Homemade Gluten Free Anzac Biscuits

I decided that I would try my hand at making Anzac biscuits using the Margaret Fulton recipe that I used as a child making these.  Except this time I needed to change a few ingredients to make them gluten free.  I substituted the rolled oats with rolled quinoa and the plain flour with gluten free plain flour.

Fortunately they worked a treat and tasted delicious.  There was no need to alter the amounts of any of the ingredients or cook them at a different temperature - so easy.

Gluten Free Anzac Biscuits

Based on the recipe from Margaret Fulton's Encyclopedia of Food and Cookery

125g of butter
1 tbs of golden syrup
2 tbs of boiling water
1 1/2 tsp of bicarbonate of soda
1 cup of rolled quinoa
1 cup of gluten free plain flour - I used a general all purpose flour from the supermarket
1 cup of white sugar
1 tsp of xanthum gum

Melt the butter and the golden syrup together in a saucepan - do this on the stove not in the microwave as you will have a little science trick happen later.

Combine the rolled quinoa, flour, sugar and xanthum gum together in a bowl or stand mixer.
Once the butter and the syrup are melted mix the bicarbonate of soda with the boiling water and add to the butter/syrup mixture.  This is the magic part:  it will froth up.

Mix this into the dry ingredients until well combined.

Roll into small balls pressing them onto a lined baking tray.

Place in a preheated oven at 150 degrees fan forced for 15-20 minutes until golden.  

Let the biscuits cool completely before removing from the tray as they will hard significantly when cool.

Enjoy with a cup of tea or milk.

monica@loveglutenfreeaustralia

GF Anzac Biscuits

This afternoon I tried for the first time Rowie’s Anzac biscuits.  They are fantastic!  So crunchy and nicely sweet but not too sweet.  They remind me so much of the Anzac biscuits that my siblings and I used to make as kids.

I have wondered recently how I would re-create Anzac biscuits gluten free seeing as though oats are a main ingredient.  In some countries, oats are classed as gluten free, such as the USA - this I discovered when buying muffins at Whole Foods in San Francisco.  These delicious looking gluten free muffins all had oats in them and were labelled gluten free - I was not really wanting to take the risk so by-passed them.

The Australian Coeliac Society does not endorse the thought that oats are gluten free.  The recommendation is that whilst some people may not have a reaction to oats, you need to trial eating a small amount over a three month period then have an endoscopy.  

I must admit that when I read this my heart jumped as I really do miss creamy, warm oats for breakfast on a wintery morning, but the thought of having another endoscopy to see if I had any small intestine damage was going a little too far for me.  So oats are off the menu.

Going back to the question of how to replace oats in Anzac biscuits, I had though rice flakes that had been soaked before use, as they are already very hard and I imagine that they would be harder after baking.  But the use of quinoa flakes in Rowie’s biscuits is fabulous!  

I cannot speak highly enough of the biscuits and cakes that Rowie’s Cakes produce - you must go to their factory in Marrickville in Sydney and buy one of each type of cake to try, you will not be disappointed!  But the Anzac biscuits are perfect for an afternoon treat with a cut of tea in the miserable weather that we have had lately.

Rowie’s Cakes

http://www.rowiescakes.com.au/

Australian Coeliac Society

http://www.coeliac.org.au/content/downloads/Oats%20Position%20Statement.pdf