Americans in general don’t know too much about the sultry mulberry. They often think it is inedible. If you have the serendipity to have a tree in your neighborhood, wait until they are ripe and bring your least favorite blanket and shake and harvest a textured, musky, slightly sweet berry that is complex in flavor and unique character. They stain purple and make an ingenious natural lipstick too.

A fun recipe to introduce the berry that no one seems to eat in the States. White chocolate adds a nice sweetness to the slightly tart mulberry. Here we go round the mulberry muffins, mulberry muffins, mulberry muffins…

Preheat your oven to 350. Sift the flour, sugar and salt into a bowl and mix. Make a hollow in the middle. In another bowl, beat the eggs, and then mix in the milk, vanilla extract and melted butter. Stir these into the dry ingredients with a spoon or fork, and then stir in the mulberries and white chocolate chips. Spoon the mixture into muffin pans and press some white chocolate chips into the top of the mixture. Bake for 20 – 25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.