Easy blueberry muffins

This easy recipe for scrumptious blueberry muffins will take you about 15 minutes to prepare and will result in about 12 paper cases worth of heaven. It’s so easy you could even get the children to make these and give them an enjoyable experience of basic baking. They will love the outcome.

Ingredients

• 3½ ounces / 100g butter
• 3½ ounces / 100g caster sugar
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 10½ ounces / 300g self-raising flour
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 5 fluid ounces / 140ml milk
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 5¼ ounces / 150g fresh or dried blueberries

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (160°F fan) / 356°F (320°F fan) / gas mark 4.

Line a muffin tray with paper muffin cases.

Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy and then add in the eggs, one at a time.

Add the flour and baking powder to make a thick batter, and then stir in the vanilla extract and the milk.

Add the blueberries and spoon the mixture into the muffin cases.

Bake for 15-20 minutes. Test with a skewer or sharp knife to see the centre is cooked.

Leave them to cool in the tray for about 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack.

Trivia

Early American colonists made grey paint by boiling blueberries in milk and Shakers used blueberry skins mixed with milk, together with sage blossoms and indigo to make the blue paint used on their wooden houses. Today, the USA is the largest of the world’s producers of blueberries harvesting around 564.4 million pounds in 2012. After strawberries, they are are the USA’s second-most important berry crop.