Blueberry + rhubarb. Honestly I had never even thought about this combo before, but when I asked for suggestions on Instagram about what to pair with blueberries to spice things up…this combo stuck out!

The sweetness of the blueberries complements the tartness of the rhubarb so so well, and when you bite into these muffins, the colours work so beautifully together as well as pops of purple and pink stand out against the white muffin base. I added a hint of ginger for some depth as well, although you can definitely leave it out if you’re not a fan! And if you can’t find any rhubarb (I realize it’s getting a bit late in the season), you can swap in a different kind of berry (blackberries would be divine!), or simply use more blueberries.

I topped these with streusel…because DUH. But you could omit it if you’d like, or perhaps even add a lemon glaze for an extra punch of flavour.

blueberry & rhubarb (ginger) muffins

yields: 12 muffins
recipe: Kelsey Siemens

ingredients

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup white granulated sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 large eggs

3/4 cup plain greek yogurt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup blueberries - fresh or frozen

1/2 cup diced rhubarb

optional: 1 teaspoon ground ginger

crumbs

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons white granulated sugar

2/3 cup flour

1/4 cup melted butter

1 teaspoon cinnamon

pinch of salt

directions

1) Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Grease your muffin tin/s, and set aside.

*Note: I used two muffin pans and alternated my batter to go “batter, no batter“ and then the opposite for the next line. This helps the muffins rise a bit better, but can be skipped if you’re short on oven space!

2) First assemble the crumb topping: In a medium bowl, stir together sugars, cinnamon, flour, and melted butter. The mixture will form crumbs as you squeeze it in your hand, and you can control how large of chunks you want. Place mixture in the fridge until ready to use.

2) In a large mixing bowl, cream together the sugars and softened butter. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until well mixed. Mix in greek yogurt and vanilla extract on low, scraping down the sides with a spatula as you go.

3) In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add to the wet mixture, mixing on low, until mostly incorporated. Use a spatula to scrape down sides, and then gently fold in the blueberries & rhubarb. Your mixture will be very thick!

4) Use an ice cream/cookie scoop to place the batter into the prepared muffins pans. I skip every other muffin spot to get even higher muffin tops! So: batter, no batter batter. And then the next line will be: no batter, batter, no batter. Not strictly necessary, but it does help the muffins get a better rise! Add crumbs to the tops.

5) Bake muffins at 400 F for the first 5 minutes, and then reduce the temperature to 350 for the next 12-15 minutes. Total cook time: 17-20 minutes, or until you can insert a toothpick and have it come out clean.

6) Remove muffins once done, and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before removing from their pan. Serve warm!

a few notes:

As with most muffins, these are best on the first day - otherwise let cool completely, and immediately freeze for longer storage.

Cooking times may vary depending on your oven, as well as the lightness/darkness of the pan you use, so I always recommend doing a test muffin if it’s your first time making these!

These are great with or without the crumb topping! I will sub for simple coarse sugar if I’m in a hurry - sprinkle coarse sugar on directly before baking, as well as a little when they come out of the oven.

Sub pretty much any fruit you’d like for the blueberries and/or rhubarb. Berries work super well, and stone fruit is delicious too.