pumpkin muffins with cream cheese filling.

Remember when  I said I wanted to make pumpkin muffins? I kept my word. Not that it was hard to. These pumpkin muffins kick ass, I tell you. Plus that cream cheese middle, they're black belts! 


I made some changes to the recipe, but I don't think there should be any big difference as compared to the original. Which, by the way, is obtained from Annie's Eats, a delicious source of recipes. I swapped nearly half of the oil for applesauce, and changed half of the sugar to brown sugar. Next time though, I would use all brown sugar. I also omitted the streusel, choosing pecans to garnish the muffins instead.

Pumpkin muffins with salted caramel, anyone?

Initially, I was worried that there was too much spice. I even when back to the page to double check. Nope, no mistake. So I continued measuring teaspoonfuls worth of spice into the mixing bowl with doubts racing through my mind. I shouldn't have worried. Every single kind of spice contributed to flavorful pumpkin muffins. 

Not forgetting the cream cheese filling! Actually, I hate cheese. Shocking, isn't it? But cream cheese, mozzarella  and mascarpone cheese are the only kinds of cheeses that I eat. I somewhat like their molten, gooey state but past that, its all tasteless chew. To me, that is. And I abhor that sharp tang from certain cheeses too. Don't hate me please.


The cream cheese filling doesn't gush out like lava when baked, more like a frosting consistency. Hmm... Maybe next time I should tweak the filling a little to make it molten-y. No matter. Not too sweet, it complements the pumpkin muffins perfectly. Unfortunately, some of it was too anxious to see the world, and broke through my muffin top. The only thing I was disappointed with was the lack of crunch from the tops like you would get from usual muffins. Why?

Pumpkin Muffins with Cream Cheese Filling by ANNIE'S EATS 
Yield: 24 muffins

Ingredients:For the filling:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioners’ sugar

For the muffins:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
2 cups pumpkin puree
1¼ cups vegetable oil

For the topping:
½ cup sugar
5 tbsp. flour
1½ tsp. ground cinnamon
4 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Directions:
To prepare the filling, combine the cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl and mix well until blended and smooth.  Transfer the mixture to a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a log about 1½-inches in diameter.  Smooth the plastic wrap tightly around the log, and reinforce with a piece of foil.  Transfer to the freezer and chill until at least slightly firm, at least 2 hours.

To make the muffins, preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line muffin pans with paper liners.  In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, pumpkin pie spice, salt and baking soda; whisk to blend.  In the bowl of an electric mixer combine the eggs, sugar, pumpkin puree and oil.  Mix on medium-low speed until blended.  With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated.

To make the topping, combine the sugar, flour and cinnamon in a small bowl; whisk to blend.  Add in the butter pieces and cut into the dry ingredients with a pastry blender or two forks until the mixture is coarse and crumbly.  Transfer to the refrigerator until ready to use.

To assemble the muffins, fill each muffin well with a small amount of batter, just enough to cover the bottom of the liner (1-2 tablespoons).  Slice the log of cream cheese filling into 24 equal pieces.  Place a slice of the cream cheese mixture into each muffin well.  Divide the remaining batter among the muffin cups, placing on top of the cream cheese to cover completely.  Sprinkle a small amount of the topping mixture over each of the muffin wells.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.  Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before serving.  (It may be hard to resist immediate consumption, but the cream cheese filling gets very hot!)

Would I make this again? Heck, YES!