Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins - YUM!

AIMEE:  Hi folks!  I am dying to tell you about this new recipe I tried this passed weekend.  It was for Pumpkin Cheesecake Muffins with a streusel topping.  Not really a From Scratch recipe, Thank God.  I'm not a fabulous cook, so easy is best for me.

My friend Rachael found the recipe on Pinterest and when I heard about it, I said, 'Oh my god, I HAVE to try this.'  Sure enough, a few days later I found myself at Hannafords looking for the ingredients. Here's the trouble with shopping without the list or a recipe... you forget stuff!!  I was so mad at myself but I did what the Linder's are known for and the Ellis's are not.  Winging it!!  Haha - Yes, my husband who is a by-the-book recipe follower would have been very upset with me if he was there when these were made.  Lucky for me, he wasn't :)

My mom, who is an amazing cook is not exactly known for following a recipe.  If I were to ask her how to make something, she'd probably have to open the fridge, look around, and point things out. She uses whatever she has most of the time and often has to use substitutes.   I guess I'm kind of like her that way :)

So, this recipe called for a few ingredients, most of which I had.  I didn't have lemon peel or vanilla. Now the lemon peel really isn't that big of a deal, although I adore lemon and it gives such bright flavoring to everything.  But vanilla?  That can be a crucial ingredient because there isn't much you can do to substitute something like that.  Another thing I forgot to do was set aside some of the Quickbread mixture to make a streusel topping for the muffins.  I looked around the kitchen for a substitute but I was at a loss - that is, until  I spotted the Pumpkin Granola that I had bought earlier that morning from Trader Joe's - SCORE!

Below is the actual recipe...

INGREDIENTS:

• FILLING
•  No-Stick Cooking Spray
• 1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons grated lemon peel 
• MUFFINS
• 1 (14 oz.) package Pillsbury® Pumpkin Quick Bread & Muffin Mix
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup Vegetable Oil
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• STREUSEL TOPPING
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans

PREPARATION DIRECTIONS:

1. HEAT oven to 350°F. Coat 12 muffin cups generously with no-stick cooking spray.


2. For Filling: BEAT cream cheese in medium bowl with electric mixer until soft. Add egg, sugar, vanilla and lemon peel. Beat until blended.


3. For Muffins: PLACE quick bread mix into large bowl. Remove 3/4 cup dry mix. Place in small bowl for streusel topping. Add milk, oil, eggs and vanilla to remaining mix in large bowl. Stir 50 strokes or until blended. Divide batter evenly into muffin cups. Divide cream cheese mixture evenly into center of muffins.


4. For Streusel Topping: ADD melted butter to reserved dry mix. Stir with fork until crumbly. Add pecans. Crumble a tablespoon of streusel over each muffin. Bake 25 minutes. Cool 10 minutes in pan. Remove muffins from pan to wire rack. Cool completely.

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION PER SERVING:

Serving Size (1/24), Calories 260 (Calories from Fat 90), Total Fat 10g (Saturated Fat 1g, Trans Fat 0g), Cholesterol 35mg, Sodium 250mg, Total Carbohydrate 41g (Dietary Fiber 1g, Sugars 25g), Protein 4g; Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 60%, Vitamin C 2%, Calcium 8%, Iron 6%.


What I ended up doing:

I pretty much followed the main instructions.  However, I had no lemon peel or vanilla so I used a lot of cinnomin instead, to be sure it was going to be flavorful, then I prayed. haha :)  Nahhh, I knew it would be good, I was a little worried they weren't going to be the big hit I wanted them to be, but I knew that I would like them, at least.

A quick hint:  I was super worried about how I would go about filling the muffins since I had never done anything like that before. The quickbread mixture is a bit firm, like a dough which - as it turns out -  makes it really easy for 'filling' them!  I poured a little bit into the bottom of the muffin tin, then I used a teaspoon to put a little bit of an indentation into it. With another teaspoon I scooped some of the cheesecake mixture and gently laid it into the little next I made for it. Then I poured more of the Quickbread mix on top of it. In some cases the cheesecake mixture was oozing out and around the top portion of dough I added, but most of it stayed put and you really didn't notice it after they were baked anyway. 

So, as I mentioned previously,  I somehow forgot to set aside the extra Quickbread mixture for the streusel topping (nor did I pick up pecans from the store).  I grabbed the pumpkin granola that I bought from Trader Joe's and using that, I followed the streusel topping directions from the recipe.  My lovely assistant Rachael melted some Country crock butter spread in the microwave for me and I added some of the granola and stirred it up with a fork. Then I topped each muffin with a little bit of the mixture and then lightly pressed it down.

They turned out so delicious!! I'm betting if I followed the directions with the proper ingredients next time, they'd be even better. But I'm here to tell you - this is a perfect after-dinner treat for your family or guests with a nice cup of coffee or spiced tea...or even for yourself for breakfast!

I hope that if you try this recipe you'll comment and let me know how it went!  We would love your feedback :)

Also, don't forget to 'LIKE' us on facebook:  www.facebook.com/ellisfoodblog

Thanks for stopping by!

xoxo,
Aimee (& Kevin)


Kevin:  The muffins were terrific!  They were moist and tasty, and I am not the biggest fan of pumpkin.  Aimee hit a home run!