Helen's "Backyard" Rhubarb Muffins - prepared by Jean Logan, Dir - KTIV News 4 Sioux City IA: News, Weather and Sports

Helen's "Backyard" Rhubarb Muffins - prepared by Jean Logan, Director of the Community Action Agency of Siouxland

Ingredients-

• 1 cup buttermilk

(note -to substitute for buttermilk, place 1 tablespoon lemon juice (or white vinegar) in a glass measuring cup and fill with 2% milk to the one cup line. Prepare this first-it should stand for a few minutes while the batter is prepared.)

• 2 ½ cups flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 egg
• 1 ¼ cups brown sugar
• ½ cup cooking oil (to make the recipe healthier I substitute ½ cup applesauce for the cooking oil)
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 ½ cups diced rhubarb (frozen is ok)
• ¼ tsp. black walnut flavoring (opt.)
• ½ cup chopped walnuts

Topping-

• 1 Tablespoon melted butter (opt.)
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/3 cup sugar

Directions-Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Make buttermilk as described above and set aside. Lightly grease 24 muffin cups or line with paper baking cups. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, beat egg and add brown sugar, applesauce, vanilla and buttermilk, mixing well. Stir in rhubarb, walnut flavoring and nuts. Add flour mixture and mix until just combined. Using a ladle, fill muffin cups 3/4 full with batter.

Combine topping ingredients and sprinkle over the top of the batter in each muffin cup.
Bake for 13-18 minutes.