Cornish Fairings are delicious everyday biscuits, perfect for filling up your biscuit jar and enjoying alongside a nice cup of tea or coffee. These biscuits date back centuries and were originally sold at old English market fairs. If you enjoy ginger nut biscuits, you will love fairings, which are crunchy, chewy, and packed with warm spices.
Cornish fairings are a type of crunchy, chewy biscuit or cookie flavoured with the warm spices of ground ginger, cinnamon, and mixed spice. These old-fashioned biscuits have been popular for centuries and used to be sold at old English country fairs. One such fair was held in Cornwall after the Christmas festivities, where Cornish market towns would host maid hiring days, where young women seeking employment would go in search of work. Market stalls selling Cornish fairings were very common at these fairs.
Cornish Fairings recipe
I found this recipe for Cornish fairings in an old Reader’s Digest cookbook – ”Farmhouse Cookery Recipes from the Country Kitchen” [1980]. If you would like to see the original recipe it can be found on page 286 within the chapter – ‘Of Breads, Cakes and Biscuits’.
A nice big plate of Cornish fairings and a pot of steaming hot tea makes for the perfect tea table setting. Just what you need for a well earned break or a suppertime snack.
Changes to the original fairings recipe
Testing the recipe, I had to make a few changes. Firstly, the recipe called for 4 tablespoons of golden syrup, but I had to use 5 tablespoons in order for the mixture to be successfully brought into a biscuit dough. Initially, I used 4 tablespoons, but the biscuit dough was too crumbly and dry, and it wouldn’t come together firmly into a dough.
Secondly, I changed the cooking temperature from 200°C down to 180°C and modified the baking instructions. The recipe stated to bake the fairings on the top oven shelf for 10-12 minutes, but after 5-7 minutes, the biscuits were to be removed from the top shelf and placed on the bottom shelf to continue baking.
Thinking about it, I wanted to simplify the process, so I decided to reduce the baking temperature to 180°C to prevent the biscuits from browning too quickly. I baked the biscuits for 10-12 minutes on the middle shelf.
The results were great; the fairings spread out, cracked nicely, and became golden within 10-12 minutes.
The images above show the fairings before baking and after baking.
For another farmhouse or country cottage recipe do try our Digestion Biscuits recipe.
Cornish Fairings
Equipment
- small saucepan
- mixing bowl
- mixing spoon
- baking trays
- parchment paper
Ingredients
- 225 grams plain flour [all-purpose flour]
- 2 level teaspoons bicarbonate of soda [baking soda]
- 2 level teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 teaspoons powdered ginger
- 1 teaspoon powdered cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons mixed spice powder [or pumpkin pie spice mix]
- 100 grams granulated or caster sugar
- 100 grams butter [or margarine suitable for baking]
- 5 level tablespoons golden syrup
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180℃, 350 ℉, or gas 4.
- Line the baking trays with parchment paper. I used 2 trays.
- Sift the flour, baking powder, and bicarbonate of soda in to a mixing bowl.225 grams plain flour, 2 level teaspoons bicarbonate of soda, 2 level teaspoons baking powder
- Add the mixed spice, ginger, and cinnamon. If any of your powders are lumpy you can sift these into the bowl.3 teaspoons powdered ginger, 1 teaspoon powdered cinnamon, 2 teaspoons mixed spice powder
- Add the salt and mix well.½ teaspoon salt
- Next, add the butter in small pats to the mixing bowl.100 grams butter
- Using your finger tips rub the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles breadcrumbs.
- Stir the sugar through the mixture.100 grams granulated or caster sugar
- Add the golden syrup to a saucepan and lightly warm it through so that it becomes thin enough to pour.5 level tablespoons golden syrup
- Pour the syrup into the mixing bowl, using a spatula to scrape all the syrup from the pan sides.
- Mix the syrup into the mixture. Keep mixing and it will begin to clump together. Press the mixture firmly together with your hands into a biscuit dough.
- Now, pick up small balls of biscuit dough. Each should weigh around 19-21 grams per ball or be the size of walnuts in their shells. Roll each ball firmly into a smooth ball and place onto the biscuit tray.
- Continue forming biscuit balls, leaving about 1- 1 ½ inch space between each ball as the biscuits will spread as they are baked.
- Bake in the middle shelf of the oven for 10-12 minutes. The biscuits will have spread, and will have formed cracks over the surface. They will also be going nicely golden brown.
- Leave the biscuits on the baking trays for 10 minutes before using a fish slice or flat spatula to remove from the tray onto a cooling rack. If the biscuits are too soft to move without breaking then leave them for a few minutes longer to firm up.
- Allow to cool before enjoying as the biscuits will become nice and crunchy as they cool. However, they are also quite nice enjoyed warm soon as they are firm enough to pick up after baking as they are a mix of crunchy and chewy.
Notes
- Store ginger fairings in a biscuit tin or jar for up to a week or two.
- You can use butter or margarine for this recipe although do use a margarine suitable for baking. If you use a dairy-free margarine these biscuits will be suitable for vegans or dairy-free diets.
- Mixed spice powder can be replaced with a pumpkin spice mix.
- We strongly advise using a weighing scale as doing so will ensure the best success.
- All teaspoon and tablespoon measurements are level meaning do not measure a heaped spoonful rather use a knife to scrape the top level.
If you bake this old recipe for Cornish Fairings then do let us know as we love to hear about old recipes being brought back to life in everyday kitchens!