How often do you bake?
For me it varies. You may find it hard to believe from the frequency I’ve blogged lately but I sometimes go nearly a fortnight without baking anything. Then I’ll have a mad burst and bake 3 or 4 things over the space of 1 or 2 days.
These muffins were the first thing produced on one of these busy days. My in-laws were visiting which generally means my husband and Ted being otherwise occupied leaving me free to produce dinner and anything else I can manage to squeeze in either side of it until Buba and Deda (Serbian for Grandma and Grandad) have gone back home.
I was making about my seventh Ottolenghi savoury dish that week (some of which you’ve seen already) but decided that after four months it was high time I made some things from the latest Rachel Allen book, Home Cooking, which I’d picked up for a song through Ted’s pre-school book club before Christmas.
I have three of Rachel’s books; Rachel’s Food for Living which I acquired 2 years ago and to this day have never felt motivated to cook anything from, Bake, which I love (yes, even more highly than Nigella Lawson’s How to Be a Domestic Goddess) and then her newest book, Home Cooking.
That morning I leafed through Home Cooking, making a list of recipes I wanted to cook from it. It’s a family oriented book, nothing especially sophisticated in there, a fair amount of comfort food and plenty of accessible sounding recipes.
The muffins took just 35 minutes to make from cupboard to cooling rack leaving me plenty of time and energy to rack up a few more things later that day. I was sceptical about putting raw rhubarb in them, worried that they wouldn’t be sweet enough but the soft brown sugar sprinkled on the top gives them a reassuring stickiness.
They were amazing eaten warm (I wolfed one down before the in-laws had even arrived) but just as pleasing cold as an afternoon snack. Which is just as well really, as you wouldn’t want to feel compelled to eat twelve sticky muffins before they cooled down would you?
Rhubarb Muffins
Adapted from Rachel Allen Home Cooking
Makes 12
Ingredients:
150g (5 oz) soft light brown sugar
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
100ml (3.5 fl oz) buttermilk
100g (3.5 oz) finely diced rhubarb
175g (6 oz) wholemeal flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
Pinch of salt
Method:
1. Preheat your oven to 200c / 400f / gas mark 6. Line your muffin pan with large paper cases.
2. In a large bowl place 125g (4.5 oz) of the sugar, the oil, egg, vanilla extract and the buttermilk. Beat until mixed then stir in the diced rhubarb.
3. Sift over your dry ingredients into the bowl; wholemeal flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt. Stir until just combined and no more so not to make the texture of your muffins too heavy.
4. Spoon the mixture into your muffin cases, filling them around 3/4 full. Sprinkle their tops with the remaining sugar and bake for 18-20 minutes until golden. A cocktail stick will come out cleanly when they are done but take care not to over do them.
5. Leave to stand in the tin for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool. Fantastic eaten immediately but will keep for several days (in theory) in a tin.
Ooh Sarah. These look lovely. I've been after a new puffin recipe (no, really!) and will try these when I get hold of some 'barb.
fantastic, what a lovely way to use rhubarb.
I planted rhubarb last year and am excited to try some new recipes. The one looks like a good one.
I bake as you do, in spurts. The busy I am the more I produce.
These look like a winner. I am on a rubarb kick right now, so the timing is just right.
Pam
Ok, I am now on a rhubarb roll, a rhubarb craze and these are on the list. They look delicious and so moist. And don't get me on the question of baking!
i am baking almost every week. as soeren takes snacks with him to school everyday i prefer to bake at home with less sugar and organic ingredients then buy at the bakery. i have been having my rhubarb week too! love these!
Do you know, I have RA's bake book and never made a thing out of it? I'm horrid that way. I guess you can say i average about one baking thing a week.
Muffins look fab, really must crack open that book.
*kisses* HH
Sarah, I so want RA's book Bake. Home Cooking sounds good too. I have a few stalks of rhubarb waiting for me to do something with so this recipe is perfect. I bake at least once a week if not more. I have bakeathons at the weekend!
I so want RA's Bake book. Home cooking looks good too. I have several stalks of rhubarb waiting for me to do something with them and these muffins look perfect. I bake at least once a week and have bakeathons at the weekend!
I see rhubarb in the stores now..time for more rhubarb! In muffins 🙂 yum. I used to bake every Sunday actually but now it's only when I'm home and when mum gets me to do a 2 course dinner menu or something like that. haha. x
Not very often if I'm truthful. Usually on a Friday! That's my baking day (like Monday is my washing day…not strike that..every day is washing day).
Rhubarb is one of my favourite things. I know it's in season but it's still quite expensive in my supermarket. Will have to shop around or go to a farmer's market or something.
Got my eye on so many baking books lately. Fiona Cairns is next. I like looking at the pictures!
i made some rhubarb muffins as well the other day, with walnuts and browned butter! i just love rhubarb, it's got that tartness that is just perfect for sweet things… i am off to to the shops now to buy some more!
it was great meeting you on saturday, hope to see you again soon!
I'm keen to get rhubarb recipes as my garden rhubarb is just starting to come through. This looks perfect.
Sarah, great looking muffins, it is sure great for breakfast 🙂 Love the pictures!
I keep hearing about Rachel Allen from lots of people so I should really give her recipes a go! I bake a lot but I go through phases and sometimes if I see a recipe, I'll have to drop everything and bake it stat! 😛
I don't bake as often as i'd like! But things are starting to slow down around here so i'm looking forward to working my oven like i do my moulinex 🙂 These look wonderful!
I'm a bit like you these days – a baking lull followed by a mad session. Bake looks like a nice book, I keep umming and awwing about whether I should buy it.
And I'm just like you, I am LOVING Ottolenghi these days (oh, the salads!) I am a woman obsessed. I want to go there every day. I only wish I had discovered it earlier!
YUMMY! Can i have one please..:)
Delightful. I am loving all these rhubarb recipes recently and will have to remember this one!
Love rhubarb. These look yum. Hope you're feling better after the tooth job! Get better soon!
I made these last Sunday for brunch! They were so yummy I made them again on Wednesday. I only got 8 muffins from my mixture as I wanted them to have the 'muffin top'. It was my first recipe from the book, but I have since made the nut loaf and it was delicious too
Morwenna xo