Strawberry Rhubarb Muffins
Bake Strawberry Rhubarb Muffins for tangy-sweet breakfast muffins with a crunchy crumble topping.
Ingredients
- ½ cup (1 stick / 113 g) unsalted butter, (cold and cubed)
- ½ cup (100 g) granulated sugar
- 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup (245 g) buttermilk
- 2 large eggs, (room temperature)
- 1 cup (166 g) fresh strawberries, (diced)
- 1 cup (122 g) fresh rhubarb, (diced)
- ¾ cup (94 g) all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup (50 g) light brown sugar, (packed)
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, (melted)
Instructions
Step 1: Preheat and prepare the tin
Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a 12-cup muffin tin with liners. Set the lined tin nearby on your work surface so it's ready for batter; this is the first active move in the workflow and keeps everything efficient once the batter is ready.
Step 2: Cut the butter into the dry mix until crumbly
In a large bowl combine the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and kosher salt. Add the cold cubed butter, toss the pieces in the dry ingredients to coat them, then use your fingertips to pinch the butter into the flour until the mixture becomes a coarse, sandy, crumbly texture with pea-sized butter bits — the base that gives tender muffins.
Step 3: Whisk the wet ingredients
In a separate bowl whisk the buttermilk and the room-temperature eggs until smooth and slightly frothy. This liquid mix should be homogenous and pourable, warmed just to room temperature so it emulsifies easily with the dry mixture.
Step 4: Combine wet and dry until just mixed
Pour the buttermilk-and-egg mixture into the crumbly dry mix and stir gently until just combined — the batter should be thick but smooth, with no visible streaks of flour. Stop as soon as the dough comes together to keep the muffins tender.
Step 5: Fold in fruit and portion into the tin
Gently fold the diced strawberries and diced rhubarb into the batter with a rubber spatula, folding only until the fruit is evenly distributed and the batter still has airy pockets. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups, filling each almost to the top so they can rise high and domed in the oven.
Step 6: Make the crumble topping
In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, packed light brown sugar, and kosher salt. Drizzle in the melted butter and stir with a fork until the mixture forms coarse, clumpy crumbs — moist enough to hold together in little clusters but still dry and crumbly in texture.
Step 7: Top the muffins with crumble
Evenly sprinkle the crumble topping over each filled muffin cup, pressing a few clusters gently so they adhere to the batter. The topping should sit on the surface in a loose, golden layer that will crisp up during baking.
Step 8: Bake until set and golden
Bake the muffins for 18–20 minutes, watching for a golden-brown streusel and domed tops. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out with a few moist crumbs but no wet batter; the muffins will be set with a tender crumb.
Step 9: Cool, transfer, and reveal
Let the muffins rest in the tin for five minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. Present them on a small serving plate or board; split one muffin in half to reveal the fluffy, moist interior flecked with bright strawberry and rhubarb pieces and the golden, crumbly streusel on top.
Notes
- Use cold butter cut into the dry mix for the most tender muffin crumb.
- Toss fruit in a tablespoon of flour to prevent sinking and bleeding into the batter.
- Slightly underbake by a minute or two for an extra-moist center; muffins will finish while cooling.