Simple Sourdough Rhubarb Walnut Muffins
These long-fermented sourdough rhubarb walnut muffins are a great way to use rhubarb from the garden and sourdough discard. The tang from the rhubarb and long-fermentation gets balanced out by the nuttiness of the whole-grain flour and walnuts. They’re a light but nourishing, satiating and easily digestible snack to have on the go!
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I find muffins to be quite filling sometimes, especially true muffins and not cupcake-like muffins. This recipe uses simple ingredients and makes a generous amount of mini muffins, enough for the whole family! They freeze well and still taste delicious after thawing. You’re going to love this simple and versatile recipe.
Why You’ll Love These Sourdough Rhubarb Walnut Muffins
- Quick to prepare ahead of time
- Easily digestible and satiating
- Nutrient dense after long-fermentation
- Uses sourdough discard
- Easy to freeze and taste great thawed
Health Benefits of Rhubarb
Rhubarb isn’t typically used for any medicinal purposes but I think all whole-foods have some health benefits and it’s interesting to me to know what they are.
Rhubarb is a good source of essential vitamins and minerals, including vitamin K, vitamin C, calcium, potassium, and manganese, which support bone health, immune function, and blood clotting.
It is high in dietary fibre, aiding digestion and promoting regular bowel movements. Its antioxidants help protect cells from damage and reduce the risk of chronic diseases. The fibre content in rhubarb can help lower cholesterol levels and regulate blood pressure, supporting cardiovascular health.
Rhubarb is low calorie and has high fibre content making it a filling food that supports the microbiome. With its natural anti-inflammatory properties and potential liver-protective effects, rhubarb contributes to overall wellness.
Health Benefits of Long-Fermenting Grain
Fermenting grains may seem like an unnecessary step, especially when you need to get food out for hungry kids. However, doing so offers a number of health benefits and is the traditional way grains were prepared for optimizing their nourishment potential.
Fermentation breaks down anti-nutrients like phytic acid, which can inhibit the absorption of essential minerals such as iron, zinc, and calcium. This process makes these nutrients more bioavailable. When you skip the fermentation step, phytic acid can bind to minerals such as iron, zinc, magnesium, and calcium. This reduces the bioavailability of these essential nutrients and can potentially lead to deficiencies, especially in diets that rely heavily on grains and legumes.
The fermentation process also pre-digests grains, breaking down complex carbohydrates, proteins, and fats into simpler compounds. This can make fermented grains easier to digest and reduce the likelihood of bloating and indigestion. And for those sensitive to gluten, fermentation can partially break down gluten proteins, potentially making fermented grains more tolerable.
Not to mention, fermentation can improve the taste and texture of grains, making them more enjoyable to eat. The natural sourness from lactic acid bacteria can add a pleasant tang to fermented flour products. Overall, fermenting flour is the way to go, in my opinion. The health benefits and flavour boost the process offers outweighs the convenience of skipping long fermentation.
What Is Sourdough Discard?
Sourdough “discard” refers to the excess sourdough starter that isn’t at its prime for leavening bread but still holds excellent fermentation capabilities. While it may not be suitable for raising bread, this discard can still ferment and enhance other baked goods. This is why there are so many sourdough discard recipes available online, allowing you to make use of this valuable byproduct.
You can use sourdough discard to make sourdough rhubarb walnut muffins, sourdough einkorn chocolate chip cookies, sourdough honey sweetened banana bread, sourdough rye brownies, rye discard crackers, and even sourdough tortilla shells! The possibilities are literally endless.
How Does Cold Fermentation Work?
Long and cold fermenting the doughs and batters of your baked goods with sourdough discard has many advantages that don’t involve leavening.
The natural yeasts and bacteria in the sourdough discard ferment the dough and batter at a slow rate in the refrigerator. This slow fermentation enhances the dough’s flavour, nutrition profile and digestibility.
The bacteria produce compounds that add a mild tanginess to the dough and the slow fermentation process allows the dough to develop deeper, more complex flavours. The breakdown of starches and proteins by the yeast and bacteria also contributes to a richer taste. They also help break down phytic acid in the flour, which can improve the dough’s digestibility and increase the bioavailability of nutrients.
Where To Get Whole-Grain Flour
If you’re living in a city, you can mostly likely find a bakery or fancy grocery store that sells fresh-milled whole-grain flour. If you’re living in the country and you can source whole-grains, you may want to consider milling your own flour.
You can start without making a large investment by using a powerful coffee grinder or blender that you already own. A step up would be purchasing a KitchenAid grain mill attachment. If you’re really enjoying working with fresh-milled whole-grains and you have a reliable source of grain, you can also consider a Harvest NutriMill which is the one I use and love both for its beauty and practicality.
When you feel ready to invest in a NutriMill, use my discount code BRONSBREAD20 at checkout to get $20 off.
Materials You’ll Need
Small Saucepan: For melting butter.
Medium Sized Mixing Bowl: For mixing all ingredients.
Whisk: For whipping wet ingredients.
Spatula: For folding in dry ingredients.
Kitchen Scale or Measuring Cups: For measuring out ingredients. I prefer using a kitchen scale but work with what you have!
Mini Muffin Silicone Tray: Two trays that hold 12 mini muffins or one tray that holds 24 mini muffins.
Scoop: For scooping the muffin batter. You can also use regular spoons.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Fresh-Milled Whole-Grain Flour: Use any whole-grain that interests you! Because it’s only a small amount, the differences in grain characteristics won’t have much of an impact. You can also use regular whole-wheat flour from the store if you have a hard time sourcing fresh-milled whole-grain flour.
White Flour: I use trusty ol’ all-purpose flour.
Sugar: In this recipe, I used brown sugar. You can also use a less refined sugar such as rapadura or sucanat.
Butter: Melted butter is what I use in this recipe. You can also use melted coconut oil or lard.
Eggs: I use the eggs from our chickies but any eggs will do.
Vanilla: I use homemade vanilla but any vanilla is delicious.
Sourdough Discard: Sourdough discard is perfect for this recipe as it’s not used as a leavening agent, just for fermentation. The older your discard, the more sour the final product will be.
Milk: I used regular milk but you can also use juice, water, cream, or even leftover whey from cheesemaking!
Cinnamon: Most things have to have a little ground cinnamon in it. Some nutmeg would also take it to another level!
Baking Powder: The almighty baking powder. Any brand will do the trick.
Salt: I use pink Himalayan sea salt in this recipe but any salt is great.
Rhubarb: I used rhubarb from our backyard for this recipe but you can substitute for blueberries, raspberries, or blackberries if you have a hard time finding rhubarb.
Walnuts: I’m using walnuts in this recipe because I love them but you can use any nut you have on hand. Crushing and toasting the nuts would also take it to another level.
How To Make Sourdough Rhubarb Walnut Muffins
Preheat oven to 450°F.
Melt butter in a small saucepan.
In a medium bowl, mix sugar, melted butter, and vanilla.
Add eggs and stir until smooth.
Mix in sourdough discard, nutmeg and cinnamon.
Add white flour, whole grain flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir until just combined.
Fold in chopped rhubarb and crushed walnuts. Do not overmix.
Optional: For better flavour and fermentation, cover and refrigerate the batter for up to 12 hours. Or let rest for 30 minutes if baking right away.
Prepare mini muffin tins with liners or use silicone trays.
Scoop batter into cups, filling about ¾ full.
Place in oven and immediately reduce temperature to 350°F.
Bake for 20–25 minutes, until golden and a toothpick comes out clean.
Let cool in the muffin tin before removing.
Notes
Putting muffins into a hot oven and then reducing the temperature helps it rise better. The initial high heat gives the muffins a quick lift, and then lowering the temperature allows it to bake evenly without burning the outside. This technique ensures a well-risen muffin with a tender inside.
If you want to make regular sized muffins, simply use larger muffin cup trays, scoop more and bake 30-35 minutes at 350F.
Watch how to make this recipe!
Sourdough Rhubarb Walnut Mini Muffins
Ingredients
- 1/2 Cup Butter 115g
- 1/2 Cup Sugar 100g
- 1 tbsp Vanilla
- 2 Eggs
- 1/3 Cup Sourdough Discard 100g
- 2/3 Cup Milk 160g
- 1½ Cups All-purpose Flour 200g
- 3/4 Cup Whole-grain Flour 100g
- 1/4 tsp Cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp Nutmeg
- 1 tbsp Baking Powder
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1 Cup Chopped Rhubarb
- 1/2 Cup Chopped Walnuts
Instructions
Day 1: Prepare the Batter
- Melt 115g of butter in a small saucepan.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine 100g of sugar and the melted butter.
- Add 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract and mix well.
- Add 2 eggs and mix until fully incorporated.
- Stir in 180g of sourdough discard and 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon, mixing until the batter is smooth.
- Add 200g of white flour, 100g of whole-grain flour, 1 tablespoon of baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt.
- Mix gently until just combined, avoiding overmixing.
- Carefully fold in 1 cup of chopped rhubarb and 1/2 cup of crushed walnuts, ensuring there are no dry spots in the batter.
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate the batter for 8+ hours to allow for cold fermentation.
Day 2: Bake the Muffins
- Preheat your oven to 450°F (230°C).
- Prepare silicone mini muffin trays or line mini muffin tins with paper liners.
- Scoop the batter into the muffin cups, filling each about 3/4 full.
- Place the muffins in the preheated oven, then immediately lower the temperature to 350°F (175°C).
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the muffins are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Allow the muffins to cool in the tin for a few minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack.
- If using silicone liners, let the muffins cool completely before removing them from the liners.
Notes
Recommended Reading
- Simple Whole Grain Chocolate Chip Banana Bread
- How to Harvest and Preserve Red Raspberry Leaves
- How To Make Water Kefir – An Easy and Refreshing Fermented Beverage
- Red Raspberry Leaf and Ginger Water Kefir
- How to Harvest and Preserve Rhubarb
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