Jeremy Vincent’s sticky rhubarb muffins recipe

Rhubarb adds a zing to these sticky-topped muffins, making them perfect cold-weather treats to serve at breakfast, as a dessert, or with a cuppa.

RHUBARB is around for most of the year, and so I often call upon it to add some zing to a dish. It can be eaten raw with a little sugar sprinkled over it, but it is generally cooked with other ingredients to produce a fruit dish of some type.

Rhubarb can be used nicely to enhance the flavour of other fruits, such as pairing it with strawberries in baked sauces or beverages. It makes a delicious pie filling and is also great on muesli or other breakfast cereals.

Rhubarb can also be used to make jams, cakes, muffins, and other desserts. It can also be used in savoury dishes and is good as a sauce to serve with meats and fish.

These sticky-topped rhubarb muffins are perfect cold-weather treats, served at breakfast or as a dessert, or with a cuppa at morning or afternoon tea.

STICKY RHUBARB MUFFINS

Makes 12

4 tbsp butter

6 tbsp dark brown sugar

1 cup rhubarb, cut in small dice

BATTER

4 tbsp butter, softened

¼ cup sugar

1 egg

1½ cups plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

½ tsp nutmeg

½ cup milk

Grated rind of 1 orange

Using fingertips or pastry cutter, mix the butter into the brown sugar roughly. Stir in rhubarb. Distribute mixture evenly into 12 muffin cups.

Now mix the batter. Cream the softened butter and the sugar together, then beat in the egg. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg together thoroughly, then add the butter-sugar mixture alternately with the milk. Do not over mix. Stir in the orange rind.

Divide the mixture between the muffin tins.

Bake in a preheated 180C (160C fan) oven for 25 minutes. Allow to cool in the tins for five minutes, then invert the muffin tins and ease the muffins out so the sticky glaze remains intact. Serve warm, with glaze topside.

SELECTION & STORAGE

WHEN buying fresh rhubarb, look for moderately thin, crisp, dark pink to red stalks. Greener, thicker stalks are stringier, coarser, and more sour. The leaves should be unwilted and free of blemishes.

Fresh rhubarb is quite perishable. Place the stalks in a plastic bag to retain moisture and store for 3-5 days in the refrigerator crisper drawer.

To freeze, cut the rhubarb stalks into 3cm chunks and seal in an airtight bag. Frozen rhubarb will keep for up to a year.

COOKING TIPS

TO PREPARE, first remove all the leaves, rinse and pat dry. Trim the ends and cut into 3cm chunks.

If it is stringy, just remove the tough strings as you would with celery. However, the strings will usually break down during the cooking process.

Stew or bake with a little water and plenty of sugar to combat the tartness.

Rhubarb can quickly cook down into a syrupy liquid, so keep an eye on it if you need it to retain some texture for specific recipes.

If you sweeten rhubarb after it is cooked, you will need less sweetener.

Generally, the redder the stalk, the less sweetener is needed.

RHUBARB & STRAWBERRY JAM

CLEAN enough rhubarb to produce 5 cups cut into 3cm pieces. Place rhubarb into a large bowl with two punnets hulled strawberries and add 3 cups of sugar. Stir until the sugar is distributed evenly throughout, then allow to stand for 3 to 5 hours. Stir occasionally.

After the rhubarb, strawberries and sugar have been allowed to stand for the appropriate amount of time, place them in a large saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium to medium-high heat. Once it comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium and allow to boil for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add 50g Jamsetta. Stir until the Jamsetta is dissolved.

Make sure your jam jars are clean and ready to fill before the jam is done. The lids should be placed in a small saucepan with enough water to cover them and brought to a simmer. Leave lids in hot water until placing on the jars. Spoon or pour hot jam into the jars. Screw the lids on firmly but do not over tighten. Allow jam to cool completely.

MORE BAKING RECIPES

SAVORY ROLLS FROM BASIC DOUGH

LIGHT-AS-AIR CHOCOLATE CAKE

CHEESECAKE WITH STRAWBERRY SAUCE