Fall is here and I’m ready for these pumpkin cream cheese muffins to find their way onto our breakfast menu again. They are so soft and moist and perfectly spiced with a cream cheese center that is sweet and tangy and perfect. And then there is that gorgeous streusel topping that I just can’t get enough of. These would be perfect for Thanksgiving and All Hallows Eve. And incidentally, I love that name and think we should start referring to Halloween by its older name more because it’s spookier. But I digress… These are wonderful warm or cold, especially with a nice glass of cold milk. We love them for an afternoon snack when the girls get home from school. And these cream cheese filled pumpkin muffins would be just right to start off your Halloween morning! Or any fall morning! Streusel topping makes everything more delicious, right? If you agree, we think you’ll also enjoy these Raspberry Streusel Muffins, German Apple Cake with Streusel Topping, and Dutch Pear & Nutmeg Pie with Streusel Topping.
Why this recipe works
Freezing the cream cheese filling is key to help it not melt into the muffin too much. I also tried swirling it into the pumpkin batter after just dolloping it on top, which works, but you don’t get the same intensely cheesecake factor of biting into a pumpkin muffin with a cream cheese center. This recipe uses up almost an entire can of pumpkin puree. There is just enough leftover to make a pumpkin pie smoothie! The streusel topping takes only a minute to throw together but really takes the muffins over the top.
Recipe Ingredients
There are three parts to this recipe – the muffin batter, the cream cheese filling, and the streusel topping – but they all come together quickly and use staple ingredients that you most likely already have on hand.
Pumpkin: Be sure to use pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling. Or better yet, get your hands on some sugar pumpkins and learn how to make pumpkin puree at home! Cream cheese: I have used both full-fat and reduced fat cream cheese and either works in this recipe. Spices: Pumpkin pie spice is just a mix of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and allspice and they give that classic warm, spiced flavor to these muffins without being overpowering.
How to Make Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
Recipe Tips
I recommend using cupcake liners for these muffins as they are very soft and seem to do better with liners versus being baked directly in the pan. I have found that the easiest way to handle the soft, sticky cream cheese mixture is to drop it by spoonfuls onto parchment paper or a lightly sprayed piece of plastic wrap on a cookie sheet and then sliding them into the freezer for 30-60 minutes. This helps the cream cheese firm up before adding it to the muffins. You want the cream cheese to be colder than the pumpkin muffin batter so it doesn’t completely melt into the muffin while they bake, but it doesn’t have to be frozen solid. Don’t fill each liner too full with pumpkin batter before adding the cream cheese because it is going to want to rise to the top as the muffins bake. I would aim to have just a little batter in the bottom of each cup before adding the cream cheese, then using a larger amount of batter to cover the cream cheese completely before adding the streusel. Try adding oats or chopped walnuts to the streusel topping for a deliciously toasty and crunchy variation. Another idea would be to stir in some mini chocolate chips to the muffin batter if you love pumpkin and chocolate together.
More Pumpkin Recipes You’ll Love
Easy Homemade Pumpkin Pie Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread Light & Creamy Pumpkin Chiffon Pie Pumpkin Chocolate Babka
This post was originally published in October, 2016. The photos and content were updated in September, 2021. Let me know what you thought with a comment and rating below. You can also take a picture and tag me on Instagram @houseofnasheats or share it on the Pinterest pin so I can see.
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