Want a more budget-friendly way to get your pumpkin spice fix than going to Starbucks for a PSL? Then you’ve got to make a batch of these Pumpkin Muffins. These muffins are moist, subtly sweet, full of warm spices, and have a hidden dollop of sweet cream cheese in the middle. They’re totally indulgent and you get a whole batch of twelve pumpkin muffins for about the price of one pumpkin spice latte. Plus, they’re freezer-friendly so you thaw one at a time to have with your morning coffee from now until the end of pumpkin season! 🙌
What Are Pumpkin Muffins Like?
Pumpkin purée is kind of magic because it can be added to both sweet and savory dishes (like pumpkin soup!), and it attracts moisture, which helps keep baked goods super soft, tender, and moist. The pumpkin flavor is slightly earthy with a subtle sweetness that, when paired with the warm pumpkin pie spice, is absolutely COZY. Bake up a batch of these pumpkin muffins on a weekend morning to make your house smell amazing and have the coziest of cozy fall experiences. 🥰
Ingredients for Pumpkin Muffins
Here’s what you’ll need to make this incredible pumpkin muffin recipe:
- All-Purpose Flour: Flour gives the batter strength and body. It’s the vehicle for all that pumpkin-y goodness!
- Baking Powder & Baking Soda: These muffins get a one-two punch of leavening to help them bake up light and airy, despite the density of the pumpkin purée.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice and Vanilla: A simple mix of pumpkin pie spice and warm vanilla extract is all you need to flavor these delicious muffins.
- White Sugar & Brown Sugar: A combination of white sugar and brown sugar gives the muffins sweetness with a slightly warm richness from the molasses in the brown sugar. The sugars also help keep the muffins moist.
- Eggs: Eggs also help leaven baked goods when the water in the eggs turn to steam in the oven. When the egg solidifies as it bakes, it helps the muffins hold their puffed shape.
- Pumpkin Purée: Pumpkin purée provides color, flavor, and moisture to the muffins. It’s the star of the show!
- Cooking Oil: Oil helps the muffins stay moist and tender, and gives the muffin an extra rich flavor.
- Cream Cheese & Sugar: A little dollop of sweetened cream cheese in the center of each muffin makes them extra special! But you can skip the cream cheese filling and make plain pumpkin muffins if you prefer.
How to Store Leftovers
This recipe makes a batch of 12 muffins, but that’s no reason to not make them for yourself if you live alone. Simply let the muffins cool completely to room temperature, then transfer to an air-tight food storage container. They’ll last about three days in the refrigerator, or you can freeze them for about three months. Thaw and reheat the frozen muffins with a quick 30 seconds in the microwave, or let them thaw at room temperature for about 15 minutes. Quick, easy, homemade muffins on demand!
Pumpkin Muffin Variations
You can take this basic pumpkin muffin batter and add so many different twists. Here are a couple of fun ideas for making this recipe your own:
- Skip the cream cheese center and fold in chocolate chips
- Top the muffins with a mixture of coarse sugar and cinnamon
- Add chopped pecans to the batter or on top of each muffin
- Make a quick cinnamon sugar glaze (powdered sugar + cinnamon + milk) to drizzle over the muffins (I did this during testing and while it didn’t look so pretty, it made them taste like cinnamon-coated donuts!)
- Add a streusel topping
Pumpkin Muffins
Servings 12 muffinsIngredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour ($0.28)
- 1 tsp baking powder ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp baking soda ($0.01)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice ($0.10)
- 2 large eggs ($0.18)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar ($0.17)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar ($0.26)
- 1 15oz. can pumpkin purée ($2.19)
- 1/2 cup cooking oil ($0.44)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract ($0.59)
Cream Cheese Filling (optional)
- 4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature ($1.10)
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar ($0.04)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and pumpkin pie spice.
- In a separate large bowl, whisk together the eggs, granulated sugar, brown sugar, pumpkin purée, oil, and vanilla extract.
- Pour the bowl of dry ingredients into the bowl of wet ingredients and stir together just until combined. A few small lumps are okay, just try not to overmix.
- In a separate small bowl, stir together the cream cheese and sugar for the cream cheese filling.
- Grease a muffin tin or line with muffin liners. Fill each well in the muffin pan about ⅓ full. Add a small dollop of the cream cheese to each well, in the center of the muffin batter. Divide the remaining muffin batter between each well, covering the cream cheese. Each well in the muffin pan should be filled about ¾ full.
- Bake the muffins for about 24 minutes, or until fully puffed in the center and slightly cracked on top.
- Remove the muffins from the oven and let them cool for about 5 minutes before gently removing them from the muffin pan and allowing them to finish cooling on a wire rack.
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How to Make Pumpkin Muffins – Step by Step Photos
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. In a medium bowl, stir together 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 tsp baking powder, ½ tsp baking soda, ½ tsp salt, and 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice until evenly combined.
In a separate large bowl, stir together one 15oz. can of pumpkin purée, 2 large eggs, ½ cup white sugar, ½ cup brown sugar, ½ cup cooking oil, and 1 tsp vanilla extract until smooth.
Add the dry ingredients to the bowl of wet ingredients and stir them together just until combined. A few small lumps are okay, just be careful not to over-stir.
To make the cream cheese filling, stir together 4oz. room temperature cream cheese and 2 Tbsp white sugar.
Grease a muffin tin or line with paper liners. Fill each well in the tin about ⅓ full with pumpkin batter, then add a dollop of the sweetened cream cheese on top. Fill the rest of the way with the remaining pumpkin batter. Or, if choosing not to do the cream cheese filling, simply divide the pumpkin batter among the 12 wells of the muffin tin.
Bake the muffins in the preheated 350ºF oven for about 24 minutes, or until the muffins are fully puffed in the center and cracked slightly, and a little golden on the edges. Let them cool for about 5 minutes in the muffin pan before gently transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
These came out wonderfully. I added more cream cheese filling to mine, but that was just my personal preference. Having a quick, delicious breakfast that I can grab from the freezer was such a win for me. I’m absolutely making these again. My partner also loved them & is requesting more as I type this. :)
Is it possible to make in mini loaf pans?
Yes, definitely! The baking time might be slightly different, but I’m sure it could be done.
There is no canned pumpkin where I live. Any advice on how to adjust to fresh or frozen pumpkin?
You can use cooked and mashed/puréed pumpkin, but this may yield pumpkin with a different water content than the canned pumpkin, which might change the consistency of the batter.
These are outstanding!! My teens and I made these today while it was cold and snowy outside. They did not disappoint! Everyone loves them.
Beth, you did it again! This recipe is divine, I think maybe even better than the Starbucks version. I followed the recipe and added a streusel on top (1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup flour, 1/2 cup chopped pecans, 1 tsp cinnamon, 3 tbsp melted butter). Will definitely make again. Thank you!!
Oooh, I bet that streusel was great on there! I’m so glad you like them. :)
These were absolutely delicious, wouldn’t change a thing! Thank you for the awesome recipe
How do I store these
Simply let the muffins cool completely to room temperature, then transfer to an air-tight food storage container. They’ll last about three days in the refrigerator, or you can freeze them for about three months. Thaw and reheat the frozen muffins with a quick 30 seconds in the microwave, or let them thaw at room temperature for about 15 minutes. :)
Oops! I bought the wrong can of pumpkin purée- I bought pumpkin pie filling that already has spices and sugar in the ingredient listing. Beth, should I still go ahead and make this recipe as it is? Should I make any adjustments in the recipe? Should I go out and buy the right product?
I would go get the correct product. Unfortunately, there are too many variables between the two products for me to offer a suggestion on how to adjust the recipe to compensate without testing it first. :(
I’m wondering if I can make this in a cake pan as I don’t have a muffin tin yet. If so, anyone know how long I should bake for?
You probably could, although I don’t know how long it would take to bake without testing it first.
So good! The cream cheese filling makes these as exciting as coffee shop muffins. They’re moist and sweet but not too sweet. Everyone in my house loved them! I might try a sweetened goat cheese filling next time.
My daughter made these muffins this morning and they are great! Not too sweet and the cream cheese is a delicious touch!
I doubled this recipe to make two dozen and I’m so glad I did – these are easy and delicious! I didn’t have pumpkin spice on hand, so I used 3 parts cinnamon to 1 part ginger in its place. I also used powdered sugar instead of granulated sugar for the cream cheese filling, just because I had it on hand and it seemed like a good idea. I expect to freeze a handful of these and hope the author is right that they freeze well. I will definitely make these again!
Have not tried yet, but wondering if the flour could be replaced for gluten free flour? Curious if it’s been tried!!
Unfortunately, I haven’t tried gluten-free flour, but hopepfully someone else will be able to chime in. :)
I used 2 cups of Doves Farm Gluten Free Self Raising Flour. They didn’t rise as much, being gluten free, but they’re still delicious
I tried with gluten free flour (my own mix, including cassava and oat flour) and it worked really well!
I made with King Arthur gluten free flour (it’s called Measure for Measure flour) and they came out perfect! Very delicious.
I like to add whole fresh (or frozen) cranberries to my pumpkin muffins!
Great idea!
Beth, I hope it’s ok to tell you this here. I have not made this yet but, when I do, I am going to “veganize” it using 2 flax eggs, 1 stick of vegan “butter,” and vegan cream cheese. I do that all the time with any new recipes I find. They always turn out good! I can’t wait to try this one! Hubby loves anything with cream cheese.
I love it when people share their modifications! Be sure to let us know how they turn out in case anyone else wants to try it as well. :)