Tastefully Tueday...

Well yesterday I went to link up with the Meet Me on Monday blog hop that Java does over at Never Growing Old and I somehow ended up using a google link that took me to a post from may of last year, so I dutifully went through and answered all the questions, got pictures to go with them and went to link up, imagine my surprise when I realized I had to start all over.  One of the things I had answered was "What is your favorite kind of muffin?" I had answered cream cheese kind, but since I have a pumpkin I need to use up I found a great recipe for Pumpkin Cream Cheese muffins over at Annie's Eats.  Since they sounded so wonderful I thought I would share them today.  Be sure to check out Annie's Eats blog for other mouthwatering ideas!

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

For the filling:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioners’ sugar

For the muffins:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
2 cups pumpkin puree
1¼ cups vegetable oil

For the topping:
½ cup sugar
5 tbsp. flour
1½ tsp. ground cinnamon
4 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Directions:
To prepare the filling, combine the cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl and mix well until blended and smooth. Transfer the mixture to a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a log about 1½-inches in diameter. Smooth the plastic wrap tightly around the log, and reinforce with a piece of foil. Transfer to the freezer and chill until at least slightly firm, at least 2 hours.

To make the muffins, preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line muffin pans with paper liners. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, pumpkin pie spice, salt and baking soda; whisk to blend. In the bowl of an electric mixer combine the eggs, sugar, pumpkin puree and oil. Mix on medium-low speed until blended. With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated.

To make the topping, combine the sugar, flour and cinnamon in a small bowl; whisk to blend. Add in the butter pieces and cut into the dry ingredients with a pastry blender or two forks until the mixture is coarse and crumbly. Transfer to the refrigerator until ready to use.

To assemble the muffins, fill each muffin well with a small amount of batter, just enough to cover the bottom of the liner (1-2 tablespoons). Slice the log of cream cheese filling into 24 equal pieces. Place a slice of the cream cheese mixture into each muffin well. Divide the remaining batter among the muffin cups, placing on top of the cream cheese to cover completely. Sprinkle a small amount of the topping mixture over each of the muffin wells.

Bake for 20-25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before serving. (It may be hard to resist immediate consumption, but the cream cheese filling gets very hot!) ~ makes 24 muffins.

Coupons:
Save $0.50 off  2 Philadelphia Cream Cheeses at Target
Save $0.50 off Arrowhead Mills Organic flour
Save $1.00 off any two glass bottles of Simply Organic spices
Save $0.50 off any one mini bottle of Simply Organic Spice
Save $1.00 off Davidson's Pasteurized Eggs
Save $0.45 on Dixie Crystals Sugar

Today's no cook option is from Hardees, get a free Cheddar Biscuit with the purchase of a breakfast combo, or cash off a number of other great menu items like the Steakhouse Thick burger or the Chicken Fillet.  Just pick the coupon(s) that work for you and print them out and bring them into the store with you.

Have a great Tuesday everyone!

C.Q.