Swirled Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins: Easy, Moist Fall Muffins
These swirled pumpkin cream cheese muffins combine moist pumpkin muffins with a sweet, creamy cheesecake-style swirl. Made with pumpkin puree and pumpkin spice, they bake in 18 to 20 minutes and make 18 standard muffins.
- Prep Time: 12 minutes
- Cook Time: 18 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 18 standard muffins 1x
- Category: Breakfast, Muffins
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Scale
Muffin
- 1 ¾ cups all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin spice
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 (15 oz) can pumpkin puree
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup packed brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup vegetable oil, or melted and cooled butter
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Swirl
- 8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg yolk, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Place paper baking cups into a muffin pan. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, pumpkin spice, baking soda, and salt until well combined. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, granulated sugar, and brown sugar. Beat in the eggs, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract.
- Slowly whisk the flour mixture into the pumpkin mixture until there are no lumps. Fill the muffin tins ¾ full.
- In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the sugar, egg yolk, and vanilla extract, and beat until well combined.
- Top each muffin with about 1 tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture. Use a toothpick to swirl it into the batter. The mixture may not look smooth, but it will bake up nicely. Alternatively, drop rounded spoonfuls into the centers of the muffin batter without swirling.
- Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the pumpkin part comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs attached.
- Let the muffins cool for 10 minutes. Serve warm or let them cool completely before storing.
Notes
- Storage: Store the muffins in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Serving: These muffins can be served at room temperature or slightly chilled. Remove them from the refrigerator a few minutes before serving if you prefer them less cold.
- No pumpkin spice? Make your own by combining 4 teaspoons cinnamon, 2 teaspoons ginger, 1 teaspoon cloves, ½ teaspoon nutmeg, and ½ teaspoon allspice.
- Swirling: Swirling the cream cheese mixture with a toothpick is optional. You can also drop rounded spoonfuls into the centers of the muffin batter.