Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
These pumpkin cream cheese muffins give you everything you love about the coffee shop favorite without the coffee shop price tag. Every bite has pumpkin spice flavor, a rich cream cheese swirl, and buttery cinnamon streusel.
Why You’ll Love This Muffin Recipe
- Make an entire batch at home instead of paying bakery prices for individual muffins.
- Three delicious layers: soft pumpkin muffin, creamy cheesecake filling, and cinnamon streusel.
- Perfect for weekend baking (find more muffin recipes).
Listen, I love a good bakery muffin as much as the next girl, but those little charges add up fast, especially when the whole family wants a treat. That’s why I tested my own pumpkin cream cheese muffin recipe so I can make them at home. I’ve been making homemade pumpkin muffins for more than 20 years. It’s one of the only things my oldest will eat for breakfast!
With this recipe, you can make a whole batch at home using simple grocery store ingredients. Bake them on the weekend, and you have an easy breakfast, snack, or sweet addition to brunch ready to go. They freeze beautifully, too, so you can tuck a few away for another busy morning.
Ingredients
This is a brief overview of this delicious homemade muffin recipe. For step-by-step instructions and a full printable recipe card with ingredients, please scroll down to the teal box below.
Pumpkin Muffins
- All-Purpose Flour: This creates the base of your muffins. For a little extra whole-grain goodness, replace a third of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour. You can also make these gluten-free with a measure-for-measure or 1:1 gluten-free baking flour.
- Baking Powder and Baking Soda: These leavening agents help your muffins rise and stay light instead of turning dense.
- Seasonings: Use your favorite store-bought blend or make your own pumpkin spice mix. You’ll also need a little salt and extra cinnamon.
- Brown sugar: Light or dark brown sugar both work. It adds moisture, sweetness, and a hint of caramel flavor. Brown sugar pairs beautifully with the spices.
- Granulated sugar: This also adds sweetness.
- Eggs: For structure and richness. Bring them to room temperature before mixing for the best results.
- Pumpkin Puree: You can use canned pumpkin or make your own Homemade Pumpkin Puree. Be sure you are using pure pumpkin rather than pumpkin pie filling.
- Vegetable Oil: Oil keeps pumpkin muffins soft and moist, even after they have cooled. Melted coconut oil works well as a substitute; however, let it cool a bit before adding it to your batter.
- Milk: Adds moisture and helps create a soft muffin crumb.
- Pure Vanilla Extract: Rounds out the warm spices and adds a little bakery-style flavor.
Cream Cheese Swirl
- Cream Cheese: Use softened brick-style full-fat cream cheese for the thickest, creamiest filling. Spreadable cream cheese from a tub contains more moisture and can make the filling too loose, so your muffins won’t set up right.
- Egg Yolk: The yolk helps the cream cheese mixture set while keeping it rich and creamy. Take your egg out when you take out the cream cheese. A room-temperature yolk mixes more smoothly into the softened cream cheese.
- Pure Vanilla Extract: Complements the cream cheese and adds a little warmth.
- Granulated Sugar: Sugar lightly sweetens the cream cheese.
Streusel Crumb Topping
You can skip the streusel for a simpler muffin, but I love the contrast between the soft pumpkin muffin, creamy filling, and sweet, crunchy topping.
- Brown Sugar: Light or dark brown sugar adds sweetness and helps the streusel caramelize a little in the oven. Dark brown sugar has a deeper flavor than light brown sugar because it has more molasses.
- Ground Cinnamon: Adds warm fall flavor and makes the crumb topping taste extra cozy.
- Unsalted Butter: Melted butter brings the streusel together and helps it turn golden and crumbly in the oven. Using unsalted butter gives you more control over the flavor, but if you only have salted butter on hand, that’s ok – just don’t add any additional salt.
- Salt: A pinch of salt enhances the crumb topping’s overall flavor.
- All-Purpose Flour: Flour gives the streusel structure so you get crumbs instead of a melted sugar topping. If you like, substitute half the flour with quick-cooking oats for more texture.
Recipe Variations:
- Try adding about 1/2 cup of chopped pecans or walnuts – or even pumpkin seeds – to the streusel for extra crunch.
- Add 1 cup of mini chocolate chips to the pumpkin batter if your family loves pumpkin and chocolate together.
Out of something you need? Check out our free ingredient substitutions printable!
Related: Down East Maine Pumpkin Bread
Frequently Asked Questions
Replace a third of the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour. I like using whole wheat flour for the nutritional value, but it can make the muffins heavier, so I prefer substituting only part of the white flour.
Yes, these are easy to make gluten-free using a good measure-for-measure or 1:1 gluten-free baking flour designed to replace all-purpose flour.
Because there is a creamy filling inside, the center of the muffin will look softer than a plain muffin. Check the pumpkin portion rather than poking directly through the cream cheese.
If the pumpkin batter still looks wet, give the muffins a few more minutes.
Because the cream cheese filling is heavier than muffin batter, it’s normal for it to sink a little. Swirling the cream cheese mixture in the center and near the top gives your pumpkin muffins a more visible cheesecake swirl and helps keep it from sinking too much.
Let the muffins cool before peeling away the paper. Warm muffins tend to stick more easily. I also have found that lower-quality paper liners tend to stick to baked goods more. Personally, I like these natural grease-proof paper muffin liners because they work great and there’s no weird smell.
Press the crumb topping very lightly into the surface of the muffin batter before baking. Do not push it deep into the batter or it will sink and melt into the muffin.
Too much flour can make muffins heavy. Measure it carefully and avoid packing flour into the measuring cup.
Overmixing your muffin batter can also make the muffins dense. Mix your wet and dry ingredients just until combined.
Serving Suggestions
These muffins are perfect just as they are, but they’re also delicious with butter – or for a treat, try them with cinnamon butter, brown sugar butter, or maple butter. Add some fresh fruit for a fruit smoothie, and you’re good to go!
If you are putting together a Fall brunch spread, I love including these muffins along with pumpkin French toast casserole, spinach cranberry walnut salad, ham and cheese croissants, and pumpkin spice hot cocoa.
Before You Head to the Recipe Card
If you make these pumpkin and cream cheese muffins, I would love to hear how they turned out for you. Your feedback also helps other busy home cooks decide if this recipe is right for them. Not ready to bake yet? Save the recipe for later, share it with a fellow pumpkin lover, and come back to leave a comment and rating after you bake them!
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
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Ingredients
For the Muffins
- 1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Cheesecake Filling
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
For the Streusel Topping
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- pinch salt
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line two 12-cup muffin pans with 18 paper liners.
- In a large bowl, mix the pumpkin puree, granulated sugar, brown sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla until everything is smooth and well combined.1 cup pumpkin puree, 3/4 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup vegetable oil, 2 large eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining dry ingredients for the muffins. (Take care not to use the streusel ingredients here.)1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture a little at a time. Stir just until combined. Be careful not to overmix the batter.
- To make the cream cheese filling, beat the cream cheese, sugar, egg yolk, vanilla, and flour together until smooth and creamy.8 ounces cream cheese, 1 large egg yolk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- Fill each muffin cup about halfway with pumpkin batter. Spoon a little of the cream cheese mixture into the center of each muffin.
- Mix the streusel ingredients together until crumbly, then sprinkle it generously over the tops of the muffins.2 tablespoons brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, pinch salt, 2 tablespoons melted butter, 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- Bake for 20 to 22 minutes, until the muffins are set and a toothpick inserted into the pumpkin portion comes out clean.
- Let the muffins cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
- Store leftover muffins in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. For the best texture, let them come to room temperature before serving.
Equipment
- Muffin Tin – 12 Count (this recipe makes about 18 standard muffins), or
- Jumbo Muffin Tin – 6 count (This recipe makes about 9 jumbo muffins)
Notes
Ang’s Recipe Tips
Here are some things to keep in mind for the best pumpkin and cream cheese muffins:- Bring your cream cheese to room temperature. Cold cream cheese can leave little lumps in the filling. Give it enough time to soften before you start mixing.
- Use brick cream cheese. The spreadable variety has a softer consistency and can make your filling runny.
- Do not overmix your batter. Stir only until you no longer see large streaks of flour. Overmixing can make muffins dense or rubbery.
- Measure flour carefully. Instead of packing it down, spoon your flour into the measuring cup and level it off with the back of a butter knife. Remember, too much flour can make the muffins dry.
- Use pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling. Pumpkin pie filling already contains sweeteners and spices, which can throw off your muffins’ flavor and texture.
- Do not overdo the swirl. A few gentle swirls give you pretty ribbons of cream cheese. Mixing it too much can make the filling disappear into the pumpkin batter.
- Make chunky streusel. Use a fork to combine the streusel until it is pea-sized crumbs. Then squeeze some of the crumb mixture together with your fingers before adding it to the muffins, and gently press it into the batter. This creates bigger, buttery crumbs on top that won’t fall off.
Storage
How to Freeze Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
- Allow the muffins to cool completely to room temperature. This is very important.
- After the muffins cool completely, place them in a freezer-safe container or bag. (For easy grab-and-go breakfasts, I recommend wrapping them individually before freezing.)
- Don’t forget to label them (no one likes frozen mystery food)! I love these removable labels because they don’t leave that annoying sticky residue on my containers.
- Freeze for up to 2 months for the best flavor and texture.
Nutrition
Similar Recipes
Next time, try one of these delicious muffin recipes:
- cinnamon banana muffins
- cranberry white chocolate muffins
- apple cinnamon muffins
- raspberry cream cheese muffins
If you love baking muffins, you have to check out this collection of all my best muffin recipes. There’s something for everyone, from kid-friendly peanut butter chocolate muffins and shortcut pancake mix muffins to savory cheddar bacon muffins and many more!
