Ade bought three blueberry plants for the back garden a few years ago. One was for early season blueberries, one for mid-season, and one for late season. Only one of the bushes (we have no idea which!) actually gives us a decent crop of fruit, but it has been so prolific in the last couple of weeks, we’ve been more than happy with our blueberry harvest this year.

Bananas and blueberries are a winning combo in my book; lovely mixed together in natural yoghurt for breakfast or blitzed into a smoothie. As banana bread is the cake I make the most often (because I seem to have a constant supply of blackened bananas withering away in the fruit bowl which I absolutely refuse to throw away) and in celebration of the new series of The Great British Bake Off which launches this week, it seemed only right to bake a seasonal banana bread which incorporates our delicious blueberries from the back garden.

The result is is a soft, moist cake flecked with bursts of purple sweetness.

Utterly divine!

BLUEBERRY BANANA BREAD
Prep time:  15 mins  Cooking time: 50-60 mins  Makes: 6-8 slices

125g soft unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
2-3 overripe bananas
100g caster sugar
2 eggs
175g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
100g blueberries

Method

Melt the butter in a saucepan and remove from heat.

While the butter is cooling, grease and line a 900g/2lb loaf tin and pre-heat the oven to 170c (150c fan oven).

Peel and mash the bananas in a bowl.

Beat the sugar into the cooled, melted butter. Add the mashed banana and the eggs to the mix and stir well.

Fold in the flour, baking powder and bicarb.

Finally, add the blueberries.

Fold well before scraping the mix into the lined loaf tin, smoothing the top.

Bake for 50-60 minutes.

Remove from the oven and leave in the tin for 10 mins before slipping the cake onto a wire rack to cool.

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