Awesome Aussie Bites
I went on a quest to come up with the same recipe for Costco's Aussie bites. I tried several online recipes and tweaked and tweaked to get it just right. While I never did achieve the same taste and texture as Costco's, I did come up with a recipe that I like just as well as theirs. Please note that this recipe is designed to work perfectly with the Calphalon mini-muffin tin which is slightly larger than your standard mini-muffin pan. (A medium cookie scoop (1.5 Tbsp) also works perfectly to divide the batter evenly between the 24 openings). If using a standard size mini-muffin pan, you will probably get more than 24 muffins and will need to bake them on the lower end of the given range for baking time. You can find the Lyle's Golden Syrup at Whole Foods or online at Amazon. I suppose you could substitute more honey or agave, but the golden syrup is an authentic ingredient in these Australian delights (Anzac biscuits) and really adds a nice caramelized flavor. If you haven't tried golden syrup, I highly recommend it!
INGREDIENTS
Nutrition- 1⁄4cup cooked toasted quinoa
- 3⁄4cup oat flour
- 1⁄4cup granulated sugar
- 1⁄2teaspoon sea salt
- 1⁄2teaspoon baking powder
- 1⁄4cup flax seed meal
- 1⁄2tablespoon whole flax seed
- 3⁄4cup rolled oats
- 1⁄2cup dried fruit, packed (raisins and apricots are standard)
- 1tablespoon chia seeds
- 1⁄4cup roasted unsalted sunflower seeds
- 1⁄4cup melted coconut oil
- 1⁄4cup melted butter
- 2tablespoons agave syrup or 2 tablespoons honey
- 2tablespoons lyle's golden syrup
- 1⁄2teaspoon vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 325° convection bake or 350° standard bake. Lightly grease a 24-count mini-muffin tin with coconut oil.
- Start cooking the quinoa in a small saucepan (1-1/2 Tbsp quinoa with 3 Tbsp water will make close to the quantity you need. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover, and let simmer on low for 15 to 20 minutes or until water is absorbed).
- Place oat flour, sugar, sea salt, baking powder, flax meal and flax seeds into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse about 15 times to break up the whole flax seeds a bit.
- Add in the rolled oats and dried fruit and pulse about 10 times. Fruit should be broken up, but there will still be some larger bits.
- Add in the coconut, cooked quinoa, and chia seeds. Pulse about 5 times (you don't want to grind things up too much).
- Add in the sunflower seeds. Do not pulse.
- Combine melted coconut oil, melted butter, agave or honey, golden syrup, and vanilla extract. Add to the mixture in the food processor and pulse just until combined, about 10 times.
- Divide batter evenly among the prepared muffin tin holes. Lighly press the mixture down.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 10 to 14 minutes (depending upon the size of your mini-muffin pan - see note).
- Remove pan from oven and (IMPORTANT!) let cool for 15 minutes before attempting to remove the bites. Gently remove the muffins and let cool completely. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days or freeze.