Strawberry Rhubarb Muffins

Our fantastic local, June strawberries are here at our farmer’s market, as is rhubarb!  You know what they say, what grows together goes together.  I just love the combination of strawberries with rhubarb, from jam to sauce for waffles or pancakes, to pie, crisp or cobbler!  Then, of course, who wouldn’t want a stash of muffins in the freezer?  I tend to make a double batch of most muffins for that very reason.

Strawberry Rhubarb Muffins

Makes Approximately 15 Muffins

For the Batter:

2 ¾ cups unbleached flour or 2 cups unbleached & ¾ cup wholewheat
1 ¼ cups brown sugar, packed
1 ¼ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
½ cup unsalted butter, melted & cooled a bit
1 large egg
1 cup buttermilk, well shaken
1 ¼ cups chopped rhubarb, approximately ½ “ pieces
¾ cup chopped strawberries, approximately ½” pieces
For the Topping:

½ cup brown sugar, packed
½ tsp. cinnamon

30 muffin liners (I like the baking parchment ones), or spray your muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray.

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Combine the topping ingredients and set aside.

Combine the first 4 dry ingredients in a medium bowl.  Whisk the egg then add the remaining ingredients in a large bowl.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients.  Fold together just until barely combined, fold in the rhubarb and strawberries; place the batter into muffin pans (I recommend using an ice-cream scoop for this).   Place a small amount of the topping on top of each muffin; place in the oven and bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until a wooden skewer placed in the centre of a muffin in the middle of the pan comes out clean.  Remove to a baking rack to cool.  One of the things I like to do is gently tip the muffins on their sides in the pan to allow the steam to escape.

Serve muffins warm.  Freeze any leftovers for a future treat!