Brown Butter Pumpkin Streusel Muffins with Maple Cream Cheese Glaze
Decadent Brown Butter Pumpkin Streusel Muffins with Maple Cream Cheese Glaze are the PERFECT fall breakfast recipe. The pumpkin muffins are fluffy, the streusel is crumbly and the glaze is tart, culminating in a delicious baked good that everyone will adore. Makes 12 muffins.
Love pumpkin for breakfast? Check out The BEST Pumpkin Muffins for Pumpkin Season!
It’s October! And it finally feels like autumn! (It might not tomorrow, but we’re livin’ it up while it’s gorgeous here in Texas.)
And it’s the day of the great #virtualpumpkinparty!
Several bloggers and I have come together to all post pumpkin-centric recipes for y’all. Scroll on down past the recipe card below to see what everyone made!
Why I love this recipe:
These Brown Butter Pumpkin Streusel Muffins with Maple Cream Cheese Glaze, are a new favorite in our household.
The thing that takes a little time and patience is browning the butter… but we can do that!
And once the butter is browned and cools slightly, you’re good to go. These Pumpkin Muffins with Streusel Topping bake up beautifully!
The muffins are light and fluffy. The streusel topping is delightfully crumbly and tastes of browned butter, sweetness and oats. And the maple cream cheese glaze just sends these breakfast confections over the edge.
More pumpkin breakfast recipes: Vegan Pumpkin Biscuits with Maple Butter | Pumpkin Waffles with Cinnamon Maple Syrup | Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread | Pumpkin Spice Pancakes | Pumpkin Overnight French Toast Casserole
Need some breakfast or brunch inspiration? Head on over to my Breakfast Recipe Index for more ideas.
What you need to make this recipe:
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- Saucepan to brown the butter
- Glass bowls
- Liquid measuring cup
- Muffin pan
- Parchment paper liners
- 1 tablespoon cookie scoop
Let’s talk ingredients!
In addition to the tools above, you’re going to need some ingredients to make this recipe, too! Chances are, you might already have some of them in your fridge or pantry. Scroll down to the recipe card for the full measurements and instructions.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Pumpkin puree — please read the label on your can and ensure that you’re using this, not pumpkin pie filling. Pumpkin pie filling already has spices and sweeteners added to it.
- Granulated sugar — also known as white sugar, this is going to be what sweetens our muffin batter.
- Unsweetened applesauce — I love using applesauce in muffins instead of vegetable oil because it adds great moisture. Most applesauces are sweetened, so read the label.
- Unsalted butter — we need this for both the pumpkin muffin batter and the streusel. Brown it all together before dividing between the two. You want it to be a liquid when added to the batter.
- Eggs — these give our muffin batter structure and will help them rise in the oven. Make sure they’re at room temperature.
- All-purpose flour — we keep unbleached AP flour in our house, but the regular kind works here, too. I have not tried to make this recipe with a gluten free blend and do not recommend it. You’ll also need some for the streusel.
- Leaveners — this pumpkin muffin recipe calls for both baking soda and baking powder.
- Ground cinnamon — cinnamon and pumpkin work beautifully together. If you want to use the same amount of pumpkin pie spice if you’d like. We use this in the muffin and the streusel.
- Kosher salt — I like to use a fine grain kosher salt for baked goods. You can use the same amount of a fine grain sea salt.
- Rolled oats — this is an essential part of the streusel. They’re sometimes called old-fashioned oats. Do not use instant oatmeal or the texture won’t hold up.
- Cream cheese — I like to use a full-fat cream cheese for the glaze recipe because it has a fuller flavor.
- Maple syrup — pure maple syrup is what you want to use here, not maple-flavored syrup.
- Powdered sugar — also known as confectioners sugar, this adds some sweetness to the glaze. It will balance out the tanginess of the cream cheese.
- Vanilla extract — pure vanilla adds such a lovely aroma and flavor. If you’ve got it, please use it.
How to make Streusel Pumpkin Muffins
Brown the butter. We need this for the muffin batter and the streusel topping. Let it cool slightly.
Heat the butter over medium-low heat in a small saucepan.
Swirl the butter around the pan occasionally (or stir it with your favorite wooden spoon or rubber spatula) as it cooks. We do this so that the milk solids—the parts of the butter that darken first—don’t burn in the bottom of the pan.
When the butter is brown and smells nutty, remove the saucepan from the heat.
If you want to learn more about this process, check out How to Brown Butter!
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Place cupcake tins into a cupcake pan.
Make the Streusel for Pumpkin Muffins
Combine the rolled oats, flour, sugar, cinnamon and salt in a small bowl. Using a fork to mix them together.
Pour in the browned butter. Stir until the topping appears streusel-like and slightly clumpy, and set aside.
Make and Bake the Pumpkin Muffins
Combine the wet ingredients. Measure the pumpkin, sugar, applesauce, browned butter and eggs into a medium-sized bowl. Whisk until smooth.
Combine the dry ingredients. Measure the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl. Stir until combined.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Fold the ingredients together with a rubber spatula until just combined.
Measure the batter into the prepared muffin tin using a cooking scoop.
Add streusel topping to each muffin.
Bake the muffins for 20-25 minutes in the preheated oven. Remove after an inserted toothpick into a muffin comes out clean.
Cool on a cooling rack for 10-15 minutes.
Make the Maple Cream Cheese Glaze
Combine the cream cheese, maple syrup, powdered sugar and vanilla extract in a medium bowl.
Use a hand mixer to whip the ingredients together until smooth. (You can make this in advance, transfer to a food storage container and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.)
When the muffins have cooled, drizzle on top and enjoy!
Quick tips and tricks to the best Pumpkin Streusel Muffins
- Double the recipe for a crowd. This recipe is decadent and perfect for sharing for an at-home brunch. Guests will love it!
- Make some pieces of the muffins in advance. You can brown the butter in advance and refrigerate it. Likewise, you can make the glaze beforehand and keep it chilled in the fridge.
- Add pumpkin spice. If you love it and have a jar in your spice cabinet, replace the cinnamon with this.
More pumpkin muffin recipes:
- Mini Pumpkin Muffins with Chocolate Chips
- Vegan Pumpkin Muffins
- Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins with a Nutella Swirl
Now who’s ready to bake these beauties?
Brown Butter Pumpkin Streusel Muffins with Maple Cream Cheese Glaze
Ingredients
Streusel Topping
- ½ cup rolled oats
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter browned
Muffins
- ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons pure pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter browned
- 2 eggs
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
Maple Cream Cheese Glaze
- 1.5 oz. cream cheese softened
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
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Instructions
- Brown the butter. Heat the butter over medium-low heat in a small saucepan. Be sure to use a pan with a lighter color so you can keep track of what’s happening in it. If the bottom of the pan is darker, it will be harder to see the milk solids browning in the bottom of it. Swirl the butter around the pan occasionally (or stir it with your favorite wooden spoon or rubber spatula) as it cooks. We do this so that the milk solids—the parts of the butter that darken first—don’t burn in the bottom of the pan. When the butter is brown and smells nutty, remove the saucepan from the heat.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Set cupcake tins into your cupcake pan, and spray with cooking spray.
Make the Streusel Topping
- In a small bowl, combine the rolled oats, flour, sugar, cinnamon and salt. Using a fork, mix them together until combined.
- Add the browned butter to the mixture. Stir until the topping appears streusel-like and slightly clumpy. (This is what you want!)
- Set aside until the muffins have been made.
Make the Pumpkin Muffins
- In a large mixing bowl, stir the pumpkin, sugar, applesauce, browned butter and eggs together until smooth.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Stir until combined.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, folding the ingredients together until just combined.
- Using a cookie scoop or a 1/4 cup measuring spoon, dollop the batter into the prepared muffin tin.
- Sprinkle the streusel topping on top of the muffins.
- Transfer the pan into the preheated oven, baking 20-25 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
- Let cool for 10-15 minutes, then enjoy warm!
Make the Maple Cream Cheese Glaze
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine the cream cheese, maple syrup, powdered sugar and vanilla extract.
- Beat until smooth, then set aside. (Can be refrigerated for up to two weeks, though it shouldn't last that long!)
- When the muffins have cooled slightly and are ready to be eaten, drizzle on top of the muffins.
Nutrition
And now, here are all my fellow bloggers’ recipes for the Virtual Pumpkin Party!
Pumpkin Desserts
- Pumpkin Ginger Cookies with a Vanilla Glaze
- Pumpkin Buttermilk Pudding
- Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Seed Toffee Bark
- Pumpkin Pie White Chocolate Brownies
- Pumpkin Spice French Macarons
- Cinnamon Swirl Pumpkin Pound Cake
- Pumpkin Spice Japanese Cheesecake
- Pumpkin Ale Cake
- Pumpkin Almond Cake with Almond Butter Frosting
- Whole Wheat Pumpkin Sugar Cookies
- Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream
- Pumpkin Pound Cake
- Pumpkin Gingersnap Pie
Savory Pumpkin Dishes
- Pumpkin & Goat Cheese Macaroni
- Harissa-Spiced Pumpkin Gnocchi
- Roasted Pumpkin and Pork Stuffed Shells
- Pumpkin Pork Burrito Bowls
- Pumpkin & Caramelized Onion Galette
- Creamy Pumpkin Polenta
- Thai Pumpkin Curry with Shrimp and Bok Choy
- Roasted Pumpkin with Tamarind and Coriander Chutney
- Creamy Vegan Pumpkin Risotto with Sweet & Spicy Roasted Pepitas
- Roasted Pumpkin Risotto with Crispy Prosciutto
- Lentil-Stuffed Acorn Squash, Crispy King Oyster Bacon + Aged Goat Cheese
- Japanese Pumpkin Temaki with Ginger Kale Chips
- Creamy Pumpkin and Chorizo Pasta Bake, Cheese Tortellini, Sage-Mascarpone Sauce, Toasted Hazelnuts
- Pumpkin Goat Cheese Polenta with Brown Butter Thyme Mushrooms & Kale
Pumpkin Breakfast Items
- Yeasted Pumpkin Waffles with Candied Ginger
- Pumpkin Tea Bread
- Apple Cinnamon Pumpkin Muffins with Pepita Streusel
- Pumpkin Pancakes
- Maple Pumpkin Butter Brioche Toast
- Grain-Free Pumpkin Spice Pancakes
Pumpkin Drinks
- Pumpkin Beertail with Tequila and Spiced Rum
- Pumpkin Cinnamon Rimming Sugar
- Pumpkin Pie Martini with Coconut Cream + Homemade Pumpkin Spice Syrup
What is your favorite recipe to make with pumpkin?
About the Author:
Erin Parker is a Southern gal living in Texas with her husband and two daughters. She started The Speckled Palate to share what she was cooking as a newlywed… and over the years, it’s evolved to capture her love for hosting. Specifically, the EASIEST, lowest key entertaining because everyone deserves to see their people and connect over good food. Learn more about her…
Ok I was already drooling over just the pumpkin and streusel combo but then you added that maple drizzle – omg yum!! This looks stunning!
RIGHT?! The drizzle is just the literal icing on the cake (err… muffin.) The combination is divine, and I totally recommend giving these a shot at your own home!
Holy delicious batman! I’m pinning!
Thanks, Tayler! Super, ridiculously delicious, if I do say so myself.
Wow. That is one BIG pumpkin party! Definitely drooling right now, particularly over your gorgeous muffins with golden streusel (I would eat anything with streusel on it. I’m that addicted! So good). Ha – funny how quickly browned butter can become, uh… too brown! Totally worth it for these beauties though. Hope that you’re enjoying the transition into fall, lovely xx
Isn’t it ridiculous how much pumpkin goodness was shared, Laura? Seriously. Wonderful stuff. And thank you! I’d eat anything with streusel, too, because it’s SO GOOD. And we are finally enjoying the fall transition! I hope you’re enjoying yours to springtime.
I mean the muffins got me here but the glaze is making me drool, so good!
Thanks, lovely! That glaze is allllll kinds of ridiculous. And it’s really good on most baked goods. Which is good/bad. Mostly good. But yeaaaah. <3
So much delicious pumpkin recipes going on! I love it! I can’t think of a single thing that you shouldn’t add brown butter to and I bet it goes perfectly with these pumpkin muffins!
I completely agree with you about the brown butter — it makes EVERYTHING better! — and it works so well in these muffins! Thanks for stopping by.
Ummm could your photos be any more crisp and clear!?! My goodness I could reach through my screen and pick these up! Incredible! I wish I could because that streusel topping is outrageous! Happy belated pumpkin party!
Thanks so much, Kathryn! I wish you lived nearby so I could bring you a muffin or two that you could enjoy so you don’t drool all over your computer monitor! And that streusel topping truly is outrageous in the best possible way. Happy belated pumpkin party to you, too!
Welp! Guess I know what I’m making for breakfast this morning!! These look AMAZING!!
Dooooooooo it! 😀 Thanks, Amy! I hope you enjoy these muffins as much as we did.
I’ve ever been a huge fan of pumpkin but, oh my goodness, that looks incredible.
Thanks, Shehla! I wasn’t so sure about pumpkin for the longest time, either, but all it took was one good recipe to change my tune! I hope this one does that for you.
Thanks so much for linking up at The Pretty Pintastic Party! We love your post so much we are featuring it at the party next weekend! So stop by, grab a featured button, and share some more great posts!
Oh my goodness! Thanks so much, Jamie! I’m thrilled to be featured this week and can’t wait to see all the goodness shared this coming weekend!
Oh. My. Goodness, Erin. That spoon photo! I’ll just be over here drooling… these look spectacular!
Thanks so much, Cristina! I had my sitter hand model for me while my baby was napping. 😉 Exciting times in food photography, haha. And I’m so glad they sound great to you — they tasted pretty fantastic to me, too!
You’ve done it again! This recipe combines so many of my favorites and looks so tempting! These are happening for breakfast soon. Maybe in a few weeks though, I mean I gotta look good in the wedding dress 😉
Thanks, Jenna! It combines some of my favorite things, too, and is a crazy good breakfast/brunch. I have no doubt you’re going to look FABULOUS in your wedding gown, whether or not you make these before or after the wedding. 😉
These look amazing! They are more like dessert, but for breakfast. Gotta try these ASAP. Pinned!
Thank you, Kati! Dessert for breakfast is one of my favorite things… so why not? 😉 Please enjoy these!
These sound fantastic!!!!! That streusel with the glaze …. oh yes. Thanks for being a part of this!
Thanks so much, Sara! The streusel and glaze were my favorite parts. 🙂 So happy to be a part of this pumpkin party.
These muffins look absolutely delicious!! They will definitely be on my to-do list! Thanks for sharing.
Elaine
Thanks so much, Elaine! These muffins are absolutely delicious, and I hope you enjoy them!
Ok, these look amazing! I’m actually making them right now! In the instructions, it says to make the cream cheese filling, with cream cheese, honey and egg, but I can’t find it in the ingredients. The instructions also talk about layering with Nutella and has no instructions on how to make the streusel topping. Maybe this is a weird Internet error??
Thanks so much for the comment, Serenity. I have no idea what happened, but I e-mailed you back about this, as well as updated this recipe to reflect what you’re actually supposed to do. My recipe plugin has been acting up, and I fear it combined the instructions for TWO of my recipes here instead of just this one. So sorry for the confusion!
No worries. I just ended up improvising and made the best pumpkin muffins I’ve ever made! So thank you so much for the recipe and inspiration! They were moist and I loved the streusel topping so much!
I didn’t try Pumpkin Brown Butter muffins before. It looks so yummy and delicious. Thanks for this awesome party 😉
These are seriously SO yummy, and I hope you’re able to try them soon, Asha! We loved ’em!
These look amazing! Perfect for fall and a family gathering coming up. Any tips for how to make a few days ahead for travel to make sure they still taste delicious?
Hey there, ST. Thank you! These are a family favorite of ours and are all kinds of perfect for the fall.
To answer your question, I have not made these specific muffins in advance and brought them on the road. BUT I have brought muffins on the road in the past, and it can be done! They *should* freeze well if you want to bake them early — freeze them on a sheet pan, and once frozen solid, transfer to an airtight freezer bag and bring them with you on the road. If you do this, do not glaze them yet. Add the glaze just before you’re ready to serve them. (You can make the glaze early, too, though, and keep it refrigerated.) If you give this a try, let me know how it goes, and I hope your family enjoys these muffins as much as mine has!