Rhubarb Ginger Muffins
Rhubarb season is coming to an end, so let’s celebrate with some muffins! I was able to get some extra rhubarb and freeze it so I can make these muffins during the winter when the spicy, warming ginger hits the spot.
The tart rhubarb pairs with both ground and crystallized ginger for a gentle kick and a hazelnut topping for some crunch. Perfect with a strong cup of coffee for breakfast. And they can be yours to enjoy in 45 minutes, which includes some cooling time.
Let’s get to baking! Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and line a muffin pan with paper liners.
Then gather together some hazelnuts, sugar, flour, softened butter, some ground ginger, and optional spices such as cinnamon and nutmeg. Don’t have hazelnuts? Walnuts, almonds, or pistachios make great alternatives. I also like to use whole wheat flour in the topping for the extra flavor, but feel free to use all-purpose.
If you have a food processor, dump everything in and pulse until the nuts are finely chopped. If you don’t have a food processor, finely chop the nuts (or smash them in a plastic bag with a meat hammer, which is a great way to get out some frustration!). Then add the chopped nuts to a bowl with the other ingredients and use a fork to combine the ingredients. Set aside.
Coarsely chop the rhubarb into small pieces and finely chop the crystallized ginger. Set aside.
In one bowl, whisk or sift some flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ground ginger together. I like to use about half whole wheat pastry flour and half all-purpose flour. The muffins also work well using all whole wheat pastry flour (regular whole wheat flour would work but the muffins may turn out a bit denser) or all all-purpose flour.
In another bowl, combine beaten eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla together. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and gently mix until just incorporated. Be careful not to overmix so the muffins don’t get tough. Fold in the chopped rhubarb and crystallized ginger.
Evenly scoop into the prepared muffin cups. Then sprinkle the streusel topping over each cup and gently press it into the batter so it doesn’t fall off while baking.
Bake for about 20 – 25 minutes. Remove the muffins from the pan and cool on a wire rack.
If you don’t feel like muffins, this also makes a great version of a coffee-cake-style cake. Pour the batter into a well-greased 8-inch square or 9-inch round baking dish, top with the streusel, and bake at 350 for about 45 – 50 minutes.
Enjoy!
Rhubarb Ginger Muffins
Ingredients
Muffins
- 2 ½ cup whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour (or half and half)
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 2 eggs, gently beaten
- 1 cup buttermilk
- ½ cup butter, melted and cooled
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 8 oz rhubarb, roughly chopped
- 2 oz crystalized ginger, finely chopped
Streusal topping
- 6 oz hazelnuts (or sub walnuts or almonds)
- ½ cup whole wheat or all-purpose flour
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ cup butter, softened
- 1 ½ tsp ground ginger
- ½ tsp cinnamon (optional)
- ¼ tsp nutmeg (optional)
- ¼ tsp cardamom (optional)
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° and line 12 muffin cups with paper liners or grease the cups.
- Combine ingredients for the streusel topping in a food processor and pulse until the nuts are finely chopped. Or crush or finely chop the nuts and mix everuthing together with a fork. Set aside.
- Whisk or sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ground ginger into a large mixing bowl. In another small mixing bowl, combine the beaten eggs, buttermilk, melted butter, and vanilla.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and gently mix until just combined. Fold in the chopped rhubarb and crystalized ginger.
- Evenly fill the 12 muffin cups and sprinkle the streusel topping over each one, gently pressing it down into the batter.
- Bake for about 20 – 25 minutes until golden brown on top and cooked through.
- Cool on a wire rack as long as you can stand looking and smelling them before you dive in. Enjoy!