| Afghan (biscuit) | |
| Country: | New Zealand |
| Type: | Biscuit |
An Afghan is a traditional New Zealand[1] [2] [3] biscuit made from flour, butter, cornflakes, sugar and cocoa powder, topped with chocolate icing and a half walnut. The recipe[4] has a high proportion of butter, and relatively low sugar, and no leavening (rising agent), giving it a soft, dense and rich texture, with crunchiness from the cornflakes, rather than from a high sugar content. The high butter content gives a soft melt-in-the-mouth texture, and the sweetness of the icing offsets the low sugar and the cocoa bitterness.
Despite its name, the biscuit's place of origin is thought to be New Zealand. A recipe in The Timaru Herald for "Afghans" (minus the icing and walnut) dates from 1934,[5] and an otherwise identical "Chocolate Cornflakes" biscuit recipe, complete with icing and walnut, was in the same publication of the previous year.[6]
There are many theories in circulation about the origin of the name "Afghan", ranging from the First Anglo-Afghan War to the biscuit's texture and colour being likened to the landscape of Afghanistan, [7] [8] while one theory suggests it was named after the traditional Afghan hat, the pakol.[9] [10] [11] In the wake of the George Floyd protests, the manufacturer of the commercially produced version of biscuit, Griffin's Foods announced in June 2020 that they would rename the product. In a statement issued by the company, it noted that the name of the biscuit was possibly a reference to the colour of "Afghan brown", which could possibly reference the dark skin of Afghan people. Although they acknowledged "there are other theories in circulation", this caused a debate over the name. The decision came amidst a wave of name changes in New Zealand over foodstuffs with names deemed racist or otherwise culturally offensive by some.[12] The biscuit was eventually renamed "Milk Chocolate Roughs" by Griffin's, which advertised the renaming with a new slogan: "Same bikkie. New name."[13] However, the name "Afghan" is still the one used by other companies.[14]
According to the Edmonds Cookery Book, a batch of 24 afghans is made by combining 200g butter, 115g white sugar, 160g all-purpose flour, 25g cocoa powder, and 50g cornflakes.[15] [16] Tablespoon-sized balls of the mixture are formed, placed on a greased baking tray, and baked at 180C for around 15 minutes. Once the biscuits are cooled, they are iced with chocolate icing and the half-walnut placed on top. The Edmonds recipe has changed over the years; for example, the 24th De Luxe (1987) edition of the cookbook only called for 75g of sugar.[17]
Some variations on the recipe exist; crushed Weet-Bix may be substituted for cornflakes, for instance.[18] [19]