Real ale Anzac biscuits

MAKES ABOUT 20

I know Anzac biscuits are traditionally made using golden syrup, but I thought I’d give them a slightly different slant and use maple syrup and a really nice hoppy ale. If you just can’t bring yourself to make them without golden syrup, that’s fine – go the gold.

125 g (4½ oz/½ cup) unsalted butter

2 tablespoons maple syrup

3 tablespoons American-style pale ale

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

150 g (5½ oz/1 cup) plain (all-purpose) flour

100 g (3½ oz/1 cup) rolled (porridge) oats

65 g (2¼ oz/¾ cup) desiccated (grated dried) coconut

140 g (5 oz/¾ cup lightly packed) brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F/Gas 4). Grease two or three large baking trays or pizza trays.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat, add the maple syrup and beer and stir well to combine. Add the bicarbonate of soda, mix well, then remove from the heat.

In a large bowl, mix the flour, rolled oats, coconut and sugar until well combined. Add the butter mixture and stir until all the ingredients are completely combined.

Take a dessertspoon full of the mixture and roll it in the palm of your hand until you have a ball. Place this on one of the trays and flatten it slightly. Roll out the remaining mixture in the same way, placing about five balls on each tray, as you’ll need to allow plenty of room for the biscuits to spread as they bake.

Bake each tray of biscuits for 10–15 minutes, or until golden, rotating the tray every 5 minutes or so to ensure even cooking. Bake the biscuits in batches if you don’t have enough trays.

Remove the biscuits from the oven and leave to cool on the trays for 5 minutes before removing them, as they’ll be quite soft straight out of the oven. The biscuits will keep well in an airtight container for many days.

Beer Notes

American-style pale ales include Arctic Fox American Pale Ale, Stone & Wood Pacific Ale and Moo Brew Pale Ale