Rhubarb Muffins, Veggie Burgers & Asparagus Three Ways

I go through cooking phases. Sometimes, I love cooking and I can't get enough of it. Other times I am irritated that I am the only one in the house who seems to know where the kitchen is and I stop cooking for a little while.

Spring is a great time to be in a cooking mood. All the fresh vegetables inspire looking for new recipes and trying out new things. I also generally buy fresh locally grown produce in excess and have no choice but to cook it. (4 lbs of rhubarb? Why not, we haven't had rhubarb in a year.)

Springtime cooking this year has coincided with a bit of a health kick, as these recipes will reflect. Here are some recent winners that I have tried.

*A note about my lack of pictures: sorry, I suck. I am going to try much harder to start including lots more photos with my posts.*

Rhubarb Oatmeal Muffins
One problem that I always have with rhubarb is that it is frequently paired with cups upon cups of sugar. I searched high and low this year to find a rhubarb recipe that wasn't insane in the sugar department. Plus, I love rhubarb for its tartness - why hide that? This recipe is AWESOME. I have made it four times (this has something to do with the quantity of rhubarb I purchased at the Farmers Market last week) and each time the muffins have been seriously worth it.

The original recipe is here. Of course I have tweaked it and my version is below.

1 cup flour
3/4 cup quick-cooking oats
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 tsps baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 egg
1/3 cup safflower oil OR 1/3 cup applesauce (applesauce makes for a more binded, less crumby muffin)
1/3 or any citrus juice - I have used orange juice, juice from canned Mandarin oranges and apple juice with success
1 tsp grated orange peel
1 cup diced fresh or frozen rhubarb, thawed and drained

Topping
1/4 cup quick-cooking oats
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tbsps chopped pecans or walnuts or you can leave the nuts out if you desire
2 tbsp butter, softened
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

In a mixing bowl, combine the first seven ingredients; set aside.
In another bowl, combine egg, oil or applesauce, citrus juice and peel.
Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.
Fold in rhubarb.
Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups 2/3 full.
Combine topping ingredients; sprinkle over tops.
Bake at 350*F for 18-20 minutes or until muffins test done

This recipe yields about 9 muffins. I find doubling it and filling the muffin cups more yields nice sized muffins, about a dozen.

Veggie Burgers
I have been craving homemade veggie burgers lately (and brussel sprouts, must be pregnancy cravings). My little brother and his gf came over for dinner one night and we made these veggie burgers. They were fantastic. I would recommend doubling the recipe and freezing some for later use. They are a bit time consuming to prepare so why not make extra and freeze some?

Asparagus, Asparagus, Asparagus
My excitement about rhubarb was shadowed only by my extreme enthusiasm for asparagus. It was asparagus with or for every meal for about a week. My favorite three ways to have asparagus:
#1) Roasted Asparagus. Just toss with olive oil, kosher salt and pepper. Roast for a few minutes at 425. Note: I think kosher salt is essential when roasting vegetables. You just don't get the same results with table salt.
#2) Asparagus Salad. This recipe is a favorite for its simplicity. The flavors blend together so nicely you will have a hard time not finishing the entire salad. My only regret here is that tomatoes and asparagus are not in season at the same time. But since my 2yo eats tomatoes (even the nasty ones from the store) like there is no tomorrow we always have tomatoes on hand.
#3) Cream of Asparagus Soup. And speaking of simplicity... when you have fresh vegetables it is so wonderful to prepare them simply and really let the flavor shine though. Here is a very simple cream of asparagus soup that comes together in about 20 minutes and it fabulous only with fresh delicious asparagus.

Happy Spring Cooking!