Pumpkin is one of my favorite ingredients to work with. It’s such a versatile ingredient that adapts well to sweet or savory dishes. From pumpkin chili to pumpkin French toast casserole, there are countless ways to incorporate pumpkin into your fall menu. Let’s kick of pumpkin season with a easy favorite- pumpkin cream cheese muffins! These are special because of that luscious cream cheese swirl topping. These muffins are quick and easy to make and sure to please a crowd. Best of all, this recipe makes a little over a dozen. Meaning, you’ll have a couple to save for yourself and still have a full dozen to share or giveaway to others.
Muffins are usually made with a neutral flavored oils like vegetable or canola oil. Oil is 100% fat with no water. As a result, you get moist muffins. This pumpkin muffin recipe uses a combination of melted butter and vegetable oil. Unsalted butter is made from a combination of about 80% milk fat, 18% water, and 2% milk solids. Those milk solids help to add a bit more flavor and richness to the muffins.
How to make the cream cheese swirl:
Fill the muffin tin about half full of pumpkin batter. Add three dollops of the cream cheese mixture. Follow with three dollops of pumpkin batter between the cream cheese. Use a chopstick, butter knife, or mini offset spatula to swirl together the dollops. Alternatively, if you want the cream cheese swirl throughout the entire muffin, fill the muffin tin a little over a quarter (1/4) full with pumpkin batter. Add the dollops of cream cheese and pumpkin batter in two additions until the muffin tin is about 3/4 full of batter.
These pumpkin cream cheese muffins get a kick of flavor from pumpkin pie spice mix. The store-bought spice mix is usually a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, all-spice, and ginger. Alternatively, you could simply pick one spice to shine- such as cinnamon. I prefer the mixture of spices because it creates such a warm and iconic fall flavor.
If you’re interested in more muffin recipes, you might enjoy these easy Apple Cinnamon Muffins, Whole Grain Blackberry Spice Muffins, or Morning Glory Muffins.
