The first new healthy make-ahead snack recipe idea I am sharing (to go along with our Getting Ahead Challenge) was inspired by Kristen who left a comment on Facebook last week suggesting I make these muffins for a family game night. I experimented a little, and we loved the result! Cream cheese and pumpkin together in a muffin? Can be made ahead of time? Freezable? Yes, yes, yes. Not to mention, you get to learn to make cream cheese coins. Just when you thought life in the kitchen couldn’t be any more fun…
For those of you who notice fine details, you might realize that this recipe is very similar to my Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffin recipe. I simply took out the chocolate and added cream cheese. Why think hard when you already have a great pumpkin muffin recipe, right?
Cream Cheese Pumpkin Muffins
3 cups whole wheat flour (I used freshly ground hard white wheat)
1 cup sucanat
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 eggs
2 cups pureed pumpkin (or one 16 ounce can)
1 cup melted coconut oil (or butter)
8 ounces cream cheese
Before mixing together muffins, place cream cheese in the middle of a large piece of parchment or wax paper. Wrap the paper around the cream cheese and shape it into a long rope. Place it in the freezer while preparing the muffins.
Stir together flour, sucanat, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Add eggs, pumpkin, and melted coconut oil. Mix well and scoop batter into 24 paper-lined muffin tins. Slice cream cheese into 24 “coins.” Slide one into the middle of each muffin. Bake in a 400° oven for about 20 minutes or until muffins are golden brown.
- 3 cups whole wheat flour (I used freshly ground hard white wheat)
- 1 cup sucanat
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 4 eggs
- 2 cups pureed pumpkin (or one 16 ounce can)
- 1 cup melted coconut oil (or butter)
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- Before mixing together muffins, place cream cheese in the middle of a large piece of parchment or wax paper.
- Wrap the paper around the cream cheese and shape it into a long rope.
- Place it in the freezer while preparing the muffins.
- Stir together flour, sucanat, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
- Add eggs, pumpkin, and melted coconut oil.
- Mix well and scoop batter into 24 paper-lined muffin tins.
- Slice cream cheese into 24 "coins."
- Slide one into the middle of each muffin.
- Bake in a 400° oven for about 20 minutes or until muffins are golden brown.
These muffins taste great hot out of the oven or cold several days later.
Want a little hint on forming that cream cheese? I found that wrapping it well with parchment paper, then running my hands over and over it easily shaped it into a long rope in just a few seconds. Like this –>
I like to refer to this gem of a portrait as “Headless Lady Shapes a Cream Cheese Log.”
Feel free to sprinkle chopped nuts on top of the muffins before baking. I’m also thinking that adding chocolate chips (like in the original Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffin recipe) would taste incredible.
Which do you like better? Chocolate chips or cream cheese…or both?
In your last picture, all I could think was wow, she wears shoes in the house! LOL! We don’t remove shoes to keep the floor clean (ha!), but just because we are more comfortable with them off.
Oh, that’s funny! I almost always have my shoes on because we have hard wood floors and my feet are either cold or need some cushion. Granted, I’m usually in tennis shoes or slippers though… :)
Ha Ha! Sheila we’re the same way. As soon as we walk in the door everyone gets comfy by removing shoes, even before taking coats off LOL. I was thinking the same thing about Laura’s photo. I’m not sure if I’d be more or less productive if I wore shoes all day. I guess I’ll have to do a little experiment about that.
What diameter is the cream cheese log?
I’d say about an inch or inch and a half.
I bet crushed pumpking seeds would look festive on top of those lovely muffins!
I’ve made something similar, only I sweeten the cream cheese slightly. I whip it with a little sugar to get it fluffy. Then put half the muffin mix into the tin, scoop a dollop of cream cheese mixture in, and then top with more muffin mix. Nice surprise when you bite into it.
Do you think the cream cheese needs to be the store bought kind, or will the cream cheese I have after dripping the whey out of my yogurt work? It seems like the consistency and flavor is a bit different, but I would love for it to work just as well! Thanks again for all your recipes and fun and heart-felt blogs!!
I think homemade would work – you’ll probably just need to spoon some into each muffin instead of rolling and cutting it.
I think this photo proves that a real food diet won’t cause you to gain weight- look how thin you are!
I made these this weekend and added maple syrup/cinnamon cream cheese to the middle. They were awesome :) Made 12 big ones for the adults and added choc chips to the rest of the batter and made mini-muffins for my boys! Easy. Thanks Laura!
Should these be refrigerated after baking due to the cream cheese on top? Or are they ok out on the counter for several days…
They will be ok on the counter. Usually at our house they are eaten so fast they don’t stay out for long enough to go bad! :)
Hi Laura! My kids always love pumpkin muffins. Especially with chocolate chips. And now especially love, love, love the cream cheese variety. I have to share my cheat/confession: I totally filled the muffin batter in the muffin cups, and then just cut the packaged cream cheese in little hunks and stuck them in the muffins with my fingers. I didn’t do the whole cream cheese log roll business. I don’t know if it makes any difference b/c I didn’t do it the “right” way. But, I will say, those are some doggone good muffins. Also, I did the whole fill-the-muffin-batter-cups-and-freeze-and-bake-fresh-when-you-want-them, and they were perfecto! Thank you for the inspiration!!
thank you so much Laura for all you recipe tips for going back to school food. I am going to have try try these!! I LOVE pumpkin and cream cheese!! I am also going to to try the ones with chocolate chips in them!! Thanks again for all your recipes!!
Luz
Hi Laura,
I am in LOVE with your recipes. Thank you so much for them! I have a question about the sucanat, is it just used in place of white sugar? What can one use if they don’t have this at home? I have been contemplating in buying it but haven’t had the guts to since maybe I won’t like it:/ thanks again for all the recipes.
Luz
Yes, switch sucanat out for brown or white sugar. :)
Do you think these would work with einkorn flour?
Yes, that should work just fine!