• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Appetizers & Snacks
Visit my other Site: Pancake Recipes
  • About
  • Contact
  • Appetizers & Snacks
  • Visit my other Site: Pancake Recipes

Rachel Cooks®

Easy Healthy-ish Recipes

  • Recipe Index
  • The Basics
  • Free Meal Plans

Dinner Made Easy:

Slow Cooker

5 Ingredients

Grilling

Make Ahead

Sheet Pan

Tacos

Pizza

Home Recipes by Type Breads & Muffins Muffins
FF Freezer Friendly VG Vegetarian

Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins

4.28
/5
40 minutes mins
68 Comments
Jump to Recipe
By: Rachel GurkPosted: 11/14/2011Updated: 12/01/2023

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

These pumpkin cheddar muffins are unique, surprising, and extremely delicious. They'll be a new fall favorite for breakfast or brunch. Get the recipe on RachelCooks.com.

Savory pumpkin cheddar muffins are unique, surprising, and extremely delicious. They go great with soups and salads.

Recipe Overview

Why you’ll love it: The muffins are rich but not sweet, making them a perfect side for meals.

How long it takes: 10 minutes to prep, 20 minutes to bake, 10 minutes to cool
Equipment you’ll need: mixing bowls, muffin tins
Servings: makes 12 muffins

Dark orange muffins in a muffin tin, flecked with shredded cheddar cheese.


 
Table of Contents
close
  • 1 Recipe Overview
  • 2 About Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins
  • 3 Storage Tips
  • 4 More Pumpkin Baked Goods
  • 5 Get the Recipe: Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins Recipe

Disclosure: I was sent a free book to review and free brownies to try. However, all opinions expressed in this post are, as always, 100% my own. I was not compensated for this post other than the free book/brownies.

What is the first thing you do when you pick up a new cookbook? Do you read the information on the back? Look at the pictures? Check the table of contents?I’m a flipper. I flip through the pages to see what catches my eye and then I delve in deeper.

One of the first things I noticed about Baked Explorations by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito was the friendly layout, deep, rich colors and wide variety of recipes.

Overhead close up view of muffins on a cake stand, an open muffin with butter on a white plate sits below in the background.
Close up view of a pumpkin muffin in a tin. Cheddar and black pepper are visible in the muffin.

The recipe I’m featuring from the cookbook is Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins, from the Breakfast section of the cookbook.

About Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins

  • The muffins aren’t overly sweet. This recipe is perfect if you’re someone who doesn’t love super sweet breakfasts.  Pumpkin cheddar muffins are perfectly balanced: sweet and savory with a touch of cayenne to keep things interesting. They also make a healthy side to serve with soups and salads since they aren’t made with a lot of sugar.
  • Pumpkin is a healthy food. Canned pumpkin is 100% pumpkin purée with no sugar added. Pumpkin is good for you with lots of vitamin A, antioxidants, and fiber.
  • The muffins are easy to make. You can have the muffins in the oven in just 10 minutes!

Note: The authors suggest topping the muffins with pumpkin seeds (pepitas) which look beautiful and add a great crunch but I used all mine for these recipes and didn’t have any left when I took these photos.

Close up view of pumpkin muffins with cheddar and flecks of black pepper.

This pumpkin muffin recipe isn’t low-fat, with a whole stick of butter (half cup) plus cheddar cheese, but they are a great treat. I have a good helping of butter on them for the pictures, but they really don’t need it. They are very moist and delicious without it (but a little extra butter is never a bad thing)!

They are excellent with a drizzle of honey, especially hot honey, or a smear of soft cream cheese.

Close up view of a sliced pumpkin muffin with a generous smear of butter, on a white plate.

Storage Tips

Cool muffins completely on a wire rack before storing them in an airtight container. Like most muffins, pumpkin muffins taste best when they are freshly baked, but they’ll keep on the counter for a few days or in the fridge for up to a week. Freeze them for longer storage, up to 3 months.

To refresh leftover muffins, warm them in a 200°F oven.

More Pumpkin Baked Goods

Healthy Pumpkin Bread Recipe

Pumpkin Streusel Bread Recipe

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Pumpkin Bran Muffins Recipe

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!

Overhead close up view of muffins on a cake stand, an open muffin with butter on a white plate sits below in the background.
Recipe

Get the Recipe: Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins Recipe

4.28 from 18 votes
Prep Time: 10 minutes mins
Cook Time: 20 minutes mins
Additional Time: 10 minutes mins
Total Time: 40 minutes mins
12 muffins
Print Rate Recipe
Prevent your screen from going dark
Savory pumpkin cheddar muffins are unique, surprising, and extremely delicious. They go great with soups and salads.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup canned solid-pack pumpkin purée (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
  • 3 tablespoons sour cream
  • 2 large eggs
  • ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 ½ teaspoons salt
  • 1 ½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
  • ½ cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
  • 1 ¼ cups grated sharp cheddar (about 4 ounces)
  • 2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds, optional (pepitas)

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lightly spray each cup of a standard 12-cup muffin pan with a little bit of vegetable spray and use a paper towel to spread the oil evenly along the bottom and up the sides of each cup.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin and sour cream. Add the eggs and butter and whisk until combined.
  • In another large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cayenne pepper, salt, black pepper, and brown sugar.
  • Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the well, and fold until just combined. Fold in three-quarters of the cheese.
  • Divide the batter among the muffin cups. Sprinkle the remaining cheddar and the pumpkin seeds on top of the muffins. Bake muffins for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.
  • Let the muffin pan cool on a rack for 10 minutes before turning out the muffins. Serve them warm.

Notes

  • Muffins taste best when eaten fresh, but they can be made ahead of time and reheated in a 200°F oven.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1muffin, Calories: 262kcal, Carbohydrates: 28g, Protein: 7g, Fat: 14g, Saturated Fat: 8g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 4g, Trans Fat: 0.3g, Cholesterol: 65mg, Sodium: 439mg, Potassium: 121mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 10g, Vitamin A: 3614IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 141mg, Iron: 2mg

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

© Author: Rachel Gurk
Did You Make This?Be sure to upload a photo & tag me at @RachelCooksBlog. I love seeing what you made!
Share A Photo! Tag on Insta Rate It
Holiday Quick-Start Guide

Get my Holiday

Quick-Start Guide!

Free email series of my best tips!

FREE BONUS!

You May Also Like...

  • Pumpkin bran muffins on a wire rack.
    Pumpkin Bran Muffins Recipe
  • Two pumpkin chocolate chip muffins stacked on a small white plate, with more muffins in the background.
    Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
  • Sliced pumpkin streusel bread with spices around it.
    Pumpkin Streusel Bread Recipe
  • Close up view of easy pumpkin pudding garnished with whipped cream, pepitas, and cinnamon.
    Easy Pumpkin Pudding
Baked mac and cheese in a white oval casserole dish.
Previous Post
EASIEST Baked Macaroni and Cheese (the best!)
Pomegranate seeds on wooden background.
Next Post
How to Cut a Pomegranate – Mess Free Method!

Reader Interactions

Leave a Review Cancel reply

Recipe Rating




The maximum upload file size: 1 MB. You can upload: image. Drop files here

  1. Emily says

    November 7, 2023 at 8:31 am

    5 stars
    Love this recipe! I made it gluten-free by subbing in 1 1/2 Cup Pamela’s GF Flour and 1/2 cup of Oat Flour however, the batter was more like a dough by the time it was folded so I just added in some milk to get it a little more like a very thick batter (the spoonfuls held their shape when plopped them in the muffin tin.)

    Other than that little hiccup, I was able to make these gluten-free pretty easily! So yummy and cheesy and dense.

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      November 9, 2023 at 7:11 am

      So glad you liked them! Thanks for sharing your experience@

      Reply
  2. Ellen Garner says

    October 8, 2022 at 10:00 pm

    Could you add bacon or sausage to this muffin?

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      October 10, 2022 at 4:42 pm

      As long as it’s already cooked, that should work fine!

      Reply
  3. Patty says

    October 22, 2021 at 11:52 am

    1 star
    Cook times way off, raw muffins would not make again!

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      October 26, 2021 at 8:45 am

      Hi Patty, have you checked your oven temperature? Usually 20 minutes at 400 is more than enough time to cook muffins. These are a very dense, moist muffin, but they should be fully cooked in 20 minutes.

      Reply
  4. Patricia says

    September 8, 2020 at 1:11 am

    Super my next favorite as I love pumpkin
    Many thanks. 

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      September 9, 2020 at 9:02 am

      So glad you like these! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment!

      Reply
  5. Jo Beaumonte says

    June 13, 2020 at 8:40 am

    These muffins….WOW!! Every word I think of seems an understatement! Absolutely divine texture and flavour and id recommend anyone to make these, go great as a side with meats or for a brunch with maple bacon. I can’t have enough of them. After my first batch which was for tea tonight, people wanted to taste what the beautiful smell was! And by 1pm the whole batch was gone. So I’ve made double the batch for tea tonight now!! Thanks RachelCooks for another timeless faultless recipe x

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      June 15, 2020 at 10:24 am

      So glad you like this muffins! :) Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment!

      Reply
  6. Harry says

    May 6, 2020 at 12:38 pm

    Nine years later….I’m cooking my way through the pandemic and pulled this cookbook off the shelf to try some of the recipes I’ve never made before. I really enjoy the taste of these muffins, especially the spice level. But I find the texture a little dense. I thought I made them wrong, but then from your pictures I see I have about the same texture as you have in yours. I was a little worried about this after seeing how thick the batter was. Any suggestions for trying to lighten it the texture?

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      May 8, 2020 at 11:54 am

      They are a very dense, heavy muffin. I like them that way but if you want to try lightening them up, I’d try increasing the baking powder a little. I haven’t tried it though, so I can’t make any promises. Let me know if you give it a go!

      Reply
  7. Romelia Ruiz says

    October 6, 2018 at 2:52 pm

    Excelente receta. Sencillamente exquisitos.

    Reply
    • Rachel Gurk says

      October 8, 2018 at 10:40 am

      Thank you!

      Reply
  8. Sara P. says

    November 18, 2011 at 12:01 am

    This book, and the brownies, look amazing!

    Reply
  9. Aubrey says

    November 17, 2011 at 4:49 pm

    Those muffins look delicious, really lovely photos!

    Reply
  10. BigFatBaker says

    November 17, 2011 at 10:01 am

    OMG I have been wanting this book forever! All of the recipes sound so good and homey. The pumpkin muffins look amazing, and I’m sure they didn’t disappoint! Great giveaway!

    Reply
  11. Susie Mills says

    November 17, 2011 at 8:15 am

    WOW this will make a great addition to my family Christmas Holiday brunch! I can’t wait to try them – thank you!!!!

    Reply
  12. Alex says

    November 16, 2011 at 4:40 pm

    They look so delicious!

    Reply
  13. Doni Reece says

    November 16, 2011 at 2:22 pm

    Those sound very very interesting. I might have to try pumpkin/cheese muffins.

    Reply
Older Comments

Primary Sidebar

Welcome!

Hi, I'm Rachel! Life can be complicated, cooking shouldn't be! I believe that you can put a delicious meal on the table without stressing. It's possible, and I'm here to help. Have a seat at my table...let's chat, eat, and have fun! Read more...

Air Fryer Instant Pot 30 Minutes One Pan Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Slow Cooker Vegetarian 5 Ingredients

Trending

Cooked salmon fillet on a grey-toned plate with cooked asparagus spears. The salmon is being flaked with a fork.

Air Fryer Salmon Recipe

Pizza pasta being scooped from a pan with a wooden spoon.

Pizza Pasta – 1 pan, 20 minutes

Image of a giant bowl of spaghetti with turkey meatballs.

Baked Turkey Meatballs

Asparagus Panzanella Salad

Seasonal

Front view of several spritz cookies on rectangular white plate.

Cream Cheese Spritz Cookies for Christmas

Crockpot ham sliced and on a platter.

Crockpot Ham with Maple Dijon Sauce

Red wine spritzer surrounded by ingredients.

Red Wine Spritzer

Two pieces of fried goat cheese stacked.

Fried Goat Cheese

Opens in a new window Opens an external site Opens an external site in a new window
Free Bonus!

5 Cooking Secrets to Save Time & Stress

Free email series of my best tips and recipes!

Featured On:

Back to Top
  • About
  • Contact
  • Press
  • Work with Me
  • Privacy
  • Accessibility
© 2023 Rachel Cooks®
Site Credits Designed by Melissa Rose Design Developed by Once Coupled