Blueberry Maple Pancakes

First, toast the almonds: preheat the oven to 180°C (Gas Mark 4). Spread the almonds in a single layer on a baking sheet, then put in the oven for two minutes. Take the tray out of the oven, use a fish slice to gently turn the nuts over, then return to the oven for another minute or two or until just golden brown (keep a close eye on them, as they cook quite quickly). Get a large plate or dish ready, then tip the cooked nuts on to it to cool – don’t leave them on the baking tray as they will continue to brown. Leave the oven on, but lower the heat to 130°C, or Gas Mark 1).

Next, make up the pancake batter. Sieve the self-raising flour, baking powder and sugar in to a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the bottom of this mixture, then add the beaten egg and the milk gradually, and whisk to form a fairly thick, creamy batter (you may not need to use all the milk). Set the batter aside briefly while you get the blueberry sauce started – simply put all the sauce ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring up to the boil, then reduce the heat to a low simmer and let it bubble gently for about 10 minutes, stirring every now and then, until reduced and syrupy.

While the blueberries are cooking, make the pancakes. Place a large frying pan over a medium heat, add about 1 tsp of the butter and let it melt, swirling the pan gently so the base is coated. Spoon the batter into the pan using half-ladlefuls or a large-ish serving spoon, so that you have several small, evenly-sized pancakes (you will probably need to work in batches). Cook the pancakes for 2-3 minutes, until golden underneath with bubbles coming up to the surface, then flip and cook for a further couple of minutes until golden. Put the cooked pancakes on a baking tray, cover loosely with foil and put in the warm oven. By now the blueberry sauce should have reduced nicely (if you are worried it has reduced too much, you can stir in a splash of water).
To assemble, get the pancakes out of the oven and divide them evenly between two plates. Drizzle them with the blueberry sauce and pour a little cream around the outside of each plate. Scatter the roast almonds over the top, then serve straight away with the rest of the cream.