Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins
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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
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.
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.
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.
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.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
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
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.
Julia says
Oh how I love pumpkin everything!!
jessica w. says
you have me drooling over those muffins!
Erin @ Dinners, Dishes and Desserts says
Wow – these muffins look great! Different flavor combination, but sounds delicious!
Athena says
Gorgeous muffins.
natalie (the sweets life) says
I’m so intrigued by this recipe!! I’ve flipped through the book a few times and would LOVE to own it!
Aly ~ Cooking In Stilettos says
This is one of the cookbooks I adore and have bookmarked this recipe to try!
Erin says
I shared this recipe on Facebook, and one of my friends made it. He said there were none left! Looking forward to making it myself!
The Food Hunter says
I’m a flipper too…glad you flpped to this great recipe :)
Genevieve (MamaOnABudget) says
These muffins sound AMAZING!!!!!
Donna @ Cookistry says
Those muffins look so good. I would have never thought of cheese and pumpkin, but it makes such perfect sense, doesn’t it?
Nutmeg Nanny says
This cookbook looks great! I’m with you on the pictures. I love my cookbooks jam packed with pictures. I think it’s because I visually need to see what the recipe should *fingers crossed* look like :)
Miss @ Miss in the Kitchen says
These look so delicious, I have been so into all of the pumpkin recipes this year!
Avril says
What a fascinating combo – pumpkin and cheddar….why not! I’ve been eyeing this lovely cookbook for awhile now. I want it more than ever now! :-)
Tara | FOODIE says
Oooh, those look really good Rachel. I think the combination of cheddar cheese and pumpkin actually sounds really good. Oh, and I’m a flipper too :-)
amanda @ fake ginger says
Those look awesome! I’m not sure I’ve ever paired cheese with pumpkin but I can see how it works!