During the pandemic Rukia Ali and Sanjida Uddin were making biskoot, cookies usually eaten with saa or tea. The duo made so much at home that they were giving it away, taking it to dawaths or dinner parties, and sharing them with people if they came over.
“We were cooking and baking so much,” says Ali. “During Eid Al-Adha, we made little goodie bags.”
Ali says family and friends encouraged them to sell their product.
They were inspired to open a homemade cookie company called Biskoot & Co. Bangladeshis usually refer to cookies as “biskoot.” Ali and Uddin built their brand around the household name.
Biskoot & Co. launched on Instagram in October 2020 with a fall flavors menu for cookies that ship nationwide. Flavors included maple, cinnamon brown sugar, and butter pecan.
“When we started we didn’t even come up with the flavors. The day we came out with it we made p the flavors on the spot,” says Uddin.
Building on that model, they later came out with a winter flavors menu.
Ali says they were blown away from the response from customers.
She says during the first week of delivering orders locally, an older father opened the door at one home. His daughter told him that their company’s name is Biskoot. She later said to Ali, “My father was so happy to see young Bengali children in the community doing this and the name was so cool.”
“It lit up my day that an older person said that,” says Ali.
Uddin says a lot of orders for the American flavored cookies came due to the name with, “both of our cultures mixed together.” To date, they’ve made nearly 200 orders. They are also catering events.
Ali says the business is a family effort- from family taste fests to shipping out orders. She says their company depends on other women-owned small businesses - from the graphic designer to the person who made their cookie cutters - who came together to help.
“Making our Biskoot mix is therapeutic. At the end, it’s so satisfying to finally tying the ribbon writing name on thank you card,” says Ali.
Uddin says she enjoys wrapping. “For each batch, it’s like a challenge. You want to see how much you can get done. It’s a game, a hobby, everything… a therapy session all in one.”
The cookies are made from organic ingredients and use less sugar than traditional cookie recipes. They said it’s just right for older adults who may not want to consume as much sugar. Ali says they are conscious about the ingredients used - such as unbleached flour and non-alcoholic flavoring.
Uddin grew up in New York and always dreamed of opening her own bakery. Ali, who is married to Uddin’s brother in 2019, was born and raised in Michigan but later moved to Georgia, then Alabama with her family.
The sisters-in-law have a lot in common - coming from big families - Uddin is one of five siblings, while Ali is the youngest of six; their heights and features; they are both in their 20’s, and they love baking. People ask us if we’re twins, they laughed.
Ali says she watched her older sister baking from a young age. She also took on cooking to help her mother in the kitchen since 13. Uddin remembers baking since she was 10-years-old.
Now the two of them say they combined their passion for baking. “Cooking just us two… we are just in our zone. We get to spend time too. We’re cracking jokes,” says Ali.
The duo is thinking about ways to expand. Uddin hopes to make more desserts locally and continue to grow.
They are humbled that people are ordering, in some cases without knowing how the cookies taste in advance.
“We opened because of the pandemic but don’t know where it will go because of the pandemic,” Ali says.
Biskoot are made fresh to order. To get your batch message @biskoot.co on Instagram (read this how-to order guide), or email biskootandco@gmail.com three days in advance. Cookies are mailed with 2-day priority shipping.
Editor’s note: Biskoot is now available in Michigan.
Great article!