Pumpkin Cream Cheese Streusel Cuffins

INGREDIENTS: Cream Cheese filling

1 (8oz) package cream cheese, SOFTENED*
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons brown sugar

INGREDIENTS: Streusel

4 1/2 tablespoons all purpose flour
5 tablespoons white sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons butter, SOFTENED*
3 tablespoons chopped pecans

INGREDIENTS: Cuffin

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 1/3 cups canned pumpkin (about 3/4 of a can)
1/3 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

INGREDIENTS: Cream Cheese Icing

1 lb cream cheese, SOFTENED*
2 sticks butter, SOFTENED*
1 tsp vanilla extract
3-4 cups powdered sugar (I used 3 because i don't like super sweet icing)
1 1-gallon ziploc bag


DIRECTIONS:


1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).  Prepare paper liners in cupcake pan.
2. To make the filling: Medium bowl, beat SOFTENED cream cheese until soft.  Add egg, vanilla and brown sugar.  Beat until smooth, set aside.
3.For Streusel Topping: Medium bowl, mix flour, sugar, cinnamon and pecans.  Add SOFTENED butter and cut it in with a fork until crumbly.  Set aside.
4. Cuffin Batter:  In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.  In another large bowl, add eggs, pumpkin, olive oil and vanilla--MIX the wet ingredients together then gradually start mixing in the dry ingredients.  Beat together until smooth.
5. Place cuffin mixture in the cupcake liners in the pan; fill 1/2 full.  now the Cream cheese filling.  Add one tablespoon or so of the cream cheese mixture right in the middle of the batter.  Try to keep cream cheese from touching the paper.  Once all cuffins have their filling sprinkle the streusel topping.
6. Bake at 375 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

7. Once the cuffins is out of the oven you want to COOL THE CUFFINS completely....or else the icing will melt right off the cuffin and the whole "presentation" is out the window.  Cooling your Cuffins can take a few hours.

8. For the Cream Cheese Icing:  Add the SOFTENED cream cheese, butter, vanilla into a bowl and mix it until smooth.  Set the mixer on LOW SPEED (or else you will be wearing most of the powdered sugar) and you can slowly add some powdered sugar...wait until the sugar is blended before adding more, beat until all sugar is incorporated.  NOW turn mixer to high and beat until fluffy.

9. Add all frosting into a 1-gallon zip loc bag.  This is going to act as your pastry bag.  Push all frosting to a bottom corner of the bag and cut a small opening in the bottom corner.

10. Lastly, You want to add the icing to the top of the cupcake.  To give it a professional look (as professional as you can with a ziploc bag that is...)  Start squeezing the frosting on the outer part of the cuffin and work your way towards the center, see pic.

11.  Once you ice all your cuffins, use chopped and whole walnuts to garnish.





*It is important to use softened ingredients or else the texture will make the baking process harder than it really needs to be.


Hope you enjoy this recipe.  I first found this recipe on allrecipes.com but the original recipe did not call for the cream cheese icing.  Do yourself a favor, MAKE THE ICING...it is 10x better., if not 100X.  It has been a big hit here in Rochester.  If you want a little less calorie intake, make the cuffins without the cream cheese filling.

And lastly...I could decide if these are muffins or cupcakes...so that is where the name Cuffins came about.

Enjoy ;)