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Today (2 March) is the start of the second week of Fairtrade Fortnight and to celebrate we asked Danielle Johnson, one of the newest members of the Hackney Fairtrade Steering Group, to tell us her best Fairtrade recipe.

Danielle, community manager for environmental charity Groundwork, based in Clapton, made scrumptious Fairtrade and local banana and blueberry pancakes.

Servings: Makes twelve four-inch pancakes

Total time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 and1/2 cups of organic all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1 small, overripe Fairtrade banana, peeled (the browner, the better)
• 1 cup organic milk
• 2 large eggs (Hackney eggs if you can, or organic)
• 2 teaspoons of Fairtrade vanilla extract or Fairtrade vanilla pods blended
• 3 tablespoons unsalted local/organic butter, melted
• Vegetable oil

Topping:

• Sliced Fairtrade bananas
• Fairtrade fruit (Fairtrade blueberries, or Fairtrade dried cherries)
• Fairtrade coconut
• Fairtrade brazil nuts/ Fairtrade cashew butter

Instructions:

1. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour and baking powder
2. In a separate bowl, mash the banana with a fork until almost smooth. Whisk in the eggs, then add the milk and vanilla and whisk until well blended. Pour the banana mixture into the flour mixture. Fold the batter gently with a rubber spatula until just blended; do not over-mix. The batter will be thick and lumpy.
3. Put a non-stick pan on medium heat until hot. Put a pad of butter and one tablespoon vegetable oil (oil stops pancakes from burning and butter creates a nice taste), swirl around. Drop the batter by 1/4-cupfuls onto the griddle, spacing the pancakes about two inches apart. Cook until a few holes form on top of each pancake and the underside is golden brown, about two minutes. Flip the pancakes and cook until the bottom is golden brown and the top is puffed, one to two minutes more. Using the spatula, transfer the pancakes to a serving plate.
4. Wipe the pan clean with paper towels, add more butter and oil, and repeat with the remaining batter. Serve the pancakes while still hot, with sliced bananas and Fairtrade fruit. Sprinkle Fairtrade coconut on top. You can also serve with Fairtrade brazil nuts or Fairtrade cashew butter.

Danielle said: “I wanted to make something that was both Fairtrade and local, so I’ve used Fairtrade ingredients - for products that need hot climates to grow - combined with very local ingredients - for all the things we can get on our doorstep.

“I used eggs from Hackney Hens (Tsunade, who laid the eggs in the Groundwork garden, is pictured with Danielle). The pancakes are also sugar-free.”

Fairtrade is a commitment to a better deal for producers in developing countries and making sure they get a good price for a good product.

The Hackney Fairtrade Group was set up in 2008 to promote this ethos to local businesses and organisations, and help influence where they get their supplies.

Fairtrade Fortnight, which sees a burst of activity aimed at promoting Fairtrade, is between 23 February and 8 March.Find out more about Fairtrade on the Fairtrade Foundation website here: Fairtrade Foundation

Information on the Council’s role and the steering group at Hackney Council Go Fairtrade