Nothing quite screams fall like pumpkin everything. Am I right, or am I right?
When I first wrote this blog pos years ago, Starbucks was one of the only places that carried pumpkin spice anything. Now-a-days, you can find pumpkin spice everywhere you look during the fall months (and even into the end of summer).
I absolutely love pumpkin and squash anything… dessert or not. But one of my favorite treats are these pumpkin muffins. They are so yummy. Fresh out of the oven (or microwaved the next day), they are gooey with cream cheese filling and crunchy with candied pepitas. The pumpkin flavor comes through in the most fall-tastic (😉) way. Ah… I need to make a batch asap.
*Mouth waters*
Take these muffins with you in the morning for a yummy breakfast or eat them as a just-because-snack. They are yummy at any time of day!
If you’re a seasoned Starbucks go-er, you know these pumpkin muffins just came back out today after a hibernation all spring and summer long. This copy-cat recipe is even better (because homemade, duh) and I can guess (a’hem, know) it uses a lot better-for-you ingredients too, without sacrificing delicious flavor. Win win.
Starbucks describes them as a “pumpkin muffin with crunchy, candied pumpkin seeds and cream cheese filling. A sensual delight of textures, a slow indulgence, best enjoyed with a good book and a warm drink to keep it company.” And gosh, I couldn’t agree more!

Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 2 eggs
- 1 15 ounce can pure pumpkin puree
- 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 8 oz cream cheese
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup of pepitas, also known as shell-less pumpkin seeds.
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1/4 cup sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and put 12 liners into a standard muffin baking pan.
- Measure out the flour, sugars, baking soda, salt and spices in a medium bowl and whisk together. Set aside.
- In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, pumpkin puree, coconut oil and vanilla extract.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix. Do not over mix.
- Evenly distribute the batter into the cupcake baking pan.
- Pipe cream cheese mixture into the middle of the batter of each muffin.
- Sprinkle candied pepitas (pumpkin seeds) on top.
- Bake for aprox. 20 minutes.
- Mix all ingredients together until smooth.
- Combine all ingredients into a skillet over medium heat.
- Stir constantly so mixture does not burn.
- Stop stirring and transfer to parchment paper once all sugar is melted and pepitas are coated.
- Make sure to spread pepitas out so they do not harden into a clump.
- Use a sharp knife to roughly chop pepitas.

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