You will love these Starbucks-inspired pumpkin cream cheese muffins. Fluffy spiced pumpkin muffins are filled with a sweet cream cheese center and baked to tender perfection. They have a light oil-based crumb and deliver all the warm pumpkin spice flavor of fall.
Craving more pumpkin muffin ideas? Try chocolate pumpkin marble muffins, pumpkin coffee cake muffins, pumpkin chocolate chip muffins, or pumpkin streusel muffins.
This recipe was first published on September 13, 2021.
If you enjoy the Starbucks pumpkin cream cheese muffin, this homemade version is a perfect copycat—and in many ways, an improvement. These muffins are ideal for breakfast, brunch, or an afternoon treat. Store them in the refrigerator and enjoy throughout the week.
Because these muffins use oil instead of butter in the batter, they stay extra soft and tender. If you prefer muffins without the cream cheese center, use a simple pumpkin muffin base instead. For another indulgent pumpkin-and-cream-cheese treat, try pumpkin cinnamon rolls.
For more pumpkin recipes, consider pumpkin scones, pumpkin pancakes, or pumpkin ravioli with a creamy sauce.
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Why I Love This Recipe
- Better Than Store-Bought – Freshly baked at home, these muffins beat the chain options. The texture is tender and the cream cheese center elevates every bite.
- Cost Effective – Makes 12 muffins for a fraction of what you’d pay at a café.
- Freezer Friendly – These freeze well. Reheat in the microwave or thaw in the fridge for a quick treat anytime.
Ingredients
- Sunflower oil (or another neutral oil)
- Brown sugar
- Cane sugar (or white sugar)
- Vanilla extract
- Eggs
- Buttermilk
- Pumpkin puree (canned pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling)
- All-purpose flour
- Salt
- Baking soda
- Baking powder
- Cream cheese
- Pumpkin pie spice
- Cinnamon
How To Make Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
Make the pumpkin batter. In a large bowl whisk together the oil (about 82 grams if using a scale), brown sugar, cane sugar, vanilla, eggs, buttermilk, and pumpkin puree until smooth. Sift the dry ingredients—flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon—over the wet ingredients and fold until just combined. Avoid overmixing to keep the muffins tender.
Make the sweet cream cheese filling. Beat cream cheese with butter, cane sugar, brown sugar, a pinch of cinnamon, and a pinch of salt until smooth and creamy. Transfer the mixture to a piping bag fitted with a round tip or use a zip-top bag with a small corner snipped off.
Assemble the muffins. Line a muffin tin with liners and add about 3 tablespoons of batter to each cup. Insert the piping tip about ½” into the batter and squeeze in a small dollop of cream cheese filling. Top with remaining batter as needed so each muffin has a visible cream cheese center. This recipe yields 12 muffins—divide batter and filling evenly.
Bake. Preheat the oven to 400°F (204°C) and bake the muffins for 5 minutes. Without opening the door, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C) and continue baking for 12–14 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted at an angle comes out clean. Let the muffins cool slightly before serving.
How To Store
Because these muffins contain cream cheese, store them in the refrigerator in an airtight container or zip-top bag. They stay fresh for about five days. For longer storage, freeze them in a sealed bag—thaw in the fridge or at room temperature, or reheat from frozen in the microwave.
Pumpkin Recipes
- Stuffed shells with pumpkin cream sauce
- Pumpkin swirl cheesecake
- Pumpkin roll with cream cheese frosting
- Pumpkin pancakes
- Cinnamon rolls with pumpkin cream cheese frosting
- Pumpkin scones
- Pumpkin bread
- 20-minute pumpkin ravioli
Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
12 muffins
15 minutes
19 minutes
34 minutes
These muffins combine tender pumpkin batter with a sweet, creamy center for a comforting fall treat.
Ingredients
pumpkin batter
- 6 tbsp sunflower oil (82 grams)
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup cane sugar (or white sugar)
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup buttermilk
- ¾ cup pumpkin puree
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ tsp salt
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- ½ tsp cinnamon
sweet cream cheese filling
- 4 oz cream cheese
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp cane sugar (or white sugar)
- 2 tbsp packed brown sugar
- Pinch of cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C).
- Whisk together oil, brown sugar, cane sugar, vanilla, eggs, buttermilk, and pumpkin puree until smooth.
- Sift flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon over the wet ingredients.
- Fold until just combined—do not overmix.
- Line a muffin tin and add 3–4 tbsp of pumpkin batter to each liner.
- Beat cream cheese, butter, cane sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt until creamy for the filling.
- Transfer the filling to a piping bag or zip-top bag with a corner snipped off.
- Insert the tip about ½” into each muffin and squeeze in a small amount of filling.
- Bake at 400°F for 5 minutes. Without opening the oven, reduce heat to 350°F (177°C) and bake 12–14 more minutes or until a toothpick inserted at an angle comes out clean.
- Remove from oven, cool slightly, and serve.
Notes
Measure liquid ingredients with a liquid measuring cup (oil, buttermilk, and pumpkin puree) rather than dry measuring cups for accurate results.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12
Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving:
Calories: 520
Total Fat: 13g
Saturated Fat: 4g
Trans Fat: 0g
Unsaturated Fat: 8g
Cholesterol: 46mg
Sodium: 339mg
Carbohydrates: 98g
Fiber: 1g
Sugar: 78g
Protein: 5g
Nutrition figures are estimates from online calculators.