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Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins are packed with warm pumpkin spice flavor, an incredibly moist pumpkin muffin with a sweet cream cheese filling, and a cinnamon streusel topping – the best pumpkin muffin recipe! They make the perfect fall breakfast or sweet treat.
For more of the best pumpkin muffin recipes be sure and try Perfect Pumpkin Muffins, Pumpkin Streusel Muffins, and Pumpkin Donut Glazed Muffins.
Cream Cheese Pumpkin Muffin Recipe
Delicious pumpkin cream cheese muffins are a copycat of Starbucks pumpkin cream cheese muffins, but better! The center of each muffin is filled with a sweet cream cheese filling which pairs perfectly with the best pumpkin muffins. Pumpkin + cream cheese is always a match made in heaven – like in this Cream Cheese Pumpkin Coffee Cake and Pumpkin Cheesecake Swirl Muffins.
There a few extra steps with these muffins; the cinnamon streusel, the cream cheese center, and of course the pumpkin muffins. They’re not the easy muffin recipe, or the mix and dump type muffins, but trust me, these muffins will be worth the extra steps. There is NO way I can ever eat just one!
These muffins just scream all things pumpkin season to me – they’re bursting with pumpkin flavor thanks to the warm spices like nutmeg, cloves, and cinnamon, plus pumpkin pie piece really elevates they warm fall pumpkin flavors.
Simple Ingredients Needed
Cream Cheese Mixture Ingredients
- Cream Cheese : Use full fat cream cheese for the best taste and thick texture. Reduced-fat cream cheese can be used, but the center won’t be as thick and rich, because the lower fat cream cheese has more water in it so it’s not as thick and creamy.
- Powdered Sugar
Pumpkin Muffin Batter Ingredients
- All-Purpose Flour
- Ground Cinnamon
- Nutmeg
- Cloves
- Pumpkin Pie Spice
- Salt : I use kosher salt or sea salt.
- Baking Soda
- Oil : Use canola oil or vegetable oil.
- Granulated Sugar
- Pure Pumpkin : You need 2 cups of pumpkin puree which is more than the 15 ounce can. Buy a larger can of pumpkin, 29 ounces, and measure out 2 cups. You will have extras so make a pumpkin recipe that only calls for a little bit of pumpkin in it.
- Large Eggs
Cinnamon Streusel Ingredients
- Granulated Sugar
- All-Purpose Flour
- Ground Cinnamon
- Butter : The butter needs to be cold and cut into small cubes.
How To Make Cream Cheese-Stuffed Pumpkin Muffins (Printable Recipe Card)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two muffin pans (use a muffin pan with 12 muffin cups in it) with parchment paper muffin liners or cupcake liners. Set aside for later.
Make The Cream Cheese Filling : In a small bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar until it’s well blended and smooth. Put the bowl in the freezer to chill while you prepare the pumpkin muffin batter.
Make The Pumpkin Muffin Batter : In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, pumpkin pie spice, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.
In a large bowl, using an electric hand mixer or use the bowl of a stand mixer, add the granulated sugar, pumpkin, oil, and eggs. Beat on medium speed until combined well.
Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix on low speed just until combined and no flour pockets or streaks remain in the batter.
Make The Cinnamon Streusel : In a small bowl, whisk together the sugar, all-purpose flour, and cinnamon. Add in the cold cubed butter and use your clean hands, or a pastry cutter, to mix until it resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside.
Assemble & Bake The Muffins : Fill each muffin cup 1/3 of the way full with the pumpkin muffin batter. Add a heaping tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture (remove it from the freezer) onto the middle of the pumpkin batter. Fill the remaining of the muffin cup with more pumpkin batter until it’s almost to the top. Make sure that the muffin batter on top completely covers the cream cheese center.
Sprinkle some of the streusel topping on top of each muffin.
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the muffins have formed a nice rounded peak and the tops of the muffins spring back when gently touched with your fingertip. A toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin should also come out with no wet pumpkin batter on it.
Remove the muffins from the oven and allow them to cool inside the warm muffin pan for about 15-20 minutes, before removing them to a cooling rack. You can eat them warm, at room temperature, or chilled from the fridge.
How To Store Leftovers
- Fridge : Store any remaining muffins inside an airtight container, in the fridge, for up to 5 days. Ideally, desserts containing cream cheese, whether baked or unbaked, should be covered and stored in the refrigerator. Eat the muffins chilled from the fridge, leave them out at room temperature for several minutes, or warm it up in the microwave.
- Freezer : To freeze, make sure the muffins are cooled to room temperature or even chilled from the fridge. Wrap each muffin in plastic wrap and store them inside a freezer-safe Ziplock bag. Freeze for up to 2 months. Let the muffin(s) thaw in the fridge or at room temperature.
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffin Recipe Tips
- Use A Small Cookie Scoop : I love using a small or medium cookie scoop to scoop the pumpkin muffin batter into each muffin cup. You only need a little bit to fill each muffin 1/3 of the way full, so a small cookie scoop is perfect for that. You don’t want to overfill the muffin cups, which means you don’t want to add too much on the bottom because you won’t be able to have room to add enough batter on top to cover up the cream cheese dollops.
- Pure Pumpkin : Make sure you are using the 100% pure pumpkin and NOT the pumpkin pie filling. They look similar but are completely different. The recipe needs 2 cups which is more than a 15 ounce can. So make sure you buy a large can of pumpkin (29 ounces) and measure out 2 cups needed for the recipe.
- Softened Cream Cheese : To avoid lumps in the cream cheese center, make sure the cream is well softened. Leave it out at room temperature for up to 2 hours, or you can microwave the unwrapped bar of cream cheese for about 20 seconds to get it softened but not hot and melted.
Recipe FAQ’s
Do I Have To Add The Streusel Topping?
No. These pumpkin cream cheese muffins are fabulous without it! Instead, you could add some mini chocolate chips or pumpkin seeds on top of the muffins.
Do I Need To Use The Paper Liners?
Yes, I highly recommend using muffin liners or cupcake liners. I love the parchment paper muffin liners (linked in the recipe card below) because they allow the muffins to bake ore evenly, and prevent the bottoms and sides from over browning while baking. You could skip the liners, but make sure you spray each muffin cup well with cooking spray if going that route.
What Size Canned Pumpkin Do I Need?
The recipe calls for 2 cups, which is equal to 16 ounces, of pumpkin puree. I measure out the 2 cups from a larger 29 ounce can of pumpkin but the difference is really only 1 ounce, so if you wanted to just use a 15 ounce can of pumpkin you would probably be fine doing that. I just love sticking to exact measurements.
More Must Try Pumpkin Desserts
- Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
- Banana Pumpkin Bread
- Easy Pumpkin Mousse Pie
- Pumpkin Cheesecake Brownies
- Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Pumpkin Scones with Maple Glaze
- Pumpkin Pudding Pie
- Pumpkin Spice Cake
- Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
Equipment
Ingredients
Cream Cheese Filling
- 1 bar (8 oz) cream cheese softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar
Pumpkin Muffins
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon cloves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 4 large eggs
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 cups pure pumpkin (from a 29 oz can)
- 1¼ cup canola or vegetable oil
Cinnamon Streusel
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 4 tablespoons cold butter cubed small
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉. Line two muffin pans (use a muffin pan with 12 muffin cups in it) with parchment paper muffin liners or cupcake liners. Set aside for later.
Make The Cream Cheese Filling
- In a small bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar until it's well blended and smooth. Put the bowl in the freezer to chill while you prepare the pumpkin muffin batter.1 bar (8 oz) cream cheese, 1 cup powdered sugar
Make The Pumpkin Muffin Batter
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.3 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon nutmeg, 1 teaspoon cloves, 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking soda
- In a separate large bowl, using an electric hand mixer or use the bowl of a stand mixer, add the eggs, granulated sugar, pumpkin, and oil. Beat on medium speed until combined well.4 large eggs, 2 cups granulated sugar, 2 cups pure pumpkin, 1¼ cup canola or vegetable oil
- Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix on low speed just until combined and no flour pockets or streaks remain in the batter.
Make The Cinnamon Streusel
- In a small bowl, whisk together the sugar, all-purpose flour, and cinnamon. Add in the cold cubed butter and use your clean hands, or a pastry cutter, to mix until it resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside.1/2 cup granulated sugar, 5 tablespoons all-purpose flour, 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon, 4 tablespoons cold butter
Assemble & Bake The Muffins
- – Fill each muffin cup 1/4 of the way full with the pumpkin muffin batter.– Add a heaping tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture (remove it from the freezer) onto the middle of the pumpkin batter.– Fill the remaining of the muffin cup with more pumpkin batter until it's almost to the top. Make sure that the muffin batter on top completely covers the cream cheese center. – Sprinkle some of the streusel topping on top of each muffin.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the muffins have formed a nice rounded peak and the tops of the muffins spring back when gently touched with your fingertip. A toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin should also come out with no wet pumpkin batter on it.
- Remove the muffins from the oven and allow them to cool inside the warm muffin pan for about 15-20 minutes, before removing them to a cooling rack. You can eat them warm, at room temperature, or chilled from the fridge.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
I’d love to see it! You can share it with me on @togetherasfamilyblog and follow on Pinterest @together-as-family-blog-recipes or Facebook @togetherasfamilyblog for more!
Should these muffins be kept refrigerated?
Technically they should be because of the cream cheese in the center. I actually prefer these cold from the fridge. So, I would say yes keep them in the fridge and then if you prefer them room temperature, just let them sit out on the counter for a short bit before serving. Hopefully that helps!
Does it make 24 muffins
18-24 muffins. I will add that into the recipe. Thanks!
Just made these…..they are wonderful had on iFit out of the oven!!!
Awesome! You can’t go wrong with cheesecake and pumpkin 🙂
Does it really call for 2 cups of sugar????
Yes it does 🙂 The recipe makes quite a bit so just don’t eat all the muffins.
Tried this the other day. I didn’t have pumpkin pie spice. I had a pumpkin pie spice extract so I used a couple dashes of that instead. These muffins turned out to be absolutely amazing! I will definitely make these again. Thanks for a great recipe!
Awesome! Good to now the pumpkin pie extract works in this recipe. I have actually never seen that at my grocery store! So glad you loved them and thanks for coming back to let me know.
What size cans of pumpkin purée did you use?
I just measure out 2 cups from a large can (28 oz) of pure pumpkin. A 15 oz can is about 1 3/4 + 2 tablespoons cup of pumpkin. I hope that makes sense, haha 🙂 Let me know if you have more questions. I have a friend who has made this recipe with just the 15 oz can and it’s worked fine.
READ the ingredients list!! Why do people ask questions about ingredients when they are right in front of their faces? I see this so often on other sites. Just read the ingredients and directions carefully!
Do you know if these freeze well? They sound great, but I will keep eating them if they are there!
haha, I know what you mean 🙂 I’ve never tried freezing them but I think that would work just fine. Let one sit out at room temperature for a bit or warm it in the microwave. It should work well.
I just made these, and they’re AWESOME! My family LOVED them. Thank you so much for sharing! 🙂 (I don’t know if I did something differently, but I was able to get 36 muffins out of your recipe instead of 24. Worked out for me! 😛 )
Yay! So happy to hear they are a hit. I might have indicated the wrong yield from the recipe, not sure? I’ll just have to make these again to get the accurate count, haha 🙂 I know the recipe makes a lot of batter so it’s very possible 36 is the amount of muffins. Thanks for coming back to comment.
My daughter just made these and they are “The Bomb”. They are so good and moist. We loved them and will definitely make again and again.
Can you make Texas size with this recipe if so how long would you cook for?
I would set the timer for the time on the recipe and then maybe check them every few minutes after that. I am not sure of the exact size of Texas sized muffins, but I am assuming an extra 5-10 minutes may be plenty of time.
I made these and cut the sugar in half and replaced it with honey and then replaced half of the oil wth applesauce. I left out the streusel part just because I didn’t want more sugar. They turned it great and my kids loved them too. Will for sure make it again!
So good to hear! That’s good to know that you can replace some of the oil with applesauce and reduce the sugar. Thank you!
I make double batches of these puppies and stick them in the freezer. I believe that makes them even moister (is that a word??)!! They are delicious! I have my Mom hooked! Thank you so much for the recipe!!
I think it’s a word! Moister 🙂 I love it and yes it perfectly describes these muffins. So glad you and your mom love this recipe.
Have you tried the recipe as a cake?
I have not. I am sure it would work as a cake but not sure about the cream cheese. Try this yummy streusel pumpkin cake I have on the blog. Same idea but it’s made to fit in a 9×13 baking dish https://togetherasfamily.com/cinnamon-streusel-pumpkin-cake/
These are so delicious! I like that that they made 2 dozen muffins. I kept a few out to eat and froze the rest. I just ate one now that I froze and they are as good as fresh.
These are the most delicious muffins I have eve made!!! They are super moist and busting with flavor! They are 13 WW points. My batch made 21 nice size muffins. They are worth every bite:) I might try to skinny them down for myself, but I was making them for my husband’s students, if I can get them there? My family loves them!!
Love this recipe for cupcakes. So good. Can this be made as a loaf (or 2)? Just baking for longer?
I have never made a loaf out of this recipe so I am not sure. So glad you love this recipe and you could always experiment with a loaf pan and see 🙂
I made this again, this time as 2 loaves. Baked at same temp as the recipe called for, and they took 60 minutes. I checked them with a toothpick just to be sure. Hope they are good as they are for a women’s coffee group I go to.
We are obsessed with these muffins. They are great as is but I had stuff in my pantry I needed to get rid of and didn’t have enough of other ingredients so I experimented with modifications for those interested:
– I only had pumpkin pie mix (already has the spices and some sugar) so I didn’t need to add spices and only added one cup of sugar (instead of two like the recipe calls for when using plain pumpkin puree) to the dough.
– I used half white flour and the other half with whole wheat flour so I added a tad more baking soda.
– I only had three eggs so I substituted the the fourth with flax seed meal (about a tablespoon or two). I like to add this when I bake anyway for health benefits.
– I only used one cup oil but baked them 2-3 minutes less (I checked for doneness with a toothpick). I like my muffins really moist.
Let me tell you… even with all those modifications, they are to die for. My husband complimented me for making do with what we had since we are trying to avoid shopping often due to this Corora virus crisis. This recipe is a keeper. Thanks!
So glad you’re loving these! Especially during these quarantine times. Stay safe and thanks for your comment.
Hands down these are the best pumpkin cream cheese muffins, always double the recipe. I put the cream cheese mixture in the fridge and then use a neon scoop to place in the muffin batter:)
These were really, REALLY good. Don’t be afraid of the amount of sugar or spices. It yielded about 27 muffins but I did not have enough cream cheese. So I just threw some chocolate chips in the last 7.
I love these ! I made 24 mini muffins and 12 regular sized muffins in silicone baking pans. I just sprayed them with cooking spray and they popped right out ! I also doubled the cream cheese mixture to add a bit more ! So delicious!
Made these for Thanksgiving and the entire family loved them. Asked for me to make more. So this is definitely a keeper recipe for my home. There was no option to post a picture
So happy to hear this!
Made half of these muffins and they were delicious! We added our own homemade crumble top and it turned out fantastic! Will make again. I like that it wasn’t dense but rather quite fluffy.
I’m just sorry it took me so long to find this recipe because they are amazing! I thought since it was a bigger batch they would last more than one day but I was wrong. And I’ll be making these again tonight because I’ve had so many requests for more! Thank you for my kicking of my fall season so deliciously! I’ll be making these for years to come I’m sure!
Forgive the typos. I’m obviously over-excited! Ha
Yeah, one batch is never enough at my house! So glad your family loved them!
Absolutely delicious! I made them a few days ago. I will definitely be keeping this recipe in my “go to recipe file”. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you Theresa! So happy to hear you liked the recipe!