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Best Rhubarb Muffin Recipe (with Cinnamon Butter Crumble)

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Rhubarb muffin recipe makes a moist sweet and tender muffin loaded with fresh rhubarb under a warm and crunchy brown sugar cinnamon streusel topping.

Rhubarb Oat Muffins with Cinnamon Butter Crumble

Rhubarb is one of the first things to pop up once the weather gets warmer. We love the stuff and these Rhubarb Muffins with Cinnamon Butter Crumble is one of the first things I make whenever I get my hands on some.

It’s time for the Spring version of “The Freaky Friday” blog hop, and I’m bringing Rhubarb Oat Muffins with Cinnamon Butter Crumble to the party!

The Freaky Friday blog hop organized by Michaela who runs An Affair From the Heart, is a group of bloggers that are secretly assigned each others’ blogs from which we choose a recipe.

Banner for for a spring blog hop called freaky friday.

It is so much fun, and the bloggers that participate are all amazing foodies. The biggest problem I always have is picking just one recipe to post about.

This time I had the pleasure of being assigned Michele’s blog “Bacon Fatte“. Michele is a Minnesota gal who doesn’t apologize for her use of bacon, butter, or booze.

How can you not love someone like that? Michele does an amazing job making colorful dishes for the family and some amazing entertaining cuisine.

Rhubarb Oat Muffins with Cinnamon Butter Crumble

I had a heck of a task trying to decide on which recipe to make. Her Linguine con le Vongole and her New Potato Salad with Basil, Shallots, and Lemon were all contenders.

Our selection needed to be springy was the only stipulation. You know me, guess what my search gravitated toward?

Yep, bread and Michele didn’t disappoint. I had my eye on her Spiced Bakery Style Ginger Pear Muffins but her Rhubarb Oat Muffins with Cinnamon Butter Crumble were the ultimate winner.

Rhubarb Oat Muffins with Cinnamon Butter Crumble

These muffins have such a beautiful contrast between the sweetened rhubarb and warm cinnamon and brown sugar.

Even though the batter is quite thick they bake up soft and tender. They’re perfect with a cup of coffee for breakfast or a special treat with dinner. They’re easy to put together and makes up to 24 muffins!

How to make Rhubarb Muffins

There are two steps to making these muffins. I make the Streusel top first and just set it aside. Let’s start with it.

Cinnamon Brown Sugar Streusel Topping

  1. Combine flour, old-fashioned oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and turbinado sugar together in a small bowl.
  2. Dice cold butter. Using two forks or a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the dry ingredients until it appears crumbly. Set aside (I put mine in the refrigerator).
    • Don’t overwork it or it will blend together and not crumble over the muffin.
    • Don’t use your fingers. The heat in your hands will soften the butter and break down your crumble.

Muffin Batter

  1. In a large bowl combine the dry ingredients, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, oats, baking soda, and salt. Whisk together until blended.
  2. In a separate bowl combine the wet ingredients, milk, vinegar, vanilla extract, oil, and egg. Whisk together.
  3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients using a spatula. Mix only until combined.
  4. Fold in the rhubarb.

Assemble/Finish

  1. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full. Sprinkle with additional rhubarb pieces and crumble. For an extra crunch sprinkle the top with turbinado sugar.
  2. Bake 

Tips for the perfect muffin

  • Chop the rhubarb into smaller pieces to ensure that it disperses evenly and bakes evenly.
  • Milk and vinegar listed in the ingredients can be replaced with buttermilk.
  • Don’t over mix the crumble or the batter, mixing only as long as necessary. Over mixing will result in a tough muffin.
  • You can use frozen rhubarb. Frozen rhubarb holds a lot of moisture and should ve thawed and extra moisture lightly pressed before using it.
  • Turn the muffin pan halfway through baking to assure muffins bake evenly. Remove the muffins when a toothpick or cake tester comes out with light crumbs. 
  • Let the muffins cool in the pan 10 minutes and then remove them from the pan.
  • It’s best to use two pans but if you only have one, make sure it’s cool before refilling it.

Storing Rhubarb Muffins

Muffins are best stored in a cake carrier or covered container once they’re completely cool. They don’t do well in a plastic bag because the crumble will become soggy. Muffins freeze well in an airtight container.

Other Rhubarb recipes that you may enjoy

We’re muffin lovers and these are some of our favorites!

I hope you enjoyed this delicious recipe as much as we do. Drop me a comment below, and don’t forget to give it a star rating. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐. Your comments and ratings help others decide if this recipe is for them too.

top view of a Rhubarb Oat Muffin with raw pieces of rhubarb in a bowl

Rhubarb Oat Muffins with Cinnamon Butter Crumble

Author: Julie Menghini
Rhubarb muffin recipe makes a moist sweet and tender muffin loaded with fresh rhubarb under a warm and crunchy brown sugar cinnamon streusel topping.
4.62 from 107 votes
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Course Bread, Breakfast, Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American
Keyword: Rhubarb Oat Muffins with Cinnamon Butter Crumble
Servings: 24 muffins

Ingredients
 
 

Cinnamon Butter Crumble

  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter chilled and cut into 1/4″ pieces
  • 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup old-fashioned oats
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp turbinado sugar optional (sugar in the raw)

Rhubarb Muffins

Dry Ingredients

  • 2-1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1-1/4 cups brown sugar I used dark brown sugar but either is fine
  • 1 cup old-fashioned oats
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp cinnamon

Wet Ingredients

  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 1 tsp white vinegar or lemon juice
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil or canola
  • 1 egg lightly beaten
  • 2 cups rhubarb chopped – reserve 1/4 cup for topping

Instructions
 

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 °F.  Line two standard muffin pans with cupcake liners or spray with a non-stick cooking spray.

Cinnamon Butter Crumble

  • Combine crumble ingredients in a small bowl.  Use two forks to cut butter into other ingredients.  I use a pastry cutter to cut the ingredients together until it resembles coarse crumbs.  If the butter gets too warm it will not crumble.  Refrigerate the butter if it gets too soft before crumbling if necessary.

Rhubarb Muffins

  • In a large mixing bowl add flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, oats, baking soda, and salt.  Whisk together to combine.
  • in a medium bowl combine milk, vinegar, vanilla extract, oil, and egg.  Whisk together.
  • Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix together until just combined.  Fold in 1-3/4 cups chopped rhubarb.
  • Fill muffin cups 1/2 to 3/4 full.  Top with remaining rhubarb and crumble.  Sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
  • Bake 20 to 25 minutes rotating pans halfway through baking.  Remove from the oven when a toothpick inserted in the middle of the muffin comes out clean.  Cool muffins 10 minutes in the pan and then remove them to a baking rack to finish cooling or serve warm.
  • Store in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator.  May be frozen for a longer period of time.

Notes

Buttermilk can be substituted for milk and vinegar.  
Muffins filled 1/2 full make 24 muffins.  Filled 3/4 full make approximately 19 muffins.
Recipe created by https://baconfatte.com/rhubarb-oat-muffins-cinnamon-crumble/

Nutrition

Serving: 24gCalories: 121kcalCarbohydrates: 12gProtein: 2gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 13mgSodium: 158mgPotassium: 69mgFiber: 1gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 96IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 30mgIron: 1mg

Nutritional Disclaimer

This recipe was calculated using the exact brands and measurements I used to make this recipe. If you are following a strict diet please note changing anything will cause the nutritional info to change. My calculations are intended as a guide only.

Tried this recipe?Let me know how it was!

Did you enjoy this recipe? Don’t forget to pin it for later and follow me on Pinterest for more delicious recipes like this one!

Front angle view of a rhubarb muffin topped with cinnamon crumble in a natural brown muffin paper. A cinnamon stick and oats sit in front.

Just go see for yourself all of the amazing recipes on Bacon Fatte. I’ll guarantee you’ll want to stay awhile. While you’re at it, take a look at what these other Freaky Friday participants are cooking up!

A Dish of Daily Life – Korean BBQ Chicken Skewers

An Affair from the Heart – Everything Bagel Dip

Bacon Fatte – No Bake Strawberry Shortcake Dessert

Bowl Me Over – Best Enchilada Sauce

Hostess at Heart – Rhubarb Oat Muffins

Life Currents – French Onion Tart

Lisa’s Dinnertime Dish – Tuscan Pork Sheet Pan Dinner

Mildly Meandering – Roasted Red Pepper Dip

Take Two Tapas – Mexican Beer Cheese Skillet

West Via Midwest – Reuben Totchos

Who Needs a Cape? – Raspberry Daiquiri Pie

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4.62 from 107 votes (83 ratings without comment)

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84 Comments

  1. I just made these and even after an extra 15mins in the oven they still came out wet and doughy… Going through the comments I noticed I’m not the only one this has happened to, so I wonder what could’ve gone wrong?

    1. I haven’t had that issue but it can happen when the oven temperature is off or because there’s extra moisture collecting below the muffin paper due to the moisture in the batter. To combat that, you can put a few grains of rice below the paper right on the pan. Lastly, don’t remove the muffin from the pan too soon after baking. I hope this is helpful Ri. Thanks for your comment.

  2. Outstanding! We are vegan and I don’t eat eggs or dairy. Substituted vegan butter for the oil and applesauce for the egg. Also cut down on the sugar. Very happy with this recipe. Made 21 total. Will be freezing to eat later. Thanks for this great recipe!

  3. I made these for my adult sunday school class. They were enjoyed by everyone!So happy that I was able to have extra for my family too!Thanks for a great rhubarb recipe!

  4. Keep meaning to write you a comment on these muffins; they are on repeat in our house! Thank you!

  5. I made these and they were wonderful! The texture is good, and the topping really made the entire muffin delicious! My only problem was allowing them to cool off enough to eat them!
    My husband had bought way too much rhubarb that I need it for another recipe, and these muffins helped me to find another use for the rhubarb.

  6. This recipe is fantastic. I doubled it and added 2 tsp nutmeg and one tsp baking powder which fluffed them up the perfect amount. The batter is extremely thick but it made the perfect muffins. Soo good!

  7. Just made these with the following substitutions: 1/2 c oil became 1/4 c oil + 1/4 c plain Greek yogurt 11% MF; 1 c milk became 1/2 c plain Greek yogurt 11%MF + fill to 1c with milk (happen to have 1%); for crumble I used salted butter (thats what i had thawed) then cut the salt in the dry ingredients to just under 1/2 tsp. They turned out great but leaning to the moist side. I also use large flake oats ALWAYS when baking as I find they give a more wholesome texture. Additionally, tsp cinnamon = 1 heaping tsp cinnamon whenever I bake haha. I usually leave rhubarb chunks large as I do like the tangy bite but don’t mind these being more mild on the rhubarb flavour (my rhubarb was frozen). Probably would be good with a few other ‘winter’ spices (cloves, nutmeg, allspice etc) but I found the cinnamon flavour came through nicely as was perfect as is. I found the recipe is under yield for 24 muffins. Only filled 21 cups for me (tip add water to baking cups that remain empty in your tray to keep things more moist). Now to try and avoid eating them all before tomorrow’s baby club!

  8. I’m sorry to say we didn’t really enjoy these muffins. They are far too sweet for our liking. I’m not a good enough baker to know how much sugar I can omit without affecting the end product (e.g., too dry, too crumbly). As another reviewer said, some extra spice like nutmeg would jazz up the flavour.
    The whole purpose of a rhubarb muffin is to enjoy the tartness of the rhubarb. This recipe missed the mark.

    1. I’m sorry it wasn’t for you. You can eliminate as much sugar as you want. If you found it too sweet, start with half and go from there. Thank you for letting me know.

  9. Not sure what these muffins are suppose to taste like but they are bland and doughy. After 25 min in the oven they were quite raw and doughy. Had to cook them 12-15 min longer but they were still very bland.

  10. I haven’t tried them yet, but it looks great. I just found it interesting that under the Cinnamon Brown Sugar Streusel Topping, you say, “Don’t use your fingers. The heat in your hands will soften the butter and break down your crumble.”, and in the recipe say, ” I used my fingers and “pinch” the ingredients together until it resembles coarse crumbs.

    1. Thanks for pointing that out for me Marsha! It does work better if you don’t use your fingers because the butter is what creates that crunchy crumble and if it’s to soft or melted it doesn’t work as well. I’ll jump over and make that correction and sincerely thank you for pointing that out to me! ~Julie

  11. These are amazing! My 3yo devoured them without a moments hesitation. I substituted 1/2c of the rhubarb for strawberries, but I bet they taste just as good as-is.

  12. These muffins are delicious! But mine were very flat on top, not nicely domed. I Googled why and I found that most muffins are baked using baking powder…not soda. I will try B. powder next time and will also put in some chopped walnuts. Otherwise I really liked the flavor and texture, not too sweet and not too tart. Hubby loves them.

    1. Thanks, Terry for you comment! We love this recipe too. You’re correct that these muffins aren’t domed. I hope you’ll stop back and let me know how your baking powder version go.

  13. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Rhubarb and was so happy to find this muffin recipe!! They were amazing!!