What Australia means to me and a Sugar Free-Anzac biscuit recipe for Australia Day

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In the short time we've been living in Aus we've never actually celebrated Australia Day before. In fact the first one we spent at Northmead Children's hospital while Miss H had emergency surgery on a tooth that had come through without any enamel, causing her to get blood poisoning. My poor little mouse was so sick, that the last thing on my mind was celebrating - in fact I don't think we even realised it was Australia Day until the staff mentioned it.

This year I'm really looking forward to celebrating all things Aussie.  I love how enthusiastic the whole country gets about 'their' day.  Australians are one of the many things I love about living here.  In the short time we've been here I really feel like we've been taken in and welcomed into the community (both locally and online) and I'll always be grateful for that.  Moving countries is not an easy thing to do, especially with a family but I don't have one single regret.  Australia is everything I imagined it would be and more and it is also somewhere we are now very proud to call home.

Here are a just few things that make me think "Ah yes - I'm in Australia"

1.  The smell of eucalyptus trees
2.  The beach
3.  Glorious sunshine and HUGE blue skies
4.  Sausages wrapped in white bread
4.  Nippers
6.  Crazy, stalking magpie birds
7.  Sunscreen
9.  SPIDERS (and all other kinds of creepy bugs/lizards and snakes)
10.  Cockatoos and pelicans
11.  Camping
12.  The way no one uses the letter 'T' for example, taddoo's (tattoo), scooders (scooter), wader (water)
13.  Jacaranda's and Frangipanis
14.  Thongs (flip flops) - worn all year round
15.  Banana bread and flat white coffee
16.  Ocean swimming

My little contribution to Australia Day baking will be some Sugar Free Anzac biscuits.  Oh how I would love to bake the real deal, but I am very much still SUGAR FREE and I have to tell you, these are a pretty damn good alternative.  I dare you to try them!!!!

Ingredients:
250g butter
100g rice malt syrup
1.5 tsp bicarbonate soda
3 tbs boiling water
2/3 cup stevia
120g desiccated coconut
180g oats
300g plain flour

Method:
1.  Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees and line two baking trays with greece proof paper.
2.  Add the butter and rice malt syrup to the thermomix and set it to 90 degrees for 3.5 minutes on speed 2.
3.  Mix the bicarbonate of soda into the boiling water (in a separate cup) until it fizzes and dissolves and add it to thermomix.  Mix for 10 seconds on speed 2.
4.  Add the dry ingredients and mix for 1 minute on speed 3-4 until it forms a dough.
5.  Roll (squeeze) into balls and flatten each one with a fork.
6.  Bake for approx 8 minutes until they turn a golden brown colour.  Allow them to cool and harden before enjoying them with a lovely cup of tea.

For a sugar free biscuit these are actually so delicious that the kids haven't turned their noses up at them - which is always a bonus right!!  They are definitely not as sweet or as chewy as traditional Anzacs, but for a something that is completely guilt free (and yummy) I am definitely not complaining.

What's your favourite thing about being Aussie - or living in Australia??

Happy Australia Day everyone and I hope the sun is shining where ever you are (and you're near the water if it's one of those ridiculously HOT days).

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