Apple, Rhubarb and Pecan Muffins

A very good Sunday morning to all of you Gourmet Goddess peeps! Today I thought I would share a simple recipe for something that I baked last weekend, that turned out to be rather lovely. I decided to make a batch of muffins for brunch, and as I wasn't very motivated to get out of my track suit pants and go to the shops, it had to involve ingredients I already had on hand. I checked out the fruit bowl, the fridge and the pantry and came up with a combination of Pink Lady apples, a few stalks of rhubarb and a couple of handfuls of pecan nuts.

The result was these tasty, rustic fruit packed muffins.

Apple, Rhubarb and Pecan Muffins

The pecans add a wonderful textural element to these beauties - I chose to leave the skin on the apples for the same reason. The skins also have lots of fibre so they are better for you as well. The muffins aren't overly sweet and you can really taste the natural flavours of the fruit coming through, without this being overwhelmed by too much sugar. To add some warmth and spice, I included some cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg to the mixture, as well as a touch of vanilla. These ingredients add flavour without the sugar - feel free to add more than I state in the recipe if you want your muffins extra aromatic and spicy.

I would be inclined to use whatever you have in your fruit bowl as a basis for these muffins - any combination of apples, pears or even plums would work well. I adore rhubarb, but if you aren't keen on it, you could substitute chopped strawberries if you wanted to. Don't have pecans on hand? Chopped almonds, walnuts or hazelnuts would be great too.

Eat these muffins warm with good butter. Oh, and they would freeze well too.

Have a lovely Sunday!

You will need:
3 apples (I used Pink Lady variety), 3 or 4 stalks rhubarb, 2 cups self raising flour, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 free range egg, 1 cup milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1/4 cup vegetable oil (I used rice bran oil),
1 cup chopped pecans, 1/4 teaspoon allspice, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, 2 pinches nutmeg.

Method:
Wash and trim the rhubarb and ensure no leaves are left on. Chop the stalks into small pieces. Core and chop the apples into small pieces (I leave the skin on). Spread the apple and rhubarb onto a lined baking tray and cook for 20 minutes in a preheated oven at 200C. Remove and allow to cool.

Whisk together the milk, oil, vanilla and egg. Set aside about a tablespoon of the pecans to sprinkle on the tops of the muffins once in the pan. In another bowl, combine the flour, sugar, remaining pecans, allspice, nutmeg and cinnamon.

Add the fruit to the flour mixture, then pour in the wet mixture. Combine gently until just mixed together. Do not over mix, or your muffins will be tough and flat. Spoon into a large muffin pan. Sprinkle the remaining pecans over the tops of the muffins.

Bake in a preheated oven at 180C for about 20-25 minutes. Allow to cool in the pan before turning out the muffins. Makes 10 large sized muffins.

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