Strawberry Rhubarb Almond Muffin - A Yummy Summer Muffin Recipe

These muffins are simple, quick delicious and easy to make.  You can serve these muffins any time of the day warm or cold. Great for to have either for breakfast or as a snack.

Ingredients for Muffins:

• 3/4 cup strawberries, diced bite size
• 3/4 cup rhubarb, diced bite size
• 3/4 cup of almond paste, diced bite size
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2-1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda 
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
• 1 cup sour cream 
• 4 oz. (8 Tbs.) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly or at room temperature
• 2 large eggs 
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract 
• cooking spray

Topping:

• 3 Tbs. granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon 
• 1/3 cup of sliced almonds 

Kitchen Utensils

• large glass bowl 
• 3 medium bowls 
• measuring cup
• measuring spoons
• whisk or electric mixer
• spatula 
• ice cream scoop
• knife
• cutting board
• 12-cup muffin pan

Instruction:

1. First, preheat your oven to 400°F and position a rack in the center of the oven. 
2. The second thing to do is line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper so nothing sticks.
3. Next dice the rhubarb, strawberries and almond paste.  You want these about as small as a blueberry and no larger than a 1/4 of an inch.  If the fruit is not sliced up into small pieces, there is a chance that the fruit will sink to the bottom because the fruit is heavy. Set the everything aside in a bowl.
4. In a large bowl mix the dry ingredients including flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda and salt with a spoon.
5. In a medium bowl, use a hand held whisk to whisk together quickly the sour cream, melted butter, eggs, orange zest and vanilla until smooth.
6. Now  take 2-3 tablespoons of your flour mixture and put it into your strawberry, rhubarb and almond mixture.  Give the fruit and almond paste a quick little mix to coat them in the flour so the flour adheres to it.  That way when the muffins are baking, the fruit will not sink all of the way down. 
7. Next, combine the dry ingredients right into the wet ingredients with a spatula.  Don't over mix.  The batter should have lumps and not be completely smooth.
8. Now fold the fruit into the flour mixture with a spatula until the batter just comes together.  The spatula prevents from over mixing the flour and from smashing up the fruit so these are going to be a nice muffin.
9. Next, add an ice cream scoopful of batter into each muffin cup and make them all of the same size. The batter should mound a bit higher than the tops of the cups.
10. In a small bowl, combine the almonds, sugar and cinnamon and mix well. Sprinkle a generous 1/2 tsp. of the cinnamon almond sugar mixture over each muffin batter.
11. Now we are ready to bake the muffins in preheated oven 400°F for about 20-25 minutes.  Bake the muffins until they’re golden brown.  The easiest way to tell if the muffins are baked is to insert a toothpick into the center.  If the toothpick comes out clean then you know they are done.
12. Transfer to a wire rack and let the muffins cool in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes.
13. These muffins are best when freshly baked, but they’re still good the second day.