Damson (or Plum) and Cinnamon Muffins

With muffins it's always a good idea to have everything weighed out and ready before you start.

Begin by sifting the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt into a large bowl, lifting the sieve up high to give the flour a good airing. Now, in another bowl whisk together the egg, sugar, milk, melted butter and vanilla extract. Then return the dry ingredients to the sieve and sift them straight into the egg mixture.

(This double sifting is crucial because we won’t be doing much mixing.)

What you now need to do is take a large metal spoon and fold the dry ingredients quickly into the wet ones – the key word here is quickly (i.e. in about 15 seconds). What you mustn’t do is beat or stir, just do the folding and ignore the uneven appearance
of the mixture because it’s precisely this that makes the muffins really light. Over-mixing is where people go wrong.

Next, quickly fold in the damsons and flaked almonds – again no stirring. Now divide the mixture between the muffin cases. Sprinkle on the topping and bake near the centre of the oven for 25–30 minutes until well-risen and golden brown. Remove the muffins from the oven, and transfer them straight away to a wire rack to cool.

Store in an airtight tin.