Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

Pumpkin cream cheese muffins are moist and delicious bakery-style muffins with the perfect combination of sweet cream cheese and warm spices.

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Moist and delicious pumpkin cream cheese muffins feature the perfect combination of sweet cream cheese and warm spices. Spiced pumpkin muffins with a sweet cream cheese filling are an irresistible breakfast treat. 

MORE RECIPES: Cherry Cobbler Muffins | 2-Ingredient Pumpkin Spice Muffins | Blueberry Muffins with Sour Cream

Perfect for a cozy fall breakfast, pumpkin cream cheese muffins practically melt in your mouth with the perfect combination of sweet cream cheese and warm spices. Skip the coffee shop, and make these drool-worthy pumpkin muffins at home. 

Serve these bakery-style muffins warm, at room temperature, or even after being chilled in the refrigerator. An irresistible pumpkin spice breakfast treat, you could also serve them for brunch with friends alongside other muffins like blueberry muffins with sour cream or cherry cobbler muffins. They also pair deliciously with a warm mug of pumpkin spice latte.

Pumpkin cream cheese muffins are packed with warm spices and a sweet cream cheese filling. Whip up a batch of these incredibly soft muffins when you need a bite of warm and cozy fall flavor. 

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins Ingredients

Make sure you use full-fat cream cheese for this recipe. The low-fat and fat-free versions don’t work well as they make the cream cheese mixture much thinner. You’ll also want to make sure your cream cheese is at room temperature when you start, or you will end up with lumps in your creamy filling.

You can use any neutral oil for this recipe, such as canola, vegetable, or avocado. Oils such as coconut and olive oil both have stronger flavors that may not work well with the pumpkin and cream cheese, so we don’t recommend using them for this muffin recipe. 

Turn these into pumpkin chocolate chip muffins by adding some chocolate chips to the muffin batter. Another yummy addition would be adding pumpkin seeds either baked into the batter or scattered on top of the cream cheese mixture for decoration. This would add a lovely crunch to an already scrumptious muffin.

How to Make Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

FIRST STEP: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two standard muffin tins with 20 paper liners. Set aside.

SECOND STEP: To make the cream cheese filling, add the cream cheese and granulated sugar into a medium-sized mixing bowl. With a handheld mixer, on medium-low speed, beat together the cream cheese and granulated sugar for 1 minute or until smooth.

THIRD STEP: Add the egg yolk and vanilla extract and beat for another 30 seconds to fully incorporate and create a smooth cream cheese filling. Transfer the cream cheese mixture to a piping bag or a Ziploc bag with the corner snipped off. Set aside.

FOURTH STEP: In a medium bowl, add the all-purpose flour, pumpkin pie spice blend, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir to combine.

FIFTH STEP: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the canned pure pumpkin puree, vegetable oil, large eggs, vanilla extract, light brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Whisk until all the ingredients are completely blended and the mixture is smooth.

SIXTH STEP: Add the flour mixture into the pumpkin mixture and whisk just until all the ingredients are combined and the batter is thick and smooth.

SEVENTH STEP: Fill all 20 muffin liners ¾ full with the pumpkin muffin batter.

EIGHTH STEP: Squeeze 1½-2 teaspoons of the cream cheese filling into the center of each pumpkin muffin.

NINTH STEP: Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the pumpkin part of the muffin comes out clean. Allow the pumpkin cream cheese muffins to cool completely on a wire rack before serving.

How do I keep my muffins from sticking to the liners? 

We like using muffin liners that are parchment paper because the muffins come out of the liners much easier than some of the paper brands available. We do not suggest using the generic brands of paper liners as they are pretty but they tend to really make the muffins stick to the paper. A 2-inch cookie scoop or ice cream scoop works well to fill the muffin tins.

Can I keep these muffins on the counter? 

Because they have cream cheese in them, we would recommend keeping them in the fridge rather than on the counter. You can also freeze the muffins for up to a month although the texture of the cream cheese filling may change slightly once thawed.

What if I can’t find pumpkin pie spice? 

If you can’t find pumpkin pie spice in the store, you could use either cinnamon or a combination of cinnamon and nutmeg.

How to Store Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins 

IN THE FRIDGE: Store leftover pumpkin cream cheese muffins in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.  
IN THE FREEZER: Pumpkin muffins can be kept in the freezer for up to 1 month sealed in an airtight container.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

Pumpkin cream cheese muffins are moist and delicious bakery-style muffins with the perfect combination of sweet cream cheese and warm spices.

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5 from 13 votes

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Servings 20

Calories 147 kcal

Ingredients

  

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Muffins

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice blend
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin puree ((NOT pumpkin pie filling))
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• 2 large eggs (room temperature)
• 2 teaspoons extract (vanilla )
• ¾ cup light brown sugar
• ¼ cup sugar (granulated )

Cream Cheese Filling

• 8 ounces cream cheese ( room temperature)
• ⅓ cup sugar (granulated )
• 1½ teaspoons vanilla (extract)
• 1 large egg yolk

DIRECTIONS

 

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two standard muffin tins with 20 paper liners. Set aside.
• To make the cream cheese filling, add the cream cheese and granulated sugar into a medium-sized mixing bowl. With a handheld mixer, on medium-low speed, beat together the cream cheese and granulated sugar for 1 minute or until smooth.
• Add the egg yolk and vanilla extract and beat for another 30 seconds to fully incorporate and create a smooth cream cheese filling. Transfer the cream cheese mixture to a piping bag or a Ziploc bag with the corner snipped off. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, add the all-purpose flour, pumpkin pie spice blend, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir to combine.
• In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the canned pure pumpkin puree, vegetable oil, large eggs, vanilla extract, light brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Whisk until all the ingredients are completely blended and the mixture is smooth.
• Add the flour mixture into the pumpkin mixture and whisk just until all the ingredients are combined and the batter is thick and smooth.
• Fill all 20 muffin liners ¾ full with the pumpkin muffin batter.
• Squeeze 1½-2 teaspoons of the cream cheese filling into the center of each pumpkin muffin.
• Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the pumpkin part of the muffin comes out clean. Allow the pumpkin cream cheese muffins to cool completely on a wire rack before serving.

Nutrition

Calories: 147kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.002g | Cholesterol: 28mg | Sodium: 130mg | Potassium: 67mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 177IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 33mg | Iron: 1mg

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