The Best Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins (Starbucks Copycat)
Indulge in these delightful Starbucks copycat pumpkin cream cheese muffins, featuring a moist pumpkin batter swirled with a rich, tangy cream cheese filling, perfect for a cozy treat.
Equipment
- Oven
- Standard 12-cup muffin pan
- Paper liners
- Large bowl
- whisk
- Medium bowl
- Electric hand mixer or wooden spoon
- Small Bowl
- Small piping bag or zip-top bag
- 2 oz scoop
- wire rack
- Toothpick
Ingredients
Pumpkin muffin batter
- 1 1/2 cups pure pumpkin puree (360ml)
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar (110g) packed
- 1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp granulated sugar (125g)
- 2 large large eggs at room temperature
- 1/2 cup sunflower oil (120ml)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (5ml)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (284g)
- 1 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (or make your own homemade pumpkin pie spice)
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup whole milk (80ml)
Cream cheese filling
- 5 oz cream cheese (142g), softened
- 2 1/2 tablespoon granulated sugar (32g)
- 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour (3g)
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoon whole milk (10ml)
Instructions
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.
- In a large bowl, whisk together pumpkin puree, light brown sugar, and granulated sugar until smooth. Add eggs, sunflower oil, and vanilla extract, then whisk until combined.
- Combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl; whisk to blend evenly. Gradually fold the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture, adding the milk before fully incorporated, then continue folding until just combined without flour pockets. Cover the bowl and let the batter rest for 30 minutes.
- While the batter rests, prepare the cream cheese filling. In a small bowl, beat softened cream cheese, granulated sugar, flour, and vanilla extract until smooth. Mix in milk until combined, then transfer the filling to a small piping bag or zip-top bag.
- Using a 2 oz scoop, divide the muffin batter evenly among the prepared cups, filling them to the rim. Snip the tip of the piping bag and pipe about ½ tablespoon of cream cheese filling into the center of each muffin, creating a 1-inch diameter swirl on the surface. Optionally, sprinkle chopped pumpkin seeds around the cream cheese filling, pressing them in lightly.
- Bake the muffins at 425°F for 5 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and bake for an additional 12-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean and they feel firm. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes, then move muffins individually to the rack to finish cooling.
Notes
For best results, use parchment paper liners to prevent sticking. The batter may be slightly lumpy, but ensure no flour pockets remain. When piping the cream cheese filling, aim for about ¼ inch deep from the surface to create a visible swirl. If you have extra batter, distribute it among the muffins before piping the cream cheese. Sprinkle pumpkin seeds around, not over, the cream cheese filling.