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Cozy Pumpkin Cream Cheese Swirl Muffins with Streusel Topping

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Moist and tender pumpkin muffins with a luscious cream cheese swirl and a crunchy streusel topping, perfect for cozy fall mornings and brunch.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 ¾ cups (220g) all-purpose flour (for gluten-free option, use almond flour and adjust baking time)
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
  • ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
  • ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
  • ½ cup (110g) light brown sugar, packed
  • ½ cup (120ml) vegetable oil or melted coconut oil
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup (240ml) canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
  • 8 ounces (225g) cream cheese, softened
  • ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg yolk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ cup (60g) all-purpose flour (for streusel)
  • ⅓ cup (67g) light brown sugar, packed (for streusel)
  • ¼ cup (30g) old-fashioned rolled oats (for streusel)
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (for streusel)
  • ¼ cup (57g) unsalted butter, cold and cubed (for streusel)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or grease well with non-stick spray.
  2. Make the streusel topping: In a small bowl, combine ½ cup flour, ⅓ cup brown sugar, oats, and cinnamon. Cut in cold butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Refrigerate until ready to use.
  3. Prepare the cream cheese swirl: Beat softened cream cheese, sugar, egg yolk, and vanilla extract until smooth and creamy, about 2-3 minutes.
  4. Mix dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger.
  5. Combine wet ingredients: In another bowl, whisk sugars, oil, eggs, vanilla extract, and pumpkin puree until fully combined.
  6. Gradually fold dry ingredients into wet mixture until just combined; do not overmix.
  7. Assemble muffins: Spoon half of the pumpkin batter evenly into muffin cups (about 2 tablespoons each). Dollop 1 tablespoon of cream cheese mixture on top of each. Spoon remaining pumpkin batter over cream cheese. Use a toothpick to gently swirl layers.
  8. Sprinkle a generous amount of cold streusel topping over each muffin.
  9. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the pumpkin part comes out clean and streusel is golden and crisp.
  10. Cool muffins in the tin for 10 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Notes

Use softened cream cheese (not melted) for best swirl results. Do not overmix batter to keep muffins tender. Keep butter cold for streusel to maintain crumbly texture. Oven temperatures vary; tent muffins with foil if browning too fast. Recipe scales down well by half. For gluten-free, use almond flour or gluten-free blend with extra baking powder. Dairy-free options available with vegan cream cheese and coconut oil.

Nutrition

Keywords: pumpkin muffins, cream cheese swirl, streusel topping, fall baking, easy muffins, homemade pumpkin recipe

Find it online: https://wigglebite.com/cozy-pumpkin-cream-cheese-swirl-muffins-easy-homemade-recipe-with-streusel-topping/