Choco Crinkle Cookies - An Edible Gift for Mum

Sieve the cocoa powder into a large mixing bowl, then add the caster sugar and the oil and whisk together to combine. Next, carefully crack in the eggs one at a time, whisking to make sure each egg is well mixed in before adding the next one.
Weigh out the flour, then sieve it into the egg bowl, together with the baking powder and a pinch of salt. Use a wooden spoon to mix it all together to form a soft dough (if the dough feels too soft to roll into little balls, put it in the fridge to chill for about an hour – you can use this time to make your own wrapping paper, if you like). When you’re ready to cook, heat the oven to 190⁰C/170⁰C fan (Gas Mark 5), very lightly wipe 2-3 baking trays with a little oil, and sieve the icing sugar into a shallow dish with sides, such as a baking dish. Take the dough out of the fridge and scoop out a teaspoon-sized amount of dough (this will make little Italian-style biscuits, but you can use dessert-spoonfuls for larger ones if you like). With clean hands, roll the dough into a little ball, then drop it into the icing sugar dish and roll it around until it’s completely covered. Put the ball on a baking tray, then repeat the process with the remaining dough until it’s all used up – you may need to top up the icing sugar. Make sure the balls are evenly spaced on their trays, as they will spread slightly.
Bake in the centre of the oven for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool thoroughly if you are planning to wrap them up.

Custom-Wrap Your Crinkle Cookies!

If the crinkle cookies are going to be a Mother’s Day gift, why not add an extra personal touch and make your own custom wrapping? Little ones can really go to town using poster paints to decorate a sheet of plain brown Kraft paper with their own designs, or maybe with hand, finger (or foot!) prints, or patterns printed with household objects (e.g. larger Lego blocks, plastic cookie cutters, a potato masher or anything else that’s safe, ‘interesting’ and washable). Older children might like to paint or draw mini-portraits of Mum all over their paper, or perhaps pictures of all Mum’s favourite things. When the paper is dry, put the cookies into a food bag or Tupperware box and wrap carefully. For a personalised gift box, many craft and hobby shops sell inexpensive plain card boxes, which can then be painted or adorned with glued-on sequins, stickers, googly eyes and other finds. For a simpler gift idea, put the cookies into a cellophane bag or a pretty piece of fabric, then secure with a ribbon in Mum’s favourite colour and tie on a personalised swing tag.