1stickunsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly(4 oz.)
3/4cupsquash puree, or canned pumpkin
1/4cupbuttermilk
3/4cuppacked brown or unrefined sugar
2tablespoonsmolasses
2eggs
2cupsflour (I use equal parts whole and white spelt)
1 1/2teaspoonsbaking powder
1/4teaspoonbaking soda
1/2teaspoonsalt
1teaspooncinnamon
1/2teaspoonginger
1/4teaspoonallspice
1/8teaspoonfreshly grated nutmeg
Instructions
For the cheesecake filling:
Beat the cream cheese and sugar together until smooth. Add yolk, sour cream, lemon juice, vanilla and salt to combine throughly. Put in fridge while you get on with the muffins.
Pumpkin Muffins:
Preheat the oven to 350º. Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with muffin liners (does that sound a bit dirty, or is it just me?)
In a medium bowl, whisk together the melted butter, squash puree, buttermilk, sugar, molasses and eggs to combine.
In a large bowl, sift together the dry ingredients. Make a well, and gently fold in the wets until just combined. Divide the batter evenly between the cups.
Now comes the fun part, and there are two possible ways to go about it. You can either use the back of a spoon to make a small well in the center of each muffin, and spoon the cheesecake filling in. Or use a piping bag fitted with a smallish, plain tip (or a plastic baggie which you will snip the corner off of) and fill with the cream cheese mixture. Plunge the tip into the center of the muffin, and gently squeeze out a couple tablespoons. The muffin will puff up. Repeat with the remaining muffins until you have used up all the filling.
Bake the muffins on the center rack until puffed and golden, about 30 minutes.
Notes
Variation: Brown-butter pecan pumpkin muffins with ginger cheesecake filling. Follow the above directions, making the following changes:Add 1-2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger to the cheesecake filling. For the muffins, brown the butter by cooking it over medium heat, swirling occasionally, until it browns, smells nutty and makes you swoon with olfactory pleasure. Let cool to warm.For the spices, substitute the following, omitting the allspice: 1 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg.Toast 3/4 pecans, let cool, and chop coarsely. Gently fold in after combining the wets and dries.Nutritional values are based on one muffin.