Valentina Ablaev
Fall weather calls for pumpkin cheesecake muffins, and this recipe beats any bakery muffin! These muffins are easy to make, and the creamy cheese filling takes them to another level. The muffins join our pumpkin cheesecake bars as a new family favorite!
We love recreating fall favorites. These muffins, along with our easy pumpkin roll cake and homemade pumpkin pie latte, are our favorite fall recipes.
This fall, we tried the Starbucks pumpkin muffin, and I now know why it’s a seasonal favorite! These are the muffin version of the iconic pumpkin swirl bread!
As soon as I had a taste, I knew we had to recreate it, but better! The muffins are soft with a pumpkin pie flavor, but the cream cheese filling makes these the best pumpkin muffins.
So, just make these yourself and enjoy them at a fraction of the cost; you’ll thank me once you try them.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
The name itself should entice you to try making the muffins. If it doesn’t, here are other reasons why you should give the recipe a try.
- Save your money. The Starbucks muffin is so expensive, and you can get an entire batch that is close to the price of one!
- Easy baking. These cupcakes are so easy to make, and they look so beautiful!
- Incredible flavor. The combination of cheesecake flavor and pumpkin pie is unbeatable.
Ingredients for Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins
- Cream cheese filling – our homemade cheesecake filling is made with full-fat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla. Similar to the base for our simple cheesecake recipe.
- Oil – a neutral oil is key in this muffin recipe.
- Sugar – we use a combination of cane sugar and brown sugar for the best flavor.
- Eggs – large eggs at room temperature are key for the perfect batter.
- Pumpkin puree – canned pumpkin puree is perfect for this recipe.
- Flour – we use all-purpose flour, but you can even substitute gluten-free flour.
- Spices – a combination of pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon for the perfect fall flavor.
- Baking powder & baking soda – our baking agents help these muffins rise and remain fluffy.
- Streusel – our homemade streusel is what elevates these muffins. The mix of brown sugar and cinnamon brings an incredible flavor.
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and quantities.
Delicious Variations
- Add nuts: Take your muffins to the next level by loading them with pistachios, walnuts, and pecans.
- Create a swirl: Use a toothpick to create a pretty design and have your very own cream cheese swirl muffins.
- Add chocolate: If you love all things chocolate, like our chocolate banana muffins, you can add chocolate chip morsels to the batter.
How to Make Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins
- Make cream cheese filling. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese with a hand mixer. Beat in the sugar and vanilla until smooth.
2. Wet ingredients. In a medium bowl, beat the oil, sugars, eggs, pumpkin puree, vanilla, and milk, and beat on low speed until combined.
3. Dry ingredients. Whisk the flour, pumpkin spice, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl.
4. Combine. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet batter and beat until combined.
5. Pour the muffin batter. Fill each muffin liner in the muffin pan until about ½ way filled. Then, add the sweet cream cheese filling to the center of each muffin and top with the remaining batter.
6. Bake muffins. Top each muffin with brown sugar streusel. Bake the muffins in the oven at 375°F for 22-24 minutes or until the muffins are golden.
Expert Tips:
- Correct temperature. Make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature for the perfect muffins. Cream cheese, eggs, and milk should all be at room temperature.
- Don’t be shy with the toppings. It may seem like a lot of cream cheese mixture or a lot of streusel, but it’s not too much! We recommend using every last crumb!
Recipe FAQs
Yes, you can use steamed pumpkin and make the puree from scratch. There are a lot of canned pumpkin purees made with clean ingredients that will save you those extra steps!
We think these muffins are incredibly similar but better because of the streusel that the Starbucks pastry doesn’t have!
These muffins can be made with the streusel crumb topping. You can dust the muffins with powdered sugar for an aesthetically pleasing if serving guests.
Store & Reheat
- Storage. If you can avoid finishing all the muffins on the first day, you can keep leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- Freeze. We don’t recommend freezing these muffins because of the soft cheesecake filling.
More Recipes
If you enjoyed this muffin, be sure to try our other popular muffin recipes; here are some of our favorites:
If you tried this pumpkin cream cheese muffins or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below – we appreciate it!
Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins
Ingredients
cream cheese filling:
- 6 ounces cream cheese room temperature
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
pumpkin muffins
- 1/2 cup oil vegetable, canola or extra light virgin
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar packed
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup whole milk room temperature
- 1 3/4 all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp pumpkin spice
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 11/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
streusel:
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup brown sugar lightly packed
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 3 Tbsp unsalted butter cubed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F and line a 12-count muffin tin with paper liners.
- Prepare cream cheese filling:
- In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add granulated sugar and vanilla, and beat again until combined; set mixture aside.
- Prepare Muffins Batter:
- In a medium bowl, add the oil, sugars, eggs, pumpkin puree, vanilla, and milk, and beat on low speed until combined.
- Mix the flour, pumpkin spice, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a separate bowl. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet batter to combine on a low-speed beat until everything is incorporated.
- Divide the pumpkin batter among the muffin liners. Then, add the cream cheese mixture to the center of each muffin.
- Prepare streusel:
- Combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and butter until a crumbly mixture forms; you can do this with a fork.
- Add the streusel over top of the muffin mixture.
- Bake for 22-24 minutes or until the muffins are golden.
- Serve and enjoy, friends.
Notes
- Add nuts: Take your muffins to the next level by loading them with pistachios and pecans.
- Create a swirl: Use a toothpick to create a pretty design and have your very own cream cheese swirl muffins.
- Correct temperature. Make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature for the perfect muffins. Cream cheese, eggs, and milk should all be at room temperature.
- Don’t be shy with the toppings. It may seem like a lot of cheesecake filling or a lot of streusel, but it’s not too much! We recommend using every last crumb!
- Storage. If you can keep from finishing all the muffins on the first day, keep leftovers in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Freeze. We don’t recommend freezing these muffins because of the soft cheesecake filling.
