Fairtrade Recipes
On this page, we've included some recipes that we at Chesham4Fairtrade love to make; they prove that Fairtrade treats taste every bit as good as non-Fairtrade - in fact even better as you know that you're giving developing world farmers a fair chance whilst treating yourself to something sweet!
If you would like to share a Fairtrade recipe on this site, please Contact Us.
Cupcake Couture!
Lily Vanilli, renowned for her cupcake sculptures, has created a deliciously unique frosting for Tate & Lyle using a Divine dark chocolate cake base. The creamy ripe avocados and toasted walnut topping combined with the rich dark chocolate creates a gorgeous melt-in-the-mouth taste.
And the good news is that these cupcakes are decidedly virtuous, containing 3 Fairtrade ingredients!
Recreate these elegant treats at home:
Divine Dark Chocolate & Avocado Cupcakes
Ingredients for 12 muffins:
2 x 100 g Divine dark chocolate
200g unsalted butter, very soft
200 g Tate & Lyle Fairtrade Caster Sugar
4 large, free range eggs, at room temperature
100 ml sour cream
200 g self-raising flour
For the topping:
2 cups very ripe avocado flesh (use the ripest you can find before the flesh has turned brown)
1.5 cups Tate & Lyle Fairtrade icing sugar
1.5 tsp lemon juice
1. Heat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4.
2. Break up the chocolate bars and melt gently. Remove the bowl from the heat and leave to cool.
3. Put the butter and sugar into a food mixer and beat until light and creamy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
4. Stir in the sour cream on low speed, followed by the flour and finally the melted chocolate, mixing gently until thoroughly combined.
5. Spoon the mixture into 12 muffin cases in a muffin tin and bake for 25 minutes until firm to the touch. Remove from the tin and allow to cool on a wire rack.
6. Make the topping using a hand mixer to blend the avocado with the lemon juice until the consistency is smooth, and any lumps have been worked out.
7. Slowly blend in the sugar, increasing the speed of the mixer as you go.
8. Spread over the cooled cakes. Using a zester, create some dark chocolate shavings and sprinkle some onto the frosting and top with a cooled, toasted walnut.
Lily Vanilli baking with Divine Chocolate's Recipe. Thanks to Tate & Lyle for providing this recipe.
Cake recipes
Fairtrade Sponge/Chocolate Sponge Cake
Ingredients:
175 g (6 oz) margarine
175 g (6 oz) self-raising flour
175 g (6 oz) FT sugar
1.5 tsp baking powder
3 eggs
(if doing chocolate cake - add 2 tbsp FT cocoa mixed with 3 tbsp boiling water)
1. Grease two 7" circular baking tins.
2. Mix together all ingredients well.
3. Divide mixture between tins.
4. Bake in pre-heated oven for 25 min at 180°C (350°F, Gas Mark 4) till springy to touch.
5. Cool on wire rack.
6. Sandwich together with FT jam.
7. Sieve FT icing sugar on top of cake.
Acknowledgements and thanks to Vicki Mistry for this recipe.
Fairtrade Flapjacks
Makes about 24 pieces
Ingredients:
125 g (4 oz) butter
90 g (3 oz) golden syrup
90 g (3 oz) FT light muscovado sugar
250 g (8 oz) FT rolled oats
1. Grease 20 x 30 cm (8" x 12") baking tin.
2. Butter, syrup and sugar in pan, heated until dissolved.
3. Stir in oats, mix well.
4. Put into tin, then into pre-heated oven 180°C (350°F, Gas Mark 4) for 30 min.
5. Cool for 5 min.
6. Cut and serve.
Acknowledgements and thanks to Vicki Mistry for this recipe.
Fairtrade Chocolate Buttercream Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
150 g/6 oz butter
150 g/6 oz FT caster sugar, plus another 50 g/6 oz for meringue
7 free-range, organic eggs, separated
175 g/7 oz dark FT chocolate, melted
125 g/5 oz self-raising flour, sifted
For the buttercream:
100 g/4 oz butter, softened
175 g/7 oz FT icing sugar, sifted
1 tbsp FT ground coffee, or 1.5 tsp pf FT instant coffee
1. Preheat oven to 190°C / 375°F/ Gas Mark 5.
2. Grease and line the base of a deep 23 cm/9 in round cake tin.
3. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then beat in egg yolks one at a time, and then stir in the melted chocolate.
4. Whisk egg whites until stiff, then fold in sugar to make meringue.
5. Alternately fold in flour and meringue to the chocolate mix.
6. Transfer mix to tin and bake for 45-55 min, or until the cake is firm to touch and a skewer can be withdrawn cleanly.
7. Leave to cool in the tin, then transfer to a cooling rack until cold.
8. Make the buttercream by infusing the ground coffee in a tbsp of boiled water, then strain; or dissolve the instant coffee in half a tsp of boiling water.
9. Beat the butter until light and fluffy.
10. Add the icing sugar to the mix a little at a time, beating well in between.
11. Gradually beat in the coffee.
12. Slice cake in half horizontally and fill with FT buttercream.
Acknowledgements and thanks to Jane Asher for this recipe.
Fairtrade Nutty Chocolate & Coffee Brownies
Makes about 12 brownies
Ingredients:
50 g dark FT chocolate, roughly broken up
110 g butter
2 free-range, organic eggs, beaten
225 g unrefined FT sugar
50 g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
100g hazelnuts, chopped in half
For the frosting:
100g butter, softened to room temperature
100g FT icing sugar
100 g cream cheese
1 tbsp strong, black FT coffee
1. Pre-heat oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4.
2. Grease tin measuring approximately 27 cm x 18 cm and line with baking parchment, allowing paper to rise 3 cm above the tin.
3. Toast hazelnuts in oven for 10 min maximum until lightly browned.
4. Melt chocolate and butter in a bowl over a pan of simmering water.
5. Sieve flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Stir in sugar.
6. Beat in eggs and chocolate mixture until well-mixed. Stri in hazelnuts.
7. Pour mixture into the tin and bake for 30 to 40 min until centre springs back when lightly pressed.
8. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely in tin.
9. Make the frosting by beating the butter and icing sugar together until pale and fluffy. Beat in the cream cheese and coffee.
10. Spread the frosting on the cooled brownies and chill in the fridge.
Acknowledgements and thanks to Oxfam for this recipe.
Fairtrade Vegan Fudge Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
200 g/8 oz organic self-raising flour
150 g/6 oz organic FT caster sugar
25 g/1 oz FT cocoa
1 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 tsp natural vanilla essence
1/a tsp white wine vinegar
100 ml/4 fl oz vegetable oil
225 ml/9 fl oz water
For the fudge icing:
150 g/6 oz FT icing sugar
40 g/1.5 oz vegan margarine
100 g/3.5 oz FT dark chocolate
40 ml soya milk
1. Put the self-raising, baking powder, salt, sugar and cocoa in a bowl and mix well.
2. Pour over vegetable oil, vanilla essence and vinegar. Then add water. Mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon or electric whisk.
3. Pour the mixture into a shallow, oblong tin (7" x 11") or two round sandwich tins. Cook for about 25 min at 200°C/400°F.
4. When the cake has cooled, make the icing. Put all the icing ingredients in a pan and slowly bring them to the boil, whilst stirring.
5. Boil for one minute and then pour it into a bowl.
6. Beat the icing while it is cooling, to prevent the formation of lumpy crystals. Add vanilla essence.
7. Spread the icing over the top of the cake and leave it to set.
Acknowledgements and thanks to Cool Planet visitor Danielle for this recipe.
Fairtrade Banana Cake
Ingredients:
250 g/8 oz organic, white self-raising flour
1/4 of an organic nutmeg, ground
1 tsp organic cinnamon
125 g/4 oz
organic butter
Grated rind of an organic lemon
2 organic, free-range eggs
3 medium, FT bananas, mashed with a fork
Handful organic sultanas
6 heaped tbsp organic set honey
1 whole, firm FT banana (optional)
1. Heat oven to 180ºC/Gas Mark 4.
2. Sieve the flour, nutmeg and cinnamon into a bowl and rub in the margarine.
3. Using a wooden spoon, fold in the sugar, eggs, lemon rind, sultanas, mashed bananas and honey.
4. Pour half of the mixture in a rectangular, drop in the whole firm banana and add the rest of the mixture.
5. Bake for 1.25 to 1.5 hours or until a skewer pushed into the cake comes out clean.
6. Leave to cool in the tin for 10 min before turning out onto a rack to cool. Slice, and spread with butter to serve.
Acknowledgements and thanks to Cool Planet visitor Liam for this recipe.
Fairtrade Spiced Chocolate & Almond Cake
Ingredients:
300 g FT dark chocolate
100 g ground almonds
175 g butter, softened
FT cocoa powder for dusting
175 g FT sugar
1 tbsp mixed spice
25 g plain flour, seived
6 organic, free range eggs, separated
1. Pre-heat oven to 170ºC.
2. Grease an 8 to 8.5" cake tin and dust well with FT cocoa.
3. Cream together the egg yolks and 130 g sugar until light and fluffy.
4. Mix ground almonds, flour and mixed spices.
5. Whisk the egg whites and remaining sugar to stiff peaks.
6. Melt the chocolate with the butter and leave to cool.
7. Mix the melted chocolate and butter with the egg yolk mixture.
8. Fold in the whipped egg whites, starting with 1/3 of the mix, followed by the rest.
9. Gradually fold in the flour mix, making sure that the batter remains light and aerated.
10. Pour the batter into the cake tin and bake for approximately 1 hour, until firm and springy to the touch.
11. Once cooled, slice and serve with clotted cream.
Acknowledgements and thanks to Andrew Rose, Mezzo Restaurant, Conran Group, London for this recipe.