Recipe takes the biscuit as lid is lifted on popular treat

Anzac Day means different things to different people.

For most of us, it is a day of remembrance, of gratitude to those who have fought and fallen for New Zealand.

On the other hand, it is all about the biscuit.

Anzac biscuits have been a staple around this time each year, after they came to prominence during the World War I.

They first emerged as so-called "soldier's biscuits" early last century, and were eaten by Anzac troops at, among other places, Gallipoli.

The Anzac biscuits we eat now are not greatly changed from the originals, although probably much tastier. The early ones were hard tack, solid things chosen for their long-lasting, non-spoiling abilities.

The key to the biscuits is in their simplicity.

"It's an easy, simple biscuit," Wayne DellaBarca, owner and chef at Masterton eatery Massa, said.

"You can't really go wrong - they're so straightforward, you couldn't really get any easier."

However, there are secrets, tips and tricks to make what some consider the perfect biscuit.

Margie Lawton, the co-owner of Masterton's Taste Cafe, said it was all about the texture.

"It's really important to have the oven temperature just right - I like them crispy, not soft," she said.

"The golden syrup content is important, too."

Frank Bain, who learned the original recipe from his father, who fought in World War I, said the recipe had changed a bit since then but was "basically the same".

"Back then it was just flour, sugar, rolled oats and coconut with some water to mix it up with," he said.

"Now it's the same, except for butter, golden syrup and baking soda."

The most popular recipe, it now seems, comes from the Edmonds Cookery Book.

Masterton's Marjorie Simmonds, though, reckons she has the ideal recipe, which she took from a television cooking book "years ago".

"I've been doing it for as long as I remember, and it's worked a treat," she said.

Mrs Simmond's recipe:

125g flour

150g sugar

1 cup rolled oats

1 cup coconut

100g butter

1.5 tablespoons golden syrup

1 teaspoon baking soda

4 teaspoons hot water

1 - mix together dry ingredients in a large bowl

2 - melt butter and golden syrup in a small saucepan

3 - dissolve baking soda in hot water in a small jug, add to golden syrup mix

4 - make a well in the centre of the dry mix and mix everything together

5 - place in small spoonfuls on a paper or grease tray

6 - bake for 10 minutes at 180C until slightly brown

7 - when cooked, slide on to newspaper, which will drain the excess grease