blueberry & apple muffin cake

Our adorable neighbour Anne has hurt her shoulder and is unable to use it.  Her and her husband Mike have been so generous to us over the years, always with fresh eggs from their little chickens, plus plenty of other fruit and veg when they’re ripe such as plums and apples. I wanted to bake her a few special things to cheer her up so this blueberry & apple muffin cake is just for her.

• 225g butter – soft
• 225g caster sugar
• 125g self-raising flour
• 50g ground almonds
• 50g wholemeal flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon real vanilla paste such as the brilliant Little Pod Vanilla
•  3 large free-range eggs – lightly beaten
• 100g blueberries
• 2 apples – peeled, cored and chopped

for the icing

• 200g icing sugar
• the juice of 1 lemon plus a little water to mix

I’m using a 22cm round baking case.  They’re my new fave thing because they’re so easy to use and cut down on a lot of washing.  They’re also perfect to use if you’re giving a cake as a gift because you don’t have to worry about asking for plates or tuppaware back!

I’m using my smeg stand mixer with a beater paddle but a hand-held mixer would work or even a wooden spoon if you’ve got the strength and courage!

Comibe the flours and sieve through the baking powder – set aside.

Cream the butter and eggs for a good 5 mins until they’re pale and fluffy, then add half the combined flours and half the beaten eggs and beat in for 1 minutes, then add the rest of the flours and eggs along with the vanilla and beat for another minute until it’s all combined.

Fold through the apples and blueberries.

Spoon the batter into the cake case or tin and bake on 170C for 35-45 mins or until the cake is golden and springy to touch. Set aside onto a wire rack until completely cool.

Stir the lemon juice into the icing until you have a thick icing, then pour it onto the cake.  Top with blueberries

Eat and of course, enjoy!