Skinny Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

I know I’ve said it before, but fall is my favorite season because the holidays are approaching and there is so much good food to enjoy. I may sound basic, but I love pumpkin desserts. Whether it’s pumpkin pie, a pumpkin cake roll, or pumpkin hot cocoa, I’m here for it! This recipe for skinny pumpkin cream cheese muffins is one of my favorites! It’s from the recipe blog, “Little Broken” by Katya.

Skinny Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins Recipe

Photo cred: Little Broken

Ingredients

This recipe makes 12 muffins.

For muffins:

• 1 can pumpkin puree
• 1 cup mashed ripe bananas, about 2
• 1/3 cup melted coconut oil
• 1/2 cup honey
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups white whole wheat flour
• 2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• Optional: pumpkin seeds

For the cream cheese filling:

• 8 oz. block cream cheese, softened at room temperature
• 3 tbsp honey

Directions

1. Firstly, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Grease 12-cup muffin pan with non-stick spray or line the pan with paper muffin cups and grease the cups. Set aside.
2. To make the muffin batter: In a large bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, bananas, coconut oil, honey, eggs, milk, and vanilla extract. You can use a whisk or a big wooden spoon.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, and salt, and add to the pumpkin mixture. Stir until just until combined. Some lumps are okay. Set aside.
4. To make the filling, whisk together the softened cream cheese and honey until smooth.
5. Assemble: Drop about 2 tablespoons of the batter into each muffin cup. It should cover the bottom. Then, add a heaping tablespoon of the cream cheese filling. If you have leftover filling, go back and add the rest to the cups before covering with batter. Cover with the remaining batter to fill the muffin cups to the top. Some filling may poke out of the sides or out of the top. If desired, sprinkle the tops with pumpkin seeds.
6. Bake 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake part of the muffin (not into the cream cheese filling) comes out clean.
7. Place the muffin pan on a cooling rack to cool. The filling will firm up as the muffins cool. Do not try to remove muffins while they are hot. After the muffins cool, remove them from the pan.
8. Lastly, enjoy this delicious, healthy treat for breakfast, a snack, or a dessert!

Note: You can store the cooled muffins in the refrigerator, tightly covered, for up to 1 week. Or you can freeze them in a freezer-safe bag for up to 3 months.

Want more pumpkin?

Try this healthy pumpkin soup recipe for fall and learn about the health benefits of this tasty squash.