These Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins are perfectly soft and moist and loaded with sweet cream cheese! They taste just like Starbucks Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins but better! The perfect Fall breakfast or dessert!

If you love easy muffin recipes as much as I do, try my Double Chocolate Muffins or my Blueberry Streusel Muffins!

Pumpkin cream cheese muffin with two more muffins in the background.

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    Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

    You guys have been going crazy for my Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bread! It’s not surprising why it’s super moist, perfectly spiced and swirled with sweet cream cheese throughout the loaf. I had a couple readers ask about making it into muffins so I went ahead and adapted the recipe to make pumpkin cream cheese muffins!

    I have to say these pumpkin muffins do not disappoint! We love how the muffins look at Starbucks so instead of swirling the cream cheese into the batter (like I do with my loaf) I pipe the filling in the center instead. You can absolutely do either!

    Muffin with a bite taken out of it and more muffins in the background.

    Ingredients for Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

    For the Muffins

    • Pumpkin Puree- Canned pumpkin puree or homemade pumpkin puree from fresh pumpkins will work great in this recipe. Make sure it is pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling which has added sugar and spices.
    • Eggs- Are added for stability and help the muffins to rise.
    • Brown Sugar- Brown sugar adds some caramel flavor notes and works well with the pumpkin to add sweetness.
    • Oil- You will need a neutral oil like vegetable or canola oil.
    • Sour Cream- Adds moisture and a hint of tartness to the muffins.
    • Pumpkin Pie Spice- If you have pumpkin pie spice, use that. If not, you can use a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, & ginger.
    • Flour- All purpose flour is used however you can substitute white whole wheat flour to add some extra nutrition to these muffins.
    • Baking Powder, Baking Soda, & Salt- For rise and flavor!

    For the Cream Cheese Topping

    • Egg- The egg in the cream cheese mixture will make the cream cheese set instead of melt.
    • Cream Cheese- Make sure it’s softened or the mixture will be lumpy. Here’s my favorite way to quickly soften cream cheese.
    • Granulated Sugar- Adds a hint of sweetness to the cream cheese filling.
    • Vanilla- A little bit of vanilla is added for flavor.
    Shot of the inside of the muffin with a hand holding the muffin up.

    how to make pumpkin cream cheese muffins

    • Prep and Combine Wet Ingredients: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and grease a muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray. In a bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, eggs, sugar, oil, sour cream, & vanilla.
    Wet ingredients in a glass bowl with a pink whisk.
    • Combine Wet & Dry Ingredients: In small bowl, combine the dry ingredients: flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda, & salt. Then fold in the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined.
    Wet ingredients in a glass bowl with the dry ingredients sitting on top.
    • Make Cream Cheese Filling: Combine the cream cheese, egg, sugar and vanilla in a medium bowl and whisk until lump free. Place into a piping bag.
    whisking cream cheese filling in clear bowl
    • Assemble: Fill the muffin tins about 3/4 of the way full with the pumpkin muffin mixture. Then, pipe about one tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture into the muffin.
    Show of muffin tin with muffin batter inside the cavities and cream cheese being piped into them.
    • Bake: The pumpkin cream cheese muffins for about 15-20 minutes or until the muffins look set and no longer jiggly. Allow them to cool for 5 minutes and then transfer them to a cooling rack to cook completely.
    Baked muffins in the muffin tin.

    Tips for Success

    • Don’t over mix once you add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients! This can cause a tough muffin.
    • If you want these muffins to be extra sweet, add some chocolate chips into the pumpkin muffin batter!
    • If you prefer, you can substitute the sour cream for greek yogurt!
    • Freeze the leftover muffins (if you have any), for up to 3 months in an airtight container. Thaw completely in the fridge before eating.
    • To get extra fancy top muffins with pumpkin seeds aka pepitas! They add a nice crunch and look so pretty on top!
    Up close shot of pumpkin muffin with a bite out of it.

    More Muffin Recipes to Try

    Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

    5 from 5 votes
    Rate Print
    These Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins are perfectly soft and moist and loaded with sweet cream cheese! They taste just like Starbucks Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins but better! The perfect Fall breakfast or dessert!
    Servings: 18
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Cook Time: 20 minutes
    Total Time: 30 minutes

    Ingredients 

    Cream Cheese Filling

    Instructions 

    • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a muffin tin with non stick cooking spray.
      In a large bowl combine pumpkin puree, eggs sugar, oil, sour cream and vanilla.
    • In a small bowl combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
      Fold in dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix just until combined.
    • Scoop muffin batter into the prepared muffin tin. Fill 3/4 of the way full.
      Add cream cheese filling to a piping bag and pipe about 1 tablespoon of cream cheese filling into each muffin.
    • Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the muffins look set and no longer jiggly.
      Allow the muffins to cool for 5 minutes then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

    Cream Cheese Filling

    • Add all of the ingredients to a medium bowl. Whisk until smooth and lump free. Set aside.

    Nutrition Information

    Calories: 273kcalCarbohydrates: 35gProtein: 4gFat: 13gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0.03gCholesterol: 49mgSodium: 187mgPotassium: 154mgFiber: 1gSugar: 22gVitamin A: 3951IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 62mgIron: 1mg

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