Healthy Anzac Biscuits with Freezing Tips

This healthy Anzac biscuits recipe is a firm family favourite in our house. Made with creamy macadamias, wholemeal spelt flour, and unrefined sugar, my version is not as sweet as a traditional Anzac biscuit but is just as delicious. So don’t feel guilty about eating more than one!

TOTAL TIME INVESTMENT: 30 MINUTES

I have almost given up baking for The Princess. She seems to be going through an extremely fussy stage, which would be fine if she were five but is a proper pain given she is seventeen. She loathes muffins now apparently, will tolerate my fig & pumpkin seed bars, and does quite like my cheese shortbread. But by far the most requested baked good is these healthy Anzac biscuits

My baking has changed a lot over the years. Where once I would only bake with wheat flours and white sugar, these days I like to experiment with my flours and sugars for the flavour they add to baked goods. And I almost always reduce the sugar in a recipe as I find my sweet tooth isn’t as sweet these days.

If you are looking to reduce the sugar in your own cooking, I have put together a handy guide to help you with this. Download the free guide from my Resource Library by clicking the link below or by requesting the library password at the end of this post.

These healthy Anzac biscuits are a snap to make, and the nutty flavour provided by the combination of the white and wholemeal spelt flour pairs well with the unrefined rapadura sugar and the creamy macadamia nuts.

I’ve kept the golden syrup though, because it is just not an Anzac biscuit without it. 

Thanks to The Princess’s constant demands for these healthy Anzac biscuits, I can assure you that this is one recipe in my repertoire that is very well tested indeed. I hope your family comes to like it as much as we do.

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Ingredient Substitutions for Healthy Anzac Biscuits

That I have managed to tinker with the original recipe and still arrive at a delicious biscuit should give you confidence that these healthy Anzac biscuits are ripe for substitutions.  Try the following:

• All purpose (plain) wheat flour and wholemeal wheat flour can be used in place of the white and wholemeal spelt flour.
• The wholemeal spelt flour can be omitted completely. Simply use all white spelt flour or white wheat flour instead.
• Replace the rapadura sugar with raw sugar, light muscovado sugar or even normal white granulated sugar if preferred.
• Unsweetened desiccated coconut can be used in place of the shredded coconut.
• Omit the macadamias if you wish to make these biscuits nut free.  If removing the nuts, increase the shredded coconut by 1/2 cup in the recipe.
• To make this healthy Anzac biscuits recipe gluten free, replace the flours with a good gluten free flour mix and make sure that the oats are processed in a gluten free environment.

Substitutes for Golden Syrup

I feel that golden syrup is deserving of it’s own little blurb, given it is a key ingredient in any Anzac biscuit recipe. Without golden syrup, all you have really made is a delicious oatmeal cookie.

However, should you happen to find yourself with absolutely no golden syrup in the house, you could try the following alternatives:

1. Honey
2. Maple Syrup
3. Light Corn Syrup

Keep in mind that any golden syrup substitute may affect both the texture and the taste of your healthy Anzac biscuit. For example, baked goods made with honey will be chewier than those made with maple syrup.

For more information on golden syrup and the different alternatives, I highly recommend you check out this great article.

Can you Freeze Anzac Biscuits?

Anzac biscuits freeze extremely well, so I try to always have some stashed in the freezer for snacking emergencies. I use two different methods to freeze the biscuits:

• Freeze the uncooked dough: Shape the biscuit dough as specified in the recipe below, and place on a lined baking tray. The biscuits can be placed quite close together for freezing. Slide the baking tray into the freezer for 2 hours or until the Anzac biscuits are frozen. Transfer the frozen biscuits to a labelled zip lock bag.
• Freeze the baked Anzac biscuits: Bake the biscuits as specified in the recipe, then allow to cool completely. Place the cooled biscuits into a labelled zip lock bag and freeze.

To cook the healthy Anzac biscuits from frozen, just proceed with the recipe from step 11, adding an additional five minutes to the baking time.

To serve the baked Anzac biscuits, remove the desired quantity from the freezer and allow to defrost on a cake rack for at least 30 minutes before serving. Frozen baked biscuits can also be placed directly into lunchboxes first thing in the morning. They will defrost in time for a morning snack.

Both cooked Anzac biscuits and the uncooked dough can be frozen for up to three months.

Tips & Tricks for the best Healthy Anzac Biscuits Recipe

Opinions on whether Anzac biscuits should be chewy or crunchy vary considerably.  I like mine crispy, whilst The Princess prefers a chewer biscuit.  So I normally make them crispy (because I can). 

I make these so often that I feel I have uncovered many of the possible kinks in the recipe, and offer you a few final tips to ensure your Anzac biscuits are as delicious as they should be:

1. The amount you flatten the biscuit dough will determine the texture of your Anzac biscuit; a thicker biscuit will remain chewy in the centre when the outside is browned.  A thinner biscuit will be crisp both inside and out at the end of the cooking time.
2. These healthy Anzac biscuits can be easily made in the Thermomix. To make the biscuits in the Thermomix, melt the butter and sugar first before adding the bicarbonate mixture, and then the dry ingredients. Process briefly before proceeding with the recipe.
3. Cooked Anzac biscuits will last for up to one week in an airtight container, although they may soften over time.
4. Any soft biscuits can be refreshed with a brief stint in the oven at 170C. Keep an eye on the biscuits, and do not leave them in for more than 5 minutes. The actual time you can keep them in the oven will be determined by how long the biscuits were cooked for initially.

Looking for other easy cookie recipes?

If you are like me, you get bored making the same recipe week in, week out. So I thought I would give you a few other options that might tempt the ravenous hordes. All of these recipes keep well, and are ideal for tucking into the kid’s lunchboxes:

• Currant & Cocoa Nib Wholegrain Cookies
• Peanut Butter & Cocoa Nib Oaty Cookies
• Gluten Free Thumbprint Cookies
• Gluten Free Blueberry & Ginger Cookies
• Grab & Go Banana Breakfast Cookies

Enjoy!

Made this recipe? Tell me how it went in the comments below.
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5 from 3 votes

Healthy Anzac Biscuits

Whip up a batch of these healthy Anzac biscuits in just 30 minutes. With creamy macadamias, wholemeal flours, and unrefined sugars, these are bound to become the new family favourite.

Course Snacks

Cuisine Australian

Keyword Anzac biscuits, easy Anzac Biscuit recipe, healthy Anzac biscuit recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 12 biscuits

Calories 412kcal

Author Tania @ The Cook’s Pyjamas

Ingredients

• 95 g (1 cup) rolled oats
• 100 g (3/4 cup) white spelt
• 70 g (1/2 cup) wholemeal spelt
• 80 g (1/2 cup) rapadura sugar
• 80 g (1/2 cup) roasted macadamias finely chopped
• 60 g (3/4 cup) shredded coconut
• pinch salt
• 125 g (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
• 60 ml (1/4 cup) golden syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate soda (baking soda)
• 30 ml (2 Tablespoons) boiling water

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 170C (150C fan forced).
• Line a baking tray with baking paper and set aside.
• Place the rolled oats, spelt, chopped macadamias, sugar, coconut and salt in a large bowl and mix together.
• Melt the butter and golden syrup in medium saucepan.
• Combine the bicarbonate soda and boiling water.
• Whilst continuously stirring, pour the bicarbonate soda mixture into the melted butter and golden syrup.
• Pour the melted butter mixture into the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
• Take a dessert spoon of mixture, and press it together in your hands until the mixture forms into rough ball.
• Place the ball on the lined tray and flatten lightly until the biscuit is approximately 1.5cm thick.  Make the biscuit slightly thicker if you want chewy biscuits. 
  
• Repeat with the remainder of the mixture.
• Bake for 20 minutes, or until the biscuits are golden brown.
• Cool on a rack, then transfer to an airtight container for storage. 
  

Notes

1. Don’t use a small saucepan to melt the butter and sugar.  When you add the baking soda mixture to the melted butter, the mixture starts to foam and rise up.  If your saucepan is too small it can overflow. 
2. You can bake half the batch and freeze the rest for later using my freezing instructions above. 
3. Store the cooled biscuits in an airtight container for up to one week. 

Update Notes: This post was originally published on 21st April 2015. It was substantially updated on 21st April 2018 to include ingredient substitutions, nutritional information and to improve the readability of the text. It was updated again on 5th April 2019 to include freezing instructions, additional information for golden syrup substitutes and to add newsletter sign up boxes.