Florence Bowe’s Crumpets

Another great standby, crumpets can be made in minutes with ingredients you probably have already.

They are also the ideal solution if you’ve got nothing in the tin when a friend drops in for tea because they’re so quick to make. The only problem is, you often eat too many.

Makes 15 approx

½lb (225g) white flour

¼ tsp salt

½ tsp breadsoda

1 tsp Bextartar (cream of tartar)

2 eggs, preferably free-range

8 fl oz (250ml) milk

2oz (55g) caster sugar

1oz (30g) butter

Sieve the dry ingredients into a bowl and rub in the butter. Drop the eggs into the centre, add a little of the milk and stir rapidly with a whisk, allowing the flour to drop gradually in from the sides. When half the milk is added, beat until air bubbles rise. Add the remainder of the milk and allow to stand for one hour, if possible.

Drop a good dessertspoonful into a hottish pan and cook until bubbles appear on the top. It usually takes a bit of trial and error to get the temperature right. Flip over and cook until golden on the other side. Serve immediately with butter and homemade jam or, better still, apple jelly.

Note: They are usually lighter if the batter is allowed to stand but I’ve often cooked them immediately with very acceptable results.