Rhubarb Muffins are the perfect way to impress special breakfast or brunch guests and a great addition to coffee time. Tart, moist chunks of rhubarb are enveloped by tender cake topped with a cinnamon-spiced crumble.
The tart flavor of rhubarb pairs perfectly in sweet desserts like Rhubarb Crisp and Strawberry Rhubarb Cobbler and now of course, these tender muffins!
Cutting Rhubarb for Muffins
Only the stalks of rhubarb are edible. In fact, leaves of this unusual and incredibly tart vegetable are toxic, so “leave” them alone!
To cut fresh stalks for use in cooked rhubarb crisp muffins, trim off the bottoms and the leaves and discard. Then cut the stalks into small chunks. Rhubarb is quite tart so I prefer to have smaller bits in with the sweet cake.
If you have frozen rhubarb, this recipe is an excellent way to make good use of it. Be sure to thaw it first in a colander and discard the excess juices before proceeding.
How to Make Rhubarb Muffins
- Combine dry ingredients (per recipe below) in a bowl and wet ingredients in a separate bowl.
- Create a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the wet ingredients.
- Stir until mostly moistened. Fold in rhubarb.
- Spoon batter into paper-lined or greased muffin tins to 2/3 full.
Optional Streusel Topping
Rhubarb is tart so adding a streusel topping adds a bit more sweetness. Get creative, stir in nuts, coconut or even oats and sprinkle over muffins.
Tips for Perfect Muffins
- Do not overmix, the batter should be slightly lumpy
- Do not overbake
- Fill muffin wells 2/3 full
- Tossing fruit with flour helps keep it evenly dispersed throughout the muffins
- Mini muffins will take about 10-12 minutes to bake
How Long Do Muffins Last?
Like most baked goods, rhubarb muffins taste best served warm and fresh from the oven.
Counter/Fridge: To keep muffins moist and fresh, store them tightly covered in a plastic container or zip lock bag for up to two days at room temperature or a week in the refrigerator. To prevent the tops from getting sticky or soggy, make sure they are completely cooled before storing.
Freezer: Rhubarb crisp muffins can be frozen for up to four months. Thaw at room temperature, or heat them straight from the freezer for 10 minutes in a 350°F oven or for 30 seconds in the microwave.
More Delicious Muffin Recipes
- Easy Banana Bran Muffins – easy and healthy!
- Banana Muffins – so moist
- Easy Pumpkin Muffins – an autumn classic
- Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins – always a favorite
- Banana Nut Crunch Muffins – kid-friendly
- Strawberry Muffins – fresh strawberries in every bite
Rhubarb Muffins
Ingredients
- 2 cups rhubarb chopped
- 1 ¾ cups flour all-purpose
- ⅔ cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 egg beaten
- ½ cup milk
- ½ cup vanilla Greek yogurt
- ¼ cup melted butter or vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- streusel topping below
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°. Grease twelve muffin wells or line paper liners.
- Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl with a whisk.
- In a small bowl, whisk egg, milk, yogurt, vanilla, and oil.
- Add the rhubarb to the flour mixture and toss to combine. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients.
- Stir just until moistened. Do not overmix.
- Divide the muffin batter over 12 wells. Top with streusel topping below if using.
- Bake for 16 to 19 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Remove from muffin pan and cool completely on a baking rack.
Notes
Combine the following with a fork until crumbly: 3 tablespoons flour, 3 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 ½ tablespoons softened butter and ¼ teaspoon cinnamon.
- 2 tablespoons pecans or chopped almonds can be added to the topping if desired
- do not overmix the batter
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Breakfast
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
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Yummy way to use up all that rhubarb!
Easy to make .. even easier to eat!
these were very moist and fluffy best muffin I have made yet used almond milk perfection. thank you
Have you ever made with frozen rhubarb? Thank you
If you have frozen rhubarb, this recipe is an excellent way to make good use of it. Be sure to thaw it first in a colander and discard the excess juices before proceeding.
I always use frozen rhubarb! I give it a squeeze when adding to mixture to remove excess moisture.
I have so many generous friends who supply me with their excess .. I couldn’t bake all of it in one session m.
I was wondering what I can substitute for the Greek yogurt.
Thanks
You can use another type of yogurt in place.
Delicious. Tip: if you don’t have vanilla yogurt like I did not … but have strawberry like I did…USE STRAWBERRY YOGURT!! Sooooo good. Made the streusel including pecans and it was perfect. Definitely making again.
That sounds delicious! Thank you for the tip JLab!
This recipe is outstanding and easy. I only had plain yogurt so I just added another teaspoon of vanilla and the sweetness of the muffin was spot on.
Saving this recipe to make again. Served for breakfast with Finnish Pancakes (a baked egg dish).
These where excellent. Very moist. Just the right amount of sweetness
These were possibly the best muffins I have ever made and I’ve been baking for a very long time. I used fresh rhubarb and a combo of sour cream and ASTRO balkan style yogurt (thats all I had) Otherwise I followed the recipe exactly. The flavor was as good as my favorite rhubarb pie. Perfect balance of sweet and tart and very moist. This will be my go to recipe. I might add I also made your banana muffins today and they were excellent! Thanks for this great recipe!
Mine were not dry. I used melted butter and sour cream. I always fluff then spoon flour into measure if cups.
Delicious!
You changed your recipe! Now there is Greek yogurt. Could you please, please add a variation to this recipe back to the one without yogurt! I love these muffins as they were. I don’t have yogurt on hand as I do the other ingredients.
The recipe has been updated but here is the original:
1 cup rhubarb chopped
1 ¾ cups flour all-purpose
½ cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 egg beaten
¾ cup milk
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
streusel topping below optional
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400°. Grease twelve muffin wells or line paper liners.
Toss rhubarb with 1 tablespoon flour and set aside.
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl with a whisk.
In a small bowl, whisk egg, milk, vanilla and oil.
Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients. Stir just until moistened.
Shake of excess flour from rhubarb and fold into batter. Do not overmix.
Fill each muffin well ⅔ full. Top with streusel topping below if using.
Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Remove from muffin pan and cool completely.
Notes
Streusel Topping (optional):
Combine the following with a fork until crumbly: 3 tablespoons flour, 3 tablespoons butter, 3 tablespoons brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, 2 tablespoons pecans or chopped almonds. Sprinkle over muffins before baking.
I doubled the recipe, and it was very sticky dough (but could be because I doubled). I also mixed in some whole wheat flour with all purpose, and a bit less white sugar because I love the tartness of rhubarb!
Not too sweet! I didn’t put topping on and they were great. I usedwater, not milk.,
Hi Holly!
I am a frequent user of your recipes and have had great luck with every one that I have tried. I especially like the fact that your recipes are easy to follow and use basic ingredients found in the pantry of most kitchens. Now, concerning these rhubarb muffins I must say I am not understanding the negative comments posted by some readers. My wife and I made a batch of these a few days ago, followed the directions as given (except we didn’t have Greek yogurt on hand so used the same volume of milk instead ), and they turned out perfectly. They were not dry, bland or lacking flavour as other reviewers indicated. We were so impressed by these muffins that we just took a second batch out of our oven a short time ago and the smell in our kitchen right now is amazing! Oh, and for information we did make and add the streusel topping to our muffins, as suggested in the recipe. Overall these are great muffins, don’t be distracted by the negative postings.