Description
Delight in these moist and flavorful Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins, featuring a rich cream cheese filling and a sweet cinnamon streusel topping. Perfect for fall breakfasts or snacks, these muffins combine pumpkin spice with creamy sweetness in every bite.
Ingredients
Scale
Cream Cheese Filling
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened to room temperature
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Pumpkin Muffins
- ¾ cup butter softened
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar packed
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 Tablespoons whole milk
- 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin spice
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
Streusel
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar firmly packed
- 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3 Tablespoons butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat oven to 375F (190C) and line a 12 count muffin tin with paper liners.
- Make Cream Cheese Filling: Place cream cheese in a mixing bowl and stir until smooth. Add granulated sugar and vanilla extract; stir until creamy and completely combined. Set aside.
- Cream Butter and Sugars: In a medium bowl, use an electric mixer to cream together softened butter, sugar, and brown sugar until well-creamed and fluffy.
- Add Eggs: Beat in eggs until fully combined into the butter-sugar mixture.
- Add Pumpkin and Vanilla: Stir in pumpkin puree and vanilla extract until mixed, then add whole milk and mix well, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl to incorporate all ingredients evenly.
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In another medium bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, pumpkin spice, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Combine Wet and Dry: Gradually add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients using a spatula, stirring just until combined; avoid over-mixing to keep muffins tender.
- Assemble Muffins: Portion about 2 tablespoons of pumpkin batter into each muffin liner. Use the back of a spoon to create a small crater in the center. Spoon a heaping tablespoon of cream cheese filling into the crater, then cover with more pumpkin batter until the liners are about three-quarters full.
- Prepare Streusel: Whisk together flour, light brown sugar, granulated sugar, and cinnamon. Add melted butter and gently toss with fingers or a fork until the mixture forms clumps.
- Add Streusel Topping: Evenly sprinkle streusel on top of each muffin, covering the batter.
- Bake Muffins: Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes or until muffin tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with only dry crumbs.
- Cool and Serve: Allow muffins to cool completely before removing from the tin and serving.
Notes
- Store leftover muffins in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days to maintain freshness.
- Make sure the cream cheese and eggs are at room temperature to ensure smooth mixing and creamy filling.
- Do not over-mix the batter; over-mixing can result in dense muffins.
- Use fresh pumpkin spice or a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves if you don’t have pumpkin spice on hand.
- If you prefer a dairy-free version, substitute butter with a plant-based alternative and use lactose-free cream cheese.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 muffin
- Calories: 320 kcal
- Sugar: 22 g
- Sodium: 210 mg
- Fat: 18 g
- Saturated Fat: 10 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 7 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 34 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 4 g
- Cholesterol: 55 mg
