Sourdough Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
Yield: 15 muffins
These Sourdough Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins are soft, moist, and full of warm pumpkin spice, with a rich cream cheese center and buttery crumble topping. Made with sourdough discard and a whole can of pumpkin puree, they’re an easy fall breakfast or snack that can be baked right away or long-fermented overnight.
Ingredients
Sourdough Pumpkin Muffins
- 310 grams all-purpose flour 2 cups + 1/4 cup
- 8 grams baking powder 2 teaspoons
- 10 grams baking soda 1 1/2 teaspoons
- 5 grams ground cinnamon 2 1/2 teaspoons
- 4 grams pumpkin pie spice 2 teaspoons
- 6 grams salt 1 teaspoon
- 120 grams sourdough discard, room temperature 1/2 cup
- 100 grams granulated sugar 1/2 cup
- 110 grams light brown sugar 1/2 cup
- 150 grams eggs, room temperature about 3 large eggs
- 425 grams pure pumpkin puree, canned 15 ounces
- 113 grams unsalted butter, melted 1/2 cup
Cream Cheese Filling
- 226 grams full-fat block cream cheese, softened 8 ounces
- 40 grams white sugar about 3 Tablespoons + 1 teaspoon
- 4 grams vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste 1 teaspoon
- 5 grams all-purpose flour 1 1/2 teaspoons
- pinch of salt
Crumble Topping
- 60 grams all-purpose flour 1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons
- 50 grams light brown sugar 1/4 cup
- .5 gram pumpkin pie spice 1/4 teaspoon
- 42 grams unsalted butter, melted 3 Tablespoons
Instructions
- If you plan to long-ferment the muffin batter, please see the notes below.
Sourdough Pumpkin Muffin Batter
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F and line a muffin tin with muffin liners. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and salt. Set to the side.310 grams all-purpose flour, 8 grams baking powder, 10 grams baking soda, 6 grams salt, 5 grams ground cinnamon, 4 grams pumpkin pie spice
- In a medium bowl add the sourdough discard, sugars, eggs, pumpkin puree, and melted butter. Whisk until the ingredients are combined and smooth.120 grams sourdough discard, room temperature, 100 grams granulated sugar, 150 grams eggs, room temperature, 425 grams pure pumpkin puree, canned, 113 grams unsalted butter, melted, 110 grams light brown sugar
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until the dry ingredients are just combined. Be careful not to overmix the batter, otherwise this will lead to a dense muffin. Let the batter rest for 15 minutes. This short rest helps to hydrate the flour, making the muffins extra fluffy!
- While the batter is resting, prepare the cream cheese filling and crumble topping.
Cream Cheese Filling
- To a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, add the cream cheese and beat on medium speed until smooth. Add the sugar, vanilla, flour and salt and mix again on medium-low until everything is combined. Add the cream cheese filling to a piping bag with a large round piping tip ( I used a 1A, with a ½-inch opening) and set aside.226 grams full-fat block cream cheese, softened, 40 grams white sugar, 4 grams vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste, 5 grams all-purpose flour, pinch of salt
Crumble Topping
- In another small bowl, add the flour, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice and melted butter. Mix with a fork until crumbly. Set aside.60 grams all-purpose flour, 50 grams light brown sugar, .5 gram pumpkin pie spice, 42 grams unsalted butter, melted
- After the batter has rested, scoop the batter into the muffin tin until about 90% way full. This scoop worked perfectly!
- Carefully insert the piping bag in the center of the muffin batter until you touch the bottom, then slowly fill each muffin with the cream cheese filling while pulling up (about 18 grams each). Make a small swirl motion near the top so that you can see the filling through the muffin batter. Clean off the tip and repeat wit the remaining muffins.
- Finally, sprinkle the top of each muffin with the crumble topping around the cream cheese filling.
- Bake at 425 degrees F for 7 minutes, then lower the temperature to 350 degrees F for 8-10 minutes more until, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean. (Be sure to poke in the muffin, not the cream cheese filling).
- Leave the muffins in the muffin tin for 5 minutes before placing them on a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
Notes
Long-Fermentation:
Prepare the muffin batter the night before, omitting a few of the ingredients, cover and store it in the fridge overnight. The following morning, whisk in the baking powder, baking soda, eggs, melted butter, ground cinnamon, pumpkin spice and vanilla extract. The following day, pull the batter out and allow it to come to room temperature before baking. Bake as normal.Ingredients & Substitutions
- Flour—I used all-purpose flour for this recipe.
- Sugar—I used both white and light brown sugar for a subtle caramel flavor, but you can use only white sugar.
- Eggs—Use room-temperature eggs so the ingredients mix properly and the batter rises to that perfect dome shape.
- Sourdough Starter Discard—I prefer using fresh sourdough discard, about 1–2 days old, for sweet treats like this. If you don't have discard on hand, you can use an equal amount of active sourdough starter, measured in grams.
- Unsalted Butter—Reduce the salt by 1 gram (1/4 tsp) if you use salted butter.
- Spices—A combination of ground cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice brings the perfect warmth to these muffins. If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice, you can easily make your own at home.
- Pumpkin Puree—I used an entire can of pumpkin purée, NOT pumpkin pie filling. I haven’t tested this recipe with homemade pumpkin puree, but if you try it, please let me know how it goes.
- Vanilla Extract—It goes into both the muffin batter and the cream cheese filling for a warm, rounded flavor.
Cream Cheese Filling
- Cream Cheese— I used full-fat cream cheese to whip up this sweet cream cheese filling. Let it come to room temperature for easier mixing.
- Flour—A touch of flour helps to thicken the filling while the muffins bake.
- Vanilla Extract—I used vanilla bean paste, but you can opt for vanilla extract as well! I just love the little specks that vanilla bean paste adds to the cream cheese filling.
Nutrition
Serving: 1muffin | Calories: 328kcal | Carbohydrates: 44g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 75mg | Sodium: 462mg | Potassium: 140mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 4926IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 80mg | Iron: 2mg
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