Homemade Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins — Cozy Fall Baking from Scratch
If you’ve seen my Pumpkin Crumble Muffins, you already know how much I love a big, cozy muffin straight from the farmhouse kitchen. 🧡 Well, this recipe is a delicious new twist on that fall favorite — these Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins are soft, spiced, and filled with the dreamiest swirl of sweet cream cheese. They taste just like something you’d find in a coffee shop, only better — because they’re made from scratch, right at home.
There’s something about baking on a crisp fall morning that makes the whole house feel warm and welcoming. The smell of cinnamon and nutmeg, the sound of the oven humming, and a batch of homemade muffins cooling on the counter — that’s the kind of slow, cozy living I love most.
Forget the store-bought versions filled with preservatives and dough conditioners. These muffins are all about real ingredients, homemade flavor, and that perfect balance of pumpkin spice and creamy sweetness.
The Secret to Coffee-Shop Style Muffins
If you’ve ever wondered how to get those big, bakery-style muffins with the perfect rise and soft crumb, here’s the secret: use a large six-muffin tin and jumbo muffin liners. This helps them bake up tall and fluffy, with that gorgeous café look we all love.
And of course, the real star here is the cream cheese filling — slightly sweet, perfectly creamy, and nestled right in the center of each muffin.
Ingredients
For the Muffins
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs
- 1 (15-ounce) can pure pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling) — about 1 ½ cups. Click here for my tutorial on how to make your own pumpkin puree
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
- 1 ¼ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
For the Cream Cheese Filling
- 5 oz cream cheese, softened
- 2 1/2 TBSP cane sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tsp All purpose flour
- 2 tsp whole milk
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and line a large 6-muffin tin with jumbo liners (or a standard 12-muffin tin if you prefer smaller muffins).
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the sugars, oil, eggs, pumpkin puree, and vanilla until smooth.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and spices. Slowly mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined — don’t overmix!
- Make the cream cheese filling: Beat together the softened cream cheese, sugar, flour and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Then add milk and beat until smooth.
- Assemble the muffins: Fill each muffin liner about 3/4 full (3/4 way to the edge of the muffin pan) with pumpkin batter. Put the cream cheese filling in a piping bag or zip lock bag, and insert tip of bag slightly into the top of the batter, raising as you squeeze the cram cheese filling into the muffin.
- See video below
- Optional: Sprinkle a touch of cinnamon sugar, some crushed pumpkin seeds, or crumble topping over each muffin for extra sweetness.
- Bake for 22–25 minutes for regular sizes muffins and 45 min for Jumbo muffins, or until a toothpick inserted near the edge comes out clean (the center may still be soft from the cream cheese).
- Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack.
Homemade, From-Scratch Goodness
These Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins are rich, moist, and so full of flavor — without a single artificial ingredient. You can taste the difference that comes from real, home-baked food.
They’re perfect for cozy fall mornings with a cup of coffee, or for sharing with friends and neighbors. I like to make a double batch and freeze some — just wrap each one individually and thaw as needed.
From my farmhouse kitchen to yours, these muffins are the sweetest way to celebrate pumpkin season. 🍂
