Anzac biscuits, based on a recipe derived from the Scottish oat cake, received their name during the First World War after the campaign at Gallipoli, around 1914/15. Also known as an ANZAC Wafer or an ANZAC Tile, the ANZAC biscuit is a very hard biscuit with a long shelf-life. Some soldiers preferred to grind them up and use them as porridge by adding water and sugar, then cooking and serving with a dollop of jam. Because no eggs are used the biscuits don't spoil on the long journey to the war front.

Ingredients

1 cup plain flour
1 cup rolled oats (regular oatmeal) uncooked
1 cup desiccated coconut
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup (125g) butter
2 Tablespoon Golden Syrup
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 Tablespoon boiling water

Method

1. Combine the flour (sifted), oats, coconut and sugar in a bowl.
2. Melt the butter and Golden Syrup in a saucepan over a low heat
3. Mix the bicarbonate of soda with the water and add to the butter and Golden Syrup.
4. Pour the liquids into the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
5. Spoon dollops of mixture, about the size of a walnut shell, onto a greased tin allowing for spreading.
6. Bake in a moderate oven, 180C / 350F, for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
7. Allow to cool on tray for a few minutes before transferring to cooling racks (biscuits will harden when cool)
8. Seal in airtight containers.

For crunchier biscuits, use more golden syrup

Lamingtons are delicious squares of cake, completely covered in chocolate icing and coconut. Lamingtons were named after the Baron Lamington, the Rt. Hon. Charles Wallace Alexander Napier Cochrane Baillie, Governor of Queensland between 1896 and 1901, first appearing in Australian recipe around 1909.

Ingredients

120g butter
2/3 cup castor sugar
2 beaten eggs
1/2 cup milk
2 cups self raising flour
Vanilla extract or essence
Pinch salt
1 & 2/3 cups of icing sugar
4 tablespoons cocoa
Boiling water
Dessicated coconut

Sponge

1. Preheat oven to 180°C / 350°F. Grease and flour a shallow square cake tin.
2. Cream the butter and sugar, beating until fluffy.
3. Add vanilla, and eggs, one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition. Add sifted flour and salt alternately to mixture with the milk.
4. Pour into the lamington tin and bake for approximately 1/2 hour or until cake is cooked.
5. When cold, wrap in foil and refrigerate overnight for easier handling. Cut into uniform sized squares, about 5cm x 4cm.

Icing

1. Sift icing sugar into a bowl.
2. Blend cocoa with the boiling water to make a smooth paste.
3. Mix into the icing sugar, adding a little more boiling water at a time, if needed.
4. Add vanilla. The Icing should be the consistency of pouring cream, for ease of dipping.
5. Using a fork, dip each square of cake in the chocolate icing, then roll in the dessicated coconut. Place on wire rack to set.

Pavlova is meringue-like dessert with a crusty exterior and soft and fluffy on the inside. Pavlova is reported to have first been made in Australia in 1935, named in honour of the Russian ballerina, Anna Pavlova. There is however some controversy regarding the humble pavlova's origins. Our neighbours the Kiwis across the Tasman in New Zealand claim the pavlova as their own - we may never know the truth!

Ingredients

3 egg whites
3 Tablespoon Cold Water
1 cup caster sugar
3 teaspoons cornflour
1 teaspoons vanilla essence
1 teaspoons vinegar

Method

1. Preheat oven to 150°C / 300°F. Line and grease a baking tray with foil or greased paper.
2. Whisk egg whites until stiff, add half the sugar and whisk until dissolved.
3. In a bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff. Beat in cold water.
4. Add half the caster sugar a little at a time. Fold in the remainder of the sugar, vinegar, vanilla and cornflour.
5. Place pavlova mixture in centre to form a circle approximately 25cm across.
6. Bake for approximately half hour. Once cooked, turn oven off - DO NOT OPEN OVEN - leave in oven until cool.
7. When the Pavlova is cold, cover the top with a generous amount of whipped cream and decorate with sliced fresh fruit such as strawberries, pineapple & kiwi fruit. Drizzle with passionfruit. Serve immediately.

Camp oven cooking is part of Australian outback history used by drovers, shearers, and Aussie Bushmen over the years.

Ingredients

(NB: Use double quantities for 12 or 16-inch camp oven)

3 cups selfraising flour
½ cup milk
3 teaspoons salt
½ cup water or beer
90 gm (3 oz) butter

Method

1. Sift flour and salt into bowl.
2. Rub in butter until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
3. Make a well in centre of the dry ingredients, add liquid. Mix lightly with a knife.
4. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly. Knead dough into a round and place in camp oven.
5. Bake over a slow fire, placing some coals on the lid of the camp oven.
6. When cooked (after approx. ½ hour) the damper should be golden brown and sound hollow when tapped.

Variations: Add sultanas or raisins and some sugar to the dry mix.

Ingredients

250g copha
4 cups Rice Bubbles (I used a generic brand)
1 cup of icing sugar
3 tablespoons cocoa
2/3 cup desiccated coconut
Paper cupcake cases

Method
1. Sift icing sugar and cocoa together
2. Add the coconut and mix through icicing sugar and cocoa
3. Mix through rice bubbles
4. Melt copha in a saucepan. When melted, add to dry ingredients and mix.
5. Spoon into cupcake cases and refrigerate until hard.

Makes about 2 dozen

Vegemite is part of Australian culture and is as much a part of Australia's heritage as kangaroos and the Holden cars. Put it this way, a Vegemite sandwich to an Australian kid is the equivalent of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich to an American kid - with a very different taste! So if you have never eaten Vegemite before, you may need to consume it in slightly smaller amounts until you get used to it.

So what is vegemite? Vegemite is a spread made from leftover brewers' yeast extract (a by-product of beer manufacture) and various vegetable and spice additives. It is almost black in colour, and one of the richest sources known of Vitamin B. It tastes very salty, and some say tastes somewhat like Marmite or Promite - it's definitely an acquired taste.

How To Eat Vegemite
Spread butter or margarine on a piece of toast or bread. Cover very thinly with Vegemite (for the optimum Vegemite sandwich you only need a dab). Dip your knife in the Vegemite, and scrape up just a bit (it will mix right in with the butter and spread easily). Some people like to "marble" the Vegemite into the butter.

Eat it open-faced or as a sandwich and enjoy!

History of Vegemite

Vegemite dates back to 1922 when the Fred Walker Company based in Melbourne hired a young chemist (Dr. Cyril P. Callister) to develop a spread from one of the richest known natural sources of the vitamin B group -- brewer's yeast. He used brewer's yeast and blended the yeast extract with ingredients like celery, onion, salt, and a few secret ingredients to make this paste. In 1912, a national competition and a prize of 50 pounds was offered to the winner to name the new product. The name ‘Vegemite' was finally chosen from the entries by Fred's daughter Sheilah.

When Australians first heard about Vegemite, a thick, dark English spread - Marmite - dominated the spread market meaning that Australians were reluctant to try this new product. In 1935 a 2-year coupon redemption programme was launched where a jar of Vegemite was given away with every purchase of other products in the Fred Walker company range. Australians tried the product and loved it.

In 1935, the recipe and manufacturing methods was sold to Kraft Foods and has been wholly owned and made by American companies since. In 1939 Vegemite received endorsement from the British Medical Association which allowed doctors to recommend it as a Vitamin B-rich, nutritionally balanced food for patients. In World War II, soldiers, sailors, and the civilian population of Australia all had Vegemite included in their rations.

Interesting Facts

• 22.7 million jars of Vegemite are manufactured in Australia every year - that's 235 jars per minute.
• 30 jars are sold in Australia for every one exported.
• Vegemite is in nine out of ten pantries in Australia.
  

The Happy Little Vegemite Song

We are happy little Vegemites as bright as bright can be,
We all enjoy our Vegemite for breakfast, lunch and tea,
Our mummy says we're growing stronger every single week,
Because we love our Vegemite,
We all adore our Vegemite,
It puts a rose in every cheek!