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.
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
Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins Recipe
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
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I LOVE this recipe. I’m a big fan of cheddar and pumpkin, but haven’t had them together. Now I will :)
I know what you mean about husbands and trying somthing different…I put coffee flavoring in my brownies and my husband wouldn’t eveb try them!
Hi Rachel! These muffins look fantastic and I have really, really wanted that cookbook. I have flipped through it several times and have put it on my Christmas list!
WOW! I’m a “flipper” too and those recipes look awesome! Plus, My DIL is a baking fiend, trying out new recipes all the time and posting them in her blog about baking and having a new baby :-) Hope I can give her this book for Christmas!
I’m a picture gal too! I loved Cooking Without Borders, but it also lack many photos. I am all in on this recipe, in moderation, as I adore cayenne, cheese and the pumpkin combo!
The muffins look so yummy.
These muffins rock. So good. Maybe you’ll join us for Baked Sunday Mornings? We’re working our way through the book! http://bakedsundaymornings.com
What a cool idea for a virtual potluck! I have never tried the cheddar pumpkin combo before.
These look amazing! Totally my style. Would it be overkill to eat these with FarmGirl’s butternut squash mac and cheese? See ya round the #virtualpotluck on Twitter!
I am a flipper/photos draw me in. Basic recipes are key, leaving room for those of us who just have to venture off into our ‘variations’.