Cream Cheese Swirled Pumpkin Muffins {Keto Friendly}

 These low carb pumpkin muffins are incredible.  

I am constantly surprised at some of these low-carb recipes I keep trying.  I have found so many good recipes that I am loving and I'm shocked they are just as delicious as the regular, sugar-loaded, high carb muffins I'm used to having.  

You make these just as you would any regular muffin recipe.  You start by creaming together softened butter and your sweetener of choice.  Lately, I prefer Monkfruit, but use whatever you prefer.  Then, you add your eggs and a few other ingredients, including the dry mixture.  

Instead of using all-purpose flour as you would in most muffin recipes, you will use superfine almond flour and coconut flour.  This is another way to help keep the carb count down.  These flours can be found at any regular grocery store.    

Last, you swirl in the cream cheese mixture.  Mine was soft enough that it was not hard to swirl in.  If your cream cheese mixture seems to be too thick, you can always pop it in the microwave for 10 seconds to soften a bit before swirling.  

The flavor of these muffins is seriously on point.  The pumpkin pie spice adds a nice balance of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. The texture is perfect and when combined with the tangy and sweet cream cheese, it really is SO dang good. 

I know these will be made constantly at my house this Fall season.  AND the best part is, the kids even love them.  

You might also like:

Keto Zucchini Bread

Pumpkin Spice Cinnamon Roll Cake with Pumpkin Icing

Cream Cheese Swirled Zucchini Muffins 

Baked Pumpkin Oatmeal with Cinnamon Crumbles

Nutella Swirled Pumpkin Cookies

Cream Cheese Swirled Pumpkin Muffins {Keto Friendly}
(Printable Recipe)

1/2 c. unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 c. granulated sweetener (I like Monkfruit)
4 large eggs
3/4 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 c. superfine almond flour
1/2 c. coconut flour
4 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt

Cream Cheese Mixture:
8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
3 Tbl. granulated sweetener (I like Monkfruit)
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners, spray with cooking spray and set aside.  In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sweetener until smooth and creamy.  Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition.  Mix in the pumpkin puree and vanilla and mix until combined.  In a separate medium bowl, combine the almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon and salt.  Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until combined.  Fill muffin cups 3/4 full with batter.  I like to use an ice cream scoop, so they're all the same size.  Set aside.

For the Cream Cheese Swirl: In a medium mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, 3 Tablespoons granulated sweetener and 1 teaspoon of vanilla and mix until smooth and creamy.  Drop a heaping Tablespoon of cream cheese mixture on the top of each muffin.  Use a toothpick and swirl the cream cheese mixture into the pumpkin mixture.  Bake in preheated oven for about 22-23 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the pumpkin part of the muffin comes out clean.  Makes about 13 muffins.  Cool and serve.  Store leftovers in the refrigerator.  These are great served at room temperate and cold.  

recipe adapted from: Green and Keto

Jenn's Notes: When I calculated these ingredients using an online nutrition calculator, I get about 3 Net Carbs per muffin.  This is for informational purposes only.  Please use your own nutrition calculator to get your macros.

Shortcut Cinnamon Swirl Zucchini Muffins

It's always good to have a few shortcut recipes on hand.  Even though zucchini muffins from scratch don't take that long to make, sometimes we just don't have the extra 10 minutes.  That is when this recipe comes in super handy.

It starts with a box of cinnamon swirl muffin mix.  Then, you add a few ingredients to it, including shredded zucchini and that's it.  The cinnamon streusel topping gets nice and crisp and the muffin is soft and flavorful.  These would even be great with a little vanilla icing on top. 

You might also like:

Cinnamon Roll Zucchini Bread

Famous Lion House Zucchini Bread

Lemon Zucchini Bread with Lemon Glaze

Best Ever Zucchini Muffins

Shortcut Cinnamon Swirl Zucchini Muffins
(Printable Recipe)

1 (21 oz.) box Krusteaz Cinnamon Swirl Muffin Mix
1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 large egg whites
2/3 c. water
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 c. grated zucchini, peeled or unpeeled

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners and spray with cooking spray; set aside.  Combine dry muffin mix and baking powder in a large bowl; set aside.  In a separate small bowl, combine the egg whites, water, vanilla and zucchini and mix until combined.  Add wet ingredients to dry and stir together just until combined.

Add half of the cinnamon mixture that came with the muffins and stir two or three times just to incorporate it a little throughout the batter, but you don't want to stir it all the way in.  Divide batter between 12 muffin cups and sprinkle the remaining cinnamon mixture over each muffin.  Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

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Banana Poppy Seed Muffins with an Orange Glaze

Spring is only a week away and good thing, because one taste of these muffins will have you ready for warmer weather.  You can never have too many banana recipes on hand, am I right?  These muffins are so unique and extremely delicious.

The combo of the orange and banana reminds me of a warm Spring or Summer Day.  It's like the bright refreshing flavors of a smoothie inside a muffin.  Even with a whole cup of mashed bananas, the banana flavor does not overpower these muffins.  They are really really delicious and a new favorite.  They bake up with a pretty dome on top and are completely impossible to resist, especially with the orange citrus glaze on top.

You might also like:

Banana Bread with Crunchy Streusel Topping

The BEST Blueberry Muffins

Cinnamon Roll Quick Bread

I shared this recipe over at THE RECIPE CRITIC's SITE.  Click HERE to see the post.

Banana Poppy Seed Muffins with Orange Glaze
slightly adapted from: Secret Recipes
(Printable Recipe)

2 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 Tbl. poppy seeds
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. mashed ripe bananas (around 2 large)
1 large egg
3/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. vegetable or canola oil
2 tsp. freshly grated orange zest (about the zest of 1 orange)
1 tsp. vanilla

Orange Glaze
1 c. powdered sugar
2 Tbl. fresh orange juice, plus more, if needed
1 tsp. freshly grated orange zest (about the zest of 1/2 an orange)
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners and spray with cooking spray; set aside.  In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, poppy seeds, baking powder and salt; set aside.  In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the mashed bananas, egg, sugar, oil, orange zest and vanilla.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir together until just combined.    

Fill muffin cups 3/4 full with batter.  Bake for 18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Makes 12 muffins.  Cool slightly and drizzle with orange glaze.

For the Orange Glaze:  Whisk together all ingredients until smooth and creamy.  If mixture is too thick, add a little more orange juice.  Drizzle over muffins.    

Orange Cranberry Muffins

Cranberries - love them or hate them?  This was my first time ever baking with cranberries and I thought the results turned out great.  The tart berry mixed with the sweet muffins was a great combo.

  I used the same recipe I use for The Best Blueberry Muffins and swapped out blueberries for cranberries, orange zest for lemon and added some almond extract.  The almond extract really brings all of the flavors together and you must add it in this recipe.  Without it, you will feel like something is missing, trust me. 

   This base recipe is a family favorite, but be careful not to over bake.  You will want that tender crumb of a perfectly baked muffin, not an over baked muffin.  These muffins would also be incredible with an orange glaze.  

You might also like:

Blueberry Muffin Bread with Orange Cream Cheese Icing

Almond Poppy Seed Ricotta Muffins with Orange Glaze

Lemon Raspberry Zucchini Bread with Lemon Glaze

Orange Cranberry Muffins
(Printable Recipe) or (Printable with Picture)

Topping
1/4 c. sugar
grated zest of 1/2 an orange

Muffins
2 1/2  c. all-purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 1/8 c. sugar
2 large eggs
4 Tbl. unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1 c. buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. almond extract
grated zest of 1/2 an orange
1 1/2 c. fresh cranberries, divided

For the Topping: Stir the sugar and orange zest together in a small bowl until combined and fragrant; set aside.

For the Muffins: Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners and spray with cooking spray.  Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl; set aside.  In a separate medium bowl whisk together the sugar and eggs until thick and lemon colored.  Slowly whisk in the butter and oil until combined.  Whisk in the buttermilk, vanilla, almond extract and orange zest.  Pour wet ingredients into dry along with 1 1/4 cups of the cranberries.  Fold together until just combined; do not over mix.

Fill muffins cups full with batter, mounding slightly.  Press the remaining 1/4 cup of cranberries into the top of the muffins and sprinkle with orange sugar topping.  Bake for 16-17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Makes 12 muffins.

Base recipe adapted from: America's Test Kitchen

Lemon Muffins with Red Raspberry Cream Cheese Filling

Happy Wednesday.  Only a few more days until the weekend . . . we can make it :)

I have had a dang cold since Friday and I could sure use the weekend to catch up on some sleep.  The only thing that has been sounding good to me is bread and Diet Mountain Dew.  Super healthy, right? 

This is one of my favorite go-to muffin recipes.  It uses ricotta in the batter, which might seem like an odd ingredient and most of you have probably only ever used it in a savory dish, but it helps create one amazing soft and tender muffin.  Believe me, I have used it in these Snickerdoodle Muffins, Lemon Ricotta Blackberry Muffins and in these Almond Poppy Seed Ricotta Muffins with Orange Glaze.

This version turned out so good.  If you aren't a fan of red raspberry, you can use another flavor of jam instead.

What flavor of muffin would you like to see next?

Lemon Muffins with Red Raspberry Cream Cheese Filling
From: Jenn@eatcakefordinner
(Printable Recipe) or (Printable with Picture)
 
1/2 c. unsalted butter, room temperature
1 c. sugar
grated zest of 2 lemons
1 c. ricotta cheese
1 egg
1 Tbl. fresh lemon juice
2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Red Raspberry Cream Cheese Filling:
4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature (I used 1/3 less fat)
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. seedless red raspberry preserves
1 egg
1 Tbl. all-purpose flour

Cinnamon Sugar Topping
3 Tbl. sugar mixed with 1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners and spray with cooking spray.  Combine sugar and lemon zest and rub together until fragrant.  Cream together butter and lemon sugar until light and fluffy.  Mix in the ricotta cheese and then the egg and lemon juice.  In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and add to butter mixture.  Mix until just combined.  Do not overmix.

Fill muffin cups about halfway with batter and make a well in the center, fill with a heaping Tablespoon of red raspberry cream cheese filling.  Top with more muffin batter, filling muffin cups to the top.  Sprinkle tops with cinnamon and sugar.  Bake for 20-21 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 

Red Raspberry Cream Cheese Filling: Combine all ingredients and beat until smooth and creamy.   

Banana Muffins with Crunchy Streusel Topping

 These gorgeous muffins are so light and fluffy with a sweet banana flavor and a buttery streusel topping.  They are some of my favorite banana muffins.

Can you believe it is November already???  Christmas is next month - say what?  Did you guys all have a good Halloween - what did your cute kiddos dress up as?  Elsa (from Frozen) was the popular one around here.

The weather is getting cold and it's been rainy all day today.  A warm muffin right out of the oven is just so comforting.  This is the time of year, when comfort food happens quite often in my kitchen . . . muffins, bread, soup, hot chocolate, etc . . . you name it!
    
If anyone has some good soup recipes, send them my way :)

You might also like:
Banana Cornbread with Cinnamon Creamed Honey

Julia's Best Banana Bread
Banana Cinnamon Roll Muffins with Cream Cheese Icing

Banana Roll with Cheesecake Filling

Banana Muffins with Crunchy Streusel Topping
From: Jenn@eatcakefordinner
(Printable Recipe) or (Printable with Picture)

1 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. wheat flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 large bananas, mashed (about 1 cup)
1/3 c. non-fat plain Greek yogurt
3/4 c. sugar
1 egg
5 Tbl. unsalted butter, melted

Streusel Topping:
1/3 c. light brown sugar
2 Tbl. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 Tbl. cold unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners and spray with cooking spray.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  In a separate bowl, whisk together the mashed bananas, yogurt, sugar, egg and melted butter until smooth.  Add wet ingredients to dry and stir together until just combined.

Use a large ice cream scoop and divide batter between muffin cups, filling 3/4 full.  For the topping: Combine brown sugar, flour and cinnamon.  Add the butter and using your clean hands, work the butter into the dry ingredients until it resembles wet sand.  Divide topping between muffins.  Bake for 18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Makes about 12-13 muffins.

Jenn's Notes:  If your mashed bananas don't quite equal 1 cup, you can make up the difference with more yogurt. 

Sunrise Poppy Seed Muffins with Orange Glaze

Oh em gee!  These are so so so good.  

You see that beautiful orange in the background of this picture?  Well, I bought it to use as a garnish for this Frothy Sunrise Punch, but then I couldn't stand the thought of wasting the rest of it.

I often turn to breads and muffins when I need to use up an ingredient, plus I love taking muffins to work for a mid-day snack.  

I remembered when Sally posted a lemon and orange poppy seed muffin and it just so happened that I had a lemon that needed used up too.  I adjusted my lemon poppy seed muffin recipe with what I had on hand, since I was fresh out of Greek yogurt.

I did try Sally's trick to bake the muffins at a higher temperature for the first five minutes, to create that domed top and lower the temperature to finish baking and I did end up with some domed tops.

Make it.  Love it.

You might also like:

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

Orange Poppy Seed Zucchini Bread

Almond Poppy Seed Bread with Orange Glaze

Strawberry Swirled Lemon Poppy Seed Bread

Sunrise Poppy Seed Muffins

From: Jenn@eatcakefordinner
(Printable Recipe) or (Printable with Picture)

2 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
2 Tbl. poppy seeds
2/3 c. sugar
zest and juice of one lemon
zest and juice of one orange (reserve 1/2 of each for the glaze)
2 eggs
1/2 c. light sour cream (or plain Greek yogurt)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 c. vegetable oil

Orange Glaze
1 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp. meringue powder, opt. (this helps the icing harden)
zest of 1/2 an orange
juice of 1/2 an orange
milk, if needed

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Spray a 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray.  In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and poppy seeds; set aside.  In a separate medium bowl, combine sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, zest of 1/2 an orange, juice of 1/2 an orange, eggs, sour cream, vanilla and vegetable oil and whisk together until well combined.  Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir together until just combined.  Do not overmix.  

Use a large ice cream scoop and divide batter between greased muffin cups, filling almost full.  Bake at 425 degrees for 5 minutes.  Then, reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees (with the muffins still in the oven) and bake for another 9-10 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Remove from oven and cool slightly while you make the glaze.  Makes: 12 muffins.

For the Orange Glaze:  Combine powdered sugar, meringue powder, orange zest and orange juice and stir to combine.  Add a little milk, if needed, to reach a glaze consistency.  Drizzle over warm or cooled muffins.

Linked up at Weekend Potluck! and Time to Sparkle!

THE BEST BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

I first posted this muffin recipe over three years ago.  It was long overdue for some updated pics and a re-share incase you all missed it the first time.

Here is the original post:  

YOU HAVE TO TRY THESE MUFFINS . . . . I LOVE THEM! 

 I was watching an episode of America's Test Kitchen the other day and they were making these blueberry muffins.  Great, just another blueberry muffin I thought.  I was just about to turn the channel, when I heard it  . . . music to my ears. . . . they were using fresh blueberries and turning them into smooth jam.  If you know me, then you probably know that I have a big problem with fruit.  I LOVE the flavor, but it's the texture that I struggle with.  I can eat fresh pineapple, fresh strawberries, fresh apples, sometimes grapes and a few other fresh fruits.  Other than that, whether fresh or cooked, I can't stand to bite into it.  It sends shivers down my spine just thinking about it.   

I love blueberry muffins, but I always pick out the chunky berries.  Now, I can eat a muffin, which I love and have all that delicious blueberry flavor without chunky berries.  (The recipe actually adds fresh blueberries in addition to the jam, but I left them out).  

These muffins have the perfect texture, not too cakey and not too heavy.  The blueberry flavor is just right and the sugar topping adds just enough lemon flavor to know it's there, but not to overpower the blueberry flavor.   

These are best eaten on day one or two.  I keep them in the muffin tin overnight and loosely cover them with a clean kitchen towel.  I have tried storing them in a zip-top bag before, but the tops get sticky and I am not a fan of sticky top muffins.

THE BEST BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

adapted from: America's Test Kitchen

(Printable Recipe) or (Printable with Picture)

Topping:

1/4 c. sugar

1 1/2 tsp. grated lemon zest

Muffins:

2 c. fresh blueberries, picked over

1 1/8 c. + 1 tsp. sugar

2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

2 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

2 large eggs

4 Tbl. unsalted butter, melted & cooled slightly

1/4 c. vegetable oil

1 c. buttermilk

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

1.  For the topping: Stir the sugar and lemon zest together in a small bowl until combined; set aside.  

2.  For the muffins: Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Spray a standard muffin tin with vegetable oil spray (or line with paper liners and spray).  Bring 1 cup of the blueberries and 1 tsp. of the sugar to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Cook, mashing the berries with a spoon several times and stirring frequently, until the berries have broken down and the mixture is thickened about 6 minutes.  Transfer to a small bowl and cool to room temperature, 10-15 minutes.  

3.  Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl.  Whisk the remaining 1 1/8 cups sugar and eggs together in a medium bowl until thick and homogeneous, about 45 seconds.  Slowly whisk in the butter and oil until combined.  Whisk in the buttermilk and vanilla until combined.  Using a rubber spatula, fold the egg mixture and the remaining 1 cup blueberries into the flour mixture until just moistened (if adding whole blueberries - I don't add them).  The batter will be very lumpy with a few spots of dry flour; do not overmix.  

4.  Fill muffin cups 1/2 full with batter and top with a teaspoon or so of the cooked berry mixture.  Use a toothpick and swirl together.  Divide the remaining batter between muffin cups.  The batter should completely fill the cups and mound slightly.  Divide the remaining cooked berry mixture between muffin cups.  Use a toothpick and gently swirl the berry filling into the batter using a figure-eight motion.  Sprinkle the lemon sugar evenly over the muffins.  

5.  Bake until the muffin tops are golden and just firm, 17-18 minutes, rotating the muffin tin halfway through.  Cool the muffins in the muffin tin for 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack and cool 5 more minutes before serving.  Yield: 12 muffins.        

Almond Poppy Seed Ricotta Muffins with Orange Glaze

Every time I make something with ricotta, I have to make a batch of Ricotta Muffins with the leftovers.  The flavor combinations are endless and each one I have tried so far has been amazing.  I love the texture and the fact that they stay soft for a few days.    

This is my 3rd version of Ricotta Muffins and if that isn't enough to convince you they are delicious, then I don't know what will.

You might also like:
Secret Ingredient Snickerdoodle Muffins
Lemon Ricotta Blackberry Muffins
Almond Poppy Seed Bread with Orange Glaze

Almond Poppy Seed Ricotta Muffins with Orange Glaze

From: Jenn@eatcakefordinner
(Printable Recipe) or (Printable with Picture)

1/2 c. unsalted butter, room temp.
1 c. sugar
1 c. ricotta cheese
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp. almond extract
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 Tbl. poppy seeds

Orange Glaze
1 c. powdered sugar
1/2 - 3/4 tsp. orange bakery emulsion (or orange zest)
1 Tbl.  milk (or orange juice)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a muffin tin with paper liners and lightly spray with cooking spray.  Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Mix in the ricotta and then the egg, almond extract and vanilla extract.  Add the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and poppy seeds.  Mix until just combined.  Divide batter between muffin cups, filling about 3/4 full.  Bake for 23-24 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.  Cool completely and top with orange glaze.  Makes 15-16 muffins.

Orange Glaze:  Mix together all ingredients until smooth and creamy.  If glaze is too thick, add a tiny bit more milk until desired consistency is reached.  Drizzle over muffins.   

Blueberry Pancake Muffins

I could not resist that box of blueberry pancake mix that was staring me in the face at Walmart the other day. It was only $1.60-ish.  Deal. 

The plan was to actually make pancakes with the pancake mix, but when I needed a snack for work, blueberry muffins kept popping in my head.  

I took that pancake mix and added a few extra ingredients and turned them into some seriously yummy muffins.

They are light and fluffy just like a muffin should be.

Blueberry Pancake Muffins

adapted from: Krusteaz
(Printable Recipe) or (Printable with Picture)

2 1/2 c. blueberry pancake mix
2/3 c. water
1/2 c. sugar
1 egg
1/4 c. vegetable oil

Cinnamon Sugar Topping (Opt.)
3 Tbl. brown sugar (or granulated sugar)
1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or spray with cooking spray.  In a medium bowl, mix together all muffin ingredients until combined.  Do not overmix.  Divide batter evenly between muffin cups, filling 2/3 full.  Combine topping ingredients and sprinkle over muffins.  Bake 14-16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Makes 12 muffins.

Jenn's Notes:  These are best when eaten within two days. 

Secret Ingredient Snickerdoodle Muffins

 

Words can't even describe how tasty these muffins are.

I was originally going to call these cinnamon swirl muffins.  Pretty boring, right?  Then, when "The Mr." saw these he said mmm . . . Snickerdoodle Muffins?

They totally look like snickerdoodles.  The top looks kinda cracked and it's coated in cinnamon and sugar and they actually taste like a snickerdoodle too.  

All I knew was I really wanted some kind of cinnamon muffin to serve with my awesome homemade peach jam.

These were perfect.

The secret ingredient is the ricotta cheese.  I know it sounds strange, but it produces an amazing muffin with a perfect crumb and they stay fresh for several days.  The base recipe is one of my favorite muffin bases ever.  You gotta try it to believe it.   

Secret Ingredient Snickerdoodle Muffins
From:  Jenn@eatcakefordinner
(Printable Recipe) or (Printable with Picture)

2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. unsalted butter, room temperature
1 c. sugar
1 c. ricotta cheese (whole or low fat)
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Cinnamon Sugar Topping
3 Tbl. brown sugar
2 Tbl. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners and spray with cooking spray.  Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.  In a medium bowl cream together butter and sugar until fluffy.  Add ricotta cheese and beat until smooth.  Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined.  Add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.  Batter will be very thick.  Combine all cinnamon and sugar topping ingredients in a small bowl.

Fill muffin cups 1/3 of the way full with batter.  Top each with 3/4 teaspoon of cinnamon and sugar mixture.  Top with more batter, filling cups 3/4 of the way full.  Using a toothpick slightly swirl the batter with the cinnamon and sugar.  Top each muffin with 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon and sugar mixture.  Bake for 23-24 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Yield: 14-15 muffins.  

Base muffin recipe adapted from: Two Peas and Their Pod