ingredients are pretty simple and in most people's cupboards I expect; it was just the coconut and rolled oats I had to buy.
ANZAC biscuits
(From Sydney Food by Bill Granger)
Makes 20 biscuits
1 cup plain flour
1 cup desiccated coconut
2/3 cup rolled oats
125 g butter
1 tablespoon golden syrup
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 tablespoons boiling water
1. Preheat oven to 160°C (or 315°F). Place flour, coconut, sugar and oats in a bowl and mix well.
2. Place butter and golden syrup in a saucepan over medium heat and melt.
3. Place bicarbonate of soda in a small bowl and add boiling water. Stir to combine. Add the bicarbonate mixture to the saucepan and stir. Pour over the oat mixture and stir all ingredients together.
4. Roll teaspoonfuls of biscuit mixture into balls and place on a greased and lined baking tray, leaving room for spreading. Flatten each ball gently with a fork.
5. Bake biscuits for 15-20 minutes, or until biscuits are golden brown at the edges. Allow to cool slightly on the tray before transferring to a wire rack.
They were so easy to make and came out really well; even though ANZAC Day has now passed I would still make (and eat!) these biscuits anytime of year. A word of warning though: they are extremely moreish so you find yourself having two or three with your afternoon cup of tea!
