Who doesn’t like a cake with a cup of tea or coffee? And here we have a “kinder fat” version of a muffin that you can enjoy: “kinder fat” because we’ve used a monounsaturated/polyunsaturated fat which means it is low in saturated fat.

Ingredients

Makes 12 large muffins or 18 smaller ones

150g of blueberries, washed (can use frozen ones, too)

250g self-raising flour

90g sugar

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

55ml sunflower oil

200ml milk (we’ve used skimmed to reduce the calorific value but you can use any)

2 tsps vanilla extract

2 eggs

Muffin cases (paper or silicon; one or two muffin cake trays)

Method

• Preheat the oven to gas mark 6, 200°C electric.
• Place the paper or silicon cases into the muffin cake trays. Use two trays and see how far the muffin mixture goes.
• Put the flour, sugar and bicarbonate of soda in a large bowl and mix together.
• Now put the sunflower oil, milk and vanilla extract into another bowl along with the eggs and mix together until all the wet ingredients are combined.
• Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and mix well until they are combined.
• Add the blueberries by gently folding them into the mixture.

Dawn: The term ‘folding’ means to gently scoop the blueberries into the muffin mixture, making sure that the blueberries are intact rather than mixing as a method which can be a more vigorous way of adding ingredients. 

Andrew: If you did split the blueberries, they would bleed colour into the mixture before it was cooked. 

Dawn: Which is fine and will create a swirly pattern so the choice is yours.

• Spoon the mixture into the paper or silicon cake cases. Put in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until the muffins have risen and and are turning a light golden brown in colour.
• Place on a wire rack to cool.

Dawn: And enjoy warm or cool with a nice cup of tea!

Andrew: Let me kick off my shoes, put my feet up and enjoy a muffin moment…bliss!

For tasty treats like these Buoyant Blueberry Muffins, delicious meals made on a shoestring and cooking tips, follow this blog – www.forfoodlovers.wordpress.com – and the Twitter feed @Love_Food_UK.