I recently baked a pumpkin cheesecake and had some leftover pumpkin purée that needed to be used up. Since no one here was really in the mood for another pumpkin soup, I needed a different idea. So, what else could I make? Simple: Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins. Delicious, moist muffins with a cheesecake filling and a streusel topping. Sounds good, doesn’t it?
For a long time, pumpkin was only an option for savory dishes in our house – think pumpkin soup, pumpkin mash, or roasted veggies with pumpkin. When I was living in the US for a while I learned that you can also bake wonderful sweet treats with pumpkin. The first thing that comes to mind is, of course, a classic pumpkin pie. An incredibly creamy pie packed with pumpkin purée. We really love this kind of pie, and luckily, it’s super easy to make… provided you have pumpkin purée on hand.
If you have to make the pumpkin purée yourself, you have a bit more work to do. It’s still difficult to find ready-made pumpkin purée in German supermarkets. It feels like only stores that sell American products carry it – and even then, usually only in autumn rather than year-round. There’s definitely room for improvement I’d say. If you like to bake pumpkin pies…
That said, making your own puree from fresh pumpkins isn’t rocket science. You just need to cook some chopped pumpkin in a bit of water until soft – then purée the whole thing. Done. You don’t necessarily have to do this the day you’re planning to bake a pie or cake. Cooked pumpkin purée keeps in the fridge for several days, so you can easily prepare it in advance and use it later.
Preparing these muffins is quite simple. You start by preparing some streusels, then quickly mix together the cheesecake filling and the muffin batter. These are all very easy steps. After that you assemble everything in muffin paper cups – layering the batter, cheesecake filling, and streusels on top, before popping the muffins into the oven. Easy peasy!
The muffins shown in the photos were baked in standard-sized muffin cups, but I also really like them baked in larger tulip-style paper liners. However, when using the larger liners you will get fewer muffins, and they require a slightly longer baking time since there is more batter and filling in each cup.
You can get a good idea of what the larger muffins look like by checking out our Pumpkin, Chocolate & Pecan Muffins. There you also use pumpkin purée to make the sweet treats, by the way. If you prefer that style of muffins, you have another great option for using up leftover pumpkin purée.
Our Cheesecake Streusel Muffins with Lemon Curd are quite similar to the muffins you can make with the recipe below, as they also feature streusels and a cheesecake filling. In terms of the basic concept, they are very much like the Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins here, though they offer a different flavor profile. We enjoy both varieties, though.
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
(12-14 muffins)
For the streusel:
1/2 cup (70g) all-purpose flour*
1/4 cup (60g) brown sugar*
1 tsp. ground cinnamon*
1/4 cup (60g) butter, melted & slightly cooled
For the cheesecake filling:
6 oz. (170g) cream cheese, at room temperature
1 large egg yolk
1 tsp. vanilla extract*
3 tbsp. sugar (fine)*
For the muffin batter:
1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar*
2 large eggs
1 cup (230g) pumpkin purée
1/2 cup (120ml) vegetable oil
1/3 cup (80ml) milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract*
1 3/4 cups (220g) all-purpose flour*
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon*
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
(12-14 Muffins)
Für die Streusel:
70g Mehl (Type 405)*
60g brauner Zucker*
1 TL Zimt*
60g Butter, geschmolzen & leicht abgekühlt
Für die Käsekuchenfüllung:
170g Frischkäse, Zimmertemperatur
1 Eigelb (L)
1 TL Vanille Extrakt*
3 EL Zucker (fein)*
Für den Teig:
100g brauner Zucker*
2 Eier (L)
230g Kürbispüree
120ml Pflanzenöl
80ml Milch
1 TL Vanille Extrakt*
220g Mehl (Type 405)*
1 TL Backpulver
1 TL Natron
1/2 TL Salz
1 TL Zimt*
1 TL Kürbiskuchengewürz
DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
1. Start with the streusels. Combine flour, brown sugar and ground cinnamon in a bowl. Add the melted butter and mix everything with a fork until different-sized streusels form. Place in the fridge until needed again.
2. For the cheesecake filling add the cream cheese to a bowl and mix until soft and creamy. Next, add the sugar, egg yolk, and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Set aside.
3. Preheat the oven to 220°C (430°F). Line muffin tins* with 12-14 paper liners and set them aside.
4. Add brown sugar and eggs to a large bowl and mix until light and fluffy. Add the pumpkin purée, oil, milk, and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ground cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice, add it to the bowl and mix until just combined.
5. Add about a tablespoon of muffin batter to each paper liner, top that with some cheesecake filling (not quite a full tablespoon), then top that with more muffin batter until the paper liners are pretty much full. Sprinkle the streusels on top.
6. Place the muffin tin in the oven and bake the muffins for about 5 minutes, then reduce the temperature of the oven to 180°C (350°F) and continue baking the muffins for about 15-17 minutes – or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove the muffins from the oven and let them cool down for some time inside the muffin tin, then lift them out and let them cool down completely on a wire rack.
1. Mit den Streuseln starten und dazu Mehl, Zucker und Zimt in einer Schüssel vermischen. Die geschmolzene Butter zugeben und mit einer Gabel alles zu Streuseln verarbeiten. Bis zur weiteren Verwendung in den Kühlschrank stellen.
2. Für die Käsekuchenfüllung den Frischkäse in eine Schüssel geben so lange aufschlagen, bis er schön weich und cremig ist. Zucker, Eigelb und Vanille Extrakt dazugeben und alles gut verrühren. Zur Seite stellen.
3. Den Ofen auf 220°C (430°F) Ober-/Unterhitze vorheizen. Ein Muffinblech* bzw. mehrere Muffinbleche mit 12-14 Papierförmchen bestücken. Zur Seite stellen.
4. Den braunen Zucker und die Eier für den Muffinteig in einer großen Schüssel hell und luftig aufschlagen. Kürbispüree, Pflanzenöl, Milch und Vanille Extrakt zugeben und gut verrühren. Mehl, Backpulver, Natron, Salz, Zimt und Kürbiskuchengewürz vermengen, zur Schüssel dazugeben und alles nur kurz verrühren.
5. Die Papierförmchen jeweils mit einem Esslöffel Teig befüllen, dann etwas von der Käsekuchenfüllung darauf geben – nicht ganz ein Esslöffel – dann noch einmal eine Schicht Teig darübergeben, bis die Papierförmchen voll sind. Alles mit den Streuseln bestreuen.
6. Die Muffins in den Ofen schieben und für etwa 5 Minuten backen, danach die Temperatur des Ofens auf 180°C (350°F) reduzieren und die Muffins weitere 15-17 Minuten backen. Mit einem Zahnstocher testen, ob noch Teig kleben bleibt, und die Muffins erst herausnehmen, wenn dieser sauber herauskommt. Die fertigen Muffins aus dem Ofen holen und einige Zeit in der Muffinform abkühlen lassen, dann herausheben und auf einem Kuchengitter komplett auskühlen lassen.
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Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.
Print
Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins
- Prep Time: 00:25
- Cook Time: 00:20
- Total Time: 00:45
- Yield: 12 1x
- Category: Muffins
- Method: -
- Cuisine: United States
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
The perfect treat for the Thanksgiving Season when it’s getting cooler outside: Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins are made with homemade pumpkin purée.
Ingredients
For the streusel:
1/2 cup (70g) all-purpose flour*
1/4 cup (60g) brown sugar*
1 tsp. ground cinnamon*
1/4 cup (60g) butter, melted & slightly cooled
For the cheesecake filling:
6 oz. (170g) cream cheese, at room temperature
1 large egg yolk
1 tsp. vanilla extract*
3 tbsp. sugar (fine)*
For the muffin batter:
1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar*
2 large eggs
1 cup (230g) pumpkin purée
1/2 cup (120ml) vegetable oil
1/3 cup (80ml) milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract*
1 3/4 cups (220g) all-purpose flour*
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon*
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
Instructions
1. Start with the streusels. Combine flour, brown sugar and ground cinnamon in a bowl. Add the melted butter and mix everything with a fork until different-sized streusels form. Place in the fridge until needed again.
2. For the cheesecake filling add the cream cheese to a bowl and mix until soft and creamy. Next, add the sugar, egg yolk, and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Set aside.
3. Preheat the oven to 220°C (430°F). Line muffin tins* with 12-14 paper liners and set them aside.
4. Add brown sugar and eggs to a large bowl and mix until light and fluffy. Add the pumpkin purée, oil, milk, and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ground cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice, add it to the bowl and mix until just combined.
5. Add about a tablespoon of muffin batter to each paper liner, top that with some cheesecake filling (not quite a full tablespoon), then top that with more muffin batter until the paper liners are pretty much full. Sprinkle the streusels on top.
6. Place the muffin tin in the oven and bake the muffins for about 5 minutes, then reduce the temperature of the oven to 180°C (350°F) and continue baking the muffins for about 15-17 minutes – or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove the muffins from the oven and let them cool down for some time inside the muffin tin, then lift them out and let them cool down completely on a wire rack.
Notes
Enjoy baking!
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