Lemon Ginger and Blueberry Muffins

By experimenting with the latter, pretentious chefs push the boundaries of what is possible in order to give patrons expensive placebo. If you want to experience such jarring of the tastebuds, I’d go for a taster menu at pretty much any Michelin-starred restaurant. But their many trials have trickled down to help us punters improve our own cooking and baking. Try adding salt to brownies, a block of chocolate to your chilli con carne or bacon to just about anything.

Ginger and blueberry might sound a little odd but, if you think about it, it’s a no-brainer. Lemon and ginger. Lemon and blueberry. Both well-loved combos. The touch of fire left by the fresh stem ginger in this case helps these muffins approach perfection.

Step 1

Preheat your oven to 190C/170C fan/Gas 5. Grease a muffin tray or line it with muffin cases. 

Step 2

Into a large bowl, weigh your flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Mix these together to combine. 

Step 3

Add your oil, milk, egg, blueberries and the finely-grated zest of your lemon. Mix these together gently with a wooden spoon – you want the final mixture to be just combined and still lumpy. There should not, though, be any bare flour visible. 

Step 4

Fill your muffin tins or cases with the mixture, then place in the oven. Bake for 20-25mins, checking after 20mins to see if they’re done. They’ll be golden brown and spring back when lightly pressed. Leave them to cool while you make the syrup. 

Step 5

Chop up your stem ginger as small as you can (or have time for). Place this in a pan with your sugar and the juice from your lemon. Bring this to a simmer over a medium heat and keep bubbling for about five minutes or until it has gone syrupy. Drizzle this over your muffins, then serve. They’ll keep for a day or two.