A Fair Trade Father’s Day

June 15, 2021

As Father’s Day approaches, now is a better time than ever to put on those old kitchen aprons and indulge into some home baking recipes and make the most of the time we are spending indoors. Nothing shows appreciation on Father’s Day more so than a heartfelt baking session that creates cookies and biscuits with personalised icing sugar designs.

With this said, why not give something else back to wider society? You might already make a charitable contribution to help improve the lives of others and now, thanks to the growing popularity of fair trade products, you can while cooking too! By switching some of your baking commodities to ones that have the Fairtrade seal of approval on them, you are donating a proportion of the cost to support the farmers that grow these products all around the world. This small contribution goes towards supporting more than just farmers and artisans working conditions — it also helps prevent labour exploitation and poverty that many people are unfortunately victims of.

Even if baking isn’t a regular hobby of yours, as Father’s Day approaches, be prepared to bake up a storm with this delicious coffee-biscuit recipe the whole family can have their say in designing. Inspired by the broad use of fair trade products that are involved, these scrumptious biscuits can do more than just make our stomachs happy this Father’s Day.

Ingredients for a perfect biscuit base

To make 25 of these delicious coffee-filled biscuits for the family to enjoy, you will need the following ingredients:

1 tablespoon of fair trade instant coffee
1/4 tsp of baking powder
1/4 – 1/2 heaped cup of fair trade caster sugar
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon of hot water
90 grams of butter

For those wanting to be a true master chef and make their own icing from scratch, you will need the following:

450g of icing sugar
8 tablespoons of milk
Food colouring paste
And all the edible glitter you want!

Now, let the baking begin!

Use this step by step guide to cook something truly delicious and after, get creative when decorating your biscuits all-things father related to help them celebrate their special day.

Step 1: Simply mix the hot water and instant coffee together.

Step 2: In another bowl, mix the flour and baking powder together.

Step 3: Beat the butter and sugar together in a separate bowl.

Step 4: Now is the time to mix everything together. Add your coffee and butter mixture into the flour bowl and mix until a smooth dough is formed.

Step 5: Shape the cookies to be whatever you want! If made small, this recipe can create 25 adorable biscuits. However, go wild with your favourite cookie cutters. For those wanting to get extra creative, make a small hole near the edge of your biscuit and once baked, thread a ribbon through it to make a cute ‘Number One Dad’ medal! The choice is yours.

Step 6: After placing on a baking tray, put them into a preheated oven for 20 minutes at 160 degrees Celsius.

Step 7: Once done, leave your biscuits on a cooling rack to cool before adding the icing.

Don’t forget the icing!

While waiting for your biscuits to rise in the oven, prepping your icing in advance is advised. Using the aforementioned ingredients needed, follow these simple steps to icing delight:

Step 1: Stir together the icing sugar and milk until a smooth texture is created.

Step 2: Then, add in the corn syrup and almond extract and beat until the icing has a smooth and glossy texture. To prevent the icing being too thick, add in extra corn syrup if need be.

Step 3: Depending on how colourful you want your biscuits to be, divide the icing into separate bowls and add in the food colourings.

Now for the fun part. Using a variety of different tools, shapes, and artistic talents, create a biscuit design that adds a personalised touch to your Father’s Day treats. Whether you have chosen to make a medal to show your gratitude, or a quirky car shaped cut-out you know they will appreciate, fill your biscuits with colour and surprise your family with a sweet treat knowing that in the process of doing so, you have helped those all over the world that are less fortunate than ourselves.