Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

Recipe originally from Annie's Eats.

For filling:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 C. confectioner's sugar

For muffins:
3 C. flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 TBSP plus 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
4 eggs
2 C sugar
2 C pumpkin puree
1 1/4 C. vegetable oil

For topping:
1/2 C sugar
5 TBSP flour
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
4 TBSP cold butter, cut into pieces


To make filling: combine cream cheese and confectioner's sugar in a bowl and mix until smooth and well blended.  Place mixture on a piece of saran wrap and shape into a log about 1 1/2 inches in diameter.  Wrap tightly, and then reinforce with tin foil.  Transfer to freezer to chill, for at least 2 hours.

To make muffin mix:  preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line muffin pan with paper liners.  In a medium bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, pumpkin pie spice, salt and baking soda.  Whisk to blend.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine eggs, sugar, pumpkin puree and oil.  Mix until well blended.  Add in the dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated.

To make topping:  combine sugar, flour and cinnamon in a small bowl, whisk to blend.  Add in butter pieces and cut into the dry ingredients using a pastry blender or two forks.  Cut until mixture is coarse and crumbly.   Place in refrigerator until ready to use.

To assemble muffins:  fill each muffin liner with  a small amount of muffin mix, just enough to cover bottom of liner (I used a heaping TBSP full), around 1-2 TBSP.  Slice the log of cream cheese into 24 pieces.  Place one slice in each of the muffin liners.  Divide remaining batter among the muffin cups, making sure to cover the cream cheese.  Sprinkle desired amount of topping over each of the muffins.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.  Cool on a wire rack completely.