Pumpkin Cream Cheese Swirl Muffins
You guys know this by now that regardless of the fact that I am a food blogger, I am not a baker. I do not like baking, I don't enjoy it, and I try to bake as little as possible. However, I am the biggest pumpkin bread fan alive, so I do what I can to make pumpkin bread happen, with as little effort as possible.
The reason I have pretty much outlawed baking is because baking. requires. too. many. ingredients. I've talked about this before. I do not own baking soda, baking powder, or any of the rogue ingredients that almost any baked recipe requires that I can't ever locate in a grocery store. And on the off chance I do have one or the other, I always have the wrong one. So, that means I figure out how to make things without it, or I make things from a box.
However, let me be the first to tell you, there is zero shame in my box game. Have you had a Betty Crocker cupcake before? That came from a box, and they are amazing. We can't all be talented bakers and that is okay! My goal here is to help you trick people into thinking you are.
The key is to convince people that whatever it is you're making, isn't from a box. It's easy. Easier than baking from scratch I can tell you that much. So, that's what we're doing today: elevated boxed pumpkin muffins. Here we go.
What you will need
Trader Joes Pumpkin Bread and Muffin Mix
eggs
canned pumpkin
water
fat free cream cheese
vanilla
stevia/sugar
Using an oil Substitute
One thing I always try to do when making anything from a box, is read the label to see if there's anything I can substitute. This is the easiest way to make things "healthier" when you're baking!
One of my best kept secrets is to replace oil in any dessert recipe, with canned pumpkin or unsweetened applesauce. Boxed mixes always call for a ton of oil, but you can totally avoid this with either pumpkin or applesauce. They bake the exact same way oil would in these kinds of recipes, and neither one contains any fat.
They are both a 1:1 ratio, meaning however much oil the recipe calls for, you'd replace with the exact same amount of applesauce or pumpkin. Super easy and that's all there is to it!
Cream Cheese Swirl
Now onto how to "elevate" this recipe: cream cheese swirl. No boxed baked good comes with a cream cheese swirl so by doing this, no one will ever know you didn't spend an hour on this in the kitchen. We're all about the shortcuts around here. You know that.
Also, who doesn't love cream cheese swirl and pumpkin together? No one. Just make sure you have something to sweeten the cream cheese whether it's stevia (what I used) or granulated sugar!
Recipe
Cream Cheese Pumpkin Muffins
Elevating your pumpkin muffin game with one simple step, and a macro friendly oil swap. No one will ever know these muffins came from a box after you hit them with the cream cheese swirl!
1 box TJ pumpkin bead and muffin mix
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1 cup water
2 eggs
8 oz fat free cream cheese
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
5 drops stevia, or 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
Prepare your pumpkin muffin mix according to the box, just make sure to replace the oil with pumpkin.
After everything is combined, evenly distribute your muffin mix amongst your greased muffin tin.
You will have enough left over to fill four more muffin wells, so the recipe makes 16!
Microwave your cream cheese for about one minute, or until soft.
Add in vanilla and stevia, and whisk quickly to dissolve any lumps.
Put a small dollop of cream cheese mixture on top of the batter in each muffin well, and use a toothpick to swirl.
Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Macros:
144 calories
29.7g carbs
1.1g fat
3.1g protein
