Makes 12
- 250g Plain flour
- 250g + 50g Caster sugar (preferably golden)
- 125g Unsalted butter (half a block)
- 2tsp Baking powder
- ½tsp Salt
- 2 Medium eggs
- 284ml Buttermilk (one pot of St. Ivel's)
- 100g + 50g Blueberries
- 1 small saucepan
- 2 large mixing bowls
- 1 12-hole muffin tray
- 12 muffin cases
- 1 sieve
Pre-heat oven to Gas Mark 5 (190°C) and place 12 muffin cases (or large cup-cake cases) in a muffin baking tray.
Sift the flour into a bowl and mix in 250g of the sugar, the baking powder, and the salt.
Crack the eggs into the second bowl, and whisk in the buttermilk until smooth.
Melt the butter in the small saucepan on a low heat, stirring regularly (the resulting liquid should be cloudy yellow, with no trace of brown). Mix the melted butter into the egg and buttermilk mixture until combined.
Place 50g of the blueberries in the small saucepan, along with the remaining 50g of sugar. Add ½tsp of water (just enough to dampen some of the sugar, but not all of it). Over a medium heat, stir gently until the blueberries leach their colour into the sugar solution. Have patience with this part: don't let the solution boil or you'll wind up with a rather bitter, burnt caramel flavour. You're aiming for "gently simmering". Once you've got a thick purple / blue colour in the sugar solution, remove from the heat and strain into the egg / buttermilk / butter solution. Mix until combined.
Pour the combined liquid into the bowl with the dry ingredients, and mix until smooth. Gently fold in the remaining 100g of blueberries.
Spoon the mixture into the muffin cases, filling each about two-thirds by volume. With a teaspoon sprinkle a light dusting of sugar onto the top of each case (this leaves each muffin with a slightly "crusty" top; feel free to skip this step if you want "soft top" muffins).
Bake in the oven for 25-35 minutes until risen and lightly browned. Dust with icing sugar, if wanted.