These Cream Cheese Filled Pumpkin Muffins are the perfect way to welcome fall and the return of all. things. pumpkin. Enjoy with breakfast or a light snack any time of day!
There once was a time, way back when, when pumpkin. was. life. I was about as basic as basic could be, and pretty much tried to add pumpkin to just about any meal or recipe I could think of. In case you don’t believe me…
10 Perfect Pumpkin Recipes
Pumpkin Spice Bars with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
Pumpkin Spice Cake Roll
Frosted Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes & Honey Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
…and that’s just to name a few. ; )
So while my pumpkin obsession has certainly subsided, and I have no intentions of going out and grabbing any pumpkin spice lattes any time soon (it was just 90+ degrees here yesterday!), that doesn’t mean I won’t still embrace a little bit of pumpkin in the kitchen. I mean, it is September after all.
Cream Cheese Filled Pumpkin Muffins
These muffins! They’re so good, and I’m actually sitting here eating one right now as I type up this post. Lucas was my big helper in the kitchen with these, and his favorite thing to do – by far – was to use the cookie scoop to scoop out the batter.
While these muffins probably would have been great on their own, I especially love the little surprise, cream cheese filling.
Because, I mean, we all know that pumpkin + cream cheese just go hand in hand, right?
So far, they’ve proven to be both a delicious, light snack AND a welcomed addition to my breakfast of eggs (also making for a nicely balanced, PFC meal…read this post if you want to know more of what I’m talking about there!), although I wouldn’t be surprised if I drown my sorrows in the remaining muffins from this batch as I put my little guy on the bus for kindergarten for the first time tomorrow.
Gahhh, give me all. the. muffins. and tell me I’m going to survive.
Sweet Tooth, Sweet Life
Yields 12 muffins
10 minPrep Time
20 minCook Time
30 minTotal Time
Save RecipeIngredients
- 1/3 cup light tub-style cream cheese
- 3 tsp powdered sugar
- 2 tsp sugar
- 1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1-1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 1 egg
- 2 egg whites (or 1/3 cup liquid egg whites)
- 3/4 cup canned pumpkin
- 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 3 tbsp canola oil
- 2 tbsp molasses
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line 12 standard muffin cups with cupcake liners*
- In a small bowl, blend the cream cheese, powdered sugar, and 2 tsp sugar with an electric mixer. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the next six ingredients (flour through cloves).
- In a separate medium bowl, beat the 3/4 cup sugar, egg, and egg whites with an electric mixer for about 3-4 minutes (you want the volume to just about double). Turn mixer to low and add in the pumpkin, applesauce, oil, and molasses. Using a large spatula, add in the flour mixture and stir just until combined.
- Using a medium cookie scoop**, drop a heaping scoop of batter into each muffin cup. Next, lightly press about 2 teaspoons of the cream cheese mixture into the middle of each muffin cup. Top each muffin with another small scoop of batter, covering most of the cream cheese.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the center springs back when lightly touched. Cool for 5 minutes before moving muffins to wire rack to cool completely.
- *These parchment paper cupcake liners are my absolute favorite for baking – NO sticking at all.
- **I used a medium sized cookie scoop, which is also my favorite size for baking cookies.
Nutrition (per muffin):
- Calories: 168
- Carbs: 28.6g
- Fat: 5.3g
- Protein: 3g
Give ’em a try and let me know what you think!
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