A Sweet Reminder

After visiting a local coffee shop last week, we were reminded of the extreme yumminess of cream cheese filled pumpkin muffins. We are pumpkin fans through and through, but when you bite into a warm pumpkin muffin and inside is a little surprise of cream cheese frosting oh my. Heart burst! Inside-Out Pumpkin Muffins = love sweet pumpkin love!

Ingredients

Streusel

• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• ¼ cup packed light brown sugar
• ¼ cup old-fashioned rolled oats or quick oats
• ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened at room temperature

Filling

• 1 cup cream cheese, brick style, softened at room temperature
• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Muffins

• 1 cup pure pumpkin puree
• 2 large whites eggs
• ½ cup packed light brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• ¼ cup maple syrup
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• 1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ⅓ cup almond milk, room temperature
• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a 12-cup standard muffin pan.
• Make the streusel by whisking together the flour, sugar, oats, and salt. Cut in the butter using a fork or pastry cutter. Set aside.
• Make the filling by beating together all the ingredients until smooth and creamy. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, egg whites, sugar, oil, maple syrup, salt, spices, baking powder, soda, and almond milk.
• Add the flour all at once and whisk just until combined
• Drop 2 tablespoons of batter into the prepared muffin cups. If needed, use the back of a spoon to spread the batter to cover the bottom. Top with 1 tablespoon of filling, followed by an additional 2 tablespoons of batter. Sprinkle with streusel.
• Bake for 18 – 20 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the side of the muffin comes out clean.
• Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

*recipe inspired by The PKP Way