Vegan Starbucks Cream Cheese Pumpkin Muffin Recipe (2024)

This vegan Starbucks cream cheese pumpkin muffin recipe makes soft and delicious treats with a warming mix of pumpkin pie spices and creamy cheesecake-like centers. Sugared pumpkin seeds and crumb topping give these muffins a tasty crunch as well! Use regular all-purpose flour or use oat to make gluten-free pumpkin muffins.
Click here for the printable recipe. Or if you prefer the Tim Horton’s-style Pumpkin Spice Muffin with creamy cream cheese icing instead, click here.

Video tutorial for Vegan Starbucks Cream Cheese Pumpkin Muffin Recipe

I was in college when the Pumpkin Spice craze started. Pumpkin Spice lattes were new and exciting and quickly, PSL’s became my daily autumn indulgence. Then pumpkin spice muffins came along. All the coffee shops had them. Of course, Starbucks and Tim Hortons both had their own versions. My college had both outlets on campus so I’d visit one or the other (or both) depending on where my classes were that day, how long I had to be on campus, and who I spotted in the lineup.

The Starbucks Cream Cheese Pumpkin muffins had a cream cheese center baked into the muffins. I loved them so much! The whole muffin reminded me of pumpkin cheesecake.

Don’t get me wrong, I also LOVED the Timmies’ version. That version was much more pumpkin-y. The spices were stronger and the pumpkin seeds on top were much tastier. They were crispy and flavourful while the Starbucks’ version was plainer in comparison. Tim’s cream cheese frosting was not baked in but injected after baking. At the time, I wished they made a Pumpkin Spice Muffin that was somewhere in between.

So, this vegan pumpkin spice muffin recipe is somewhere in between. The spices and pumpkin flavour are a bit stronger than the Starbuck’s version (as far as I remember–it’s been 5 or 6 years since I’ve last had one). I added a crumb topping though I honestly don’t remember if either version had crumb topping. And you can choose whether you want a baked in cheesecake-like filling or if you want to inject cream cheese frosting into your muffins after baking. These are your vegan pumpkin muffins and there are no rules!

How to make Vegan Starbucks Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

Begin by preheating your oven to 425°F or 218°C. If this strikes you as a bit high for baking muffins, you’re right. But we’ll only bake them at the higher temperature for 8 minutes to encourage the muffins to rise, to crisp up the pumpkin seeds and get a nice colour on the muffin tops. After which, we’ll lower the temperature.

For equipment, you’ll need a couple of mixing bowls, a whisk or sifter for combining the dry ingredients, an immersion blender for the small amount of vegan cream cheese filling, and a muffin baking tray. I also highly recommend a flexible rubber or silicone spatula, muffin liners (reusable or parchment paper), and a cooling rack.

Grease the muffin tray’s top surface, especially the top edges of the muffin tins. That way, any stray batter that gets baked on won’t stick but release easily.

Making the vegan cream cheese filling

Blend 1/4 cup silken tofu, 2 Tbsp sugar, 1 tsp cornstarch, 1 teaspoon canola oil (or any neutral oil), 1/2 tsp lemon juice and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract with an immersion blender until completely smooth. Transfer the vegan cream cheese filling to a piping bag and store in the fridge while you make the muffin batter.

By the way, the recipe makes more than enough to fill 12 muffins so if you decide to make a double batch, don’t double the amounts for the filling. You will have enough with just the single batch amount. The single batch size is what it is because I found it impossible to blend a smaller amount properly with my immersion blender or small bullet blender.

Making the pumpkin muffin batter

In a large mixing bowl, sift or whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt). In a separate bowl, combine all the wet ingredients and whisk together until well combined. Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture, using a spatula to get every bit of the wet mixture out. Fold together gently until no dry spots or wet streaks remain. Do not over mix, especially if using regular flour. Over-mixing causes the gluten to develop and can cause gummy or overly dense muffins. This is not a problem if you are using oat flour or an all-purpose gluten-free one-to-one baking flour.

Making gluten free vegan Starbucks cream cheese muffins

The regular all-purpose flour in this recipe can be replaced easily with oat flour. I take regular rolled oats and blend them in a bullet blender or food processor to make homemade oat flour. To make sure they are gluten-free, buy gluten-free oats. Oats don’t have gluten in them naturally. However, oats are often processed on equipment or in facilities that also process grains that contain gluten so there’s a strong probability of cross-contamination.

While I haven’t tested this recipe with pre-made oat flour, I’m sure it will work. My bullet blender does an awesome job of turning whole oats into fine flour. This fine oat flour made muffins that were very similar to the wheat flour version. My food processor produces a more rustic result that makes a more rustic looking muffin. The muffins have that “healthy” look to them if you know what I mean.

When measuring the oat flour, remember to use the fluff, scoop and level method. Otherwise, they will be less fluffy and more dense.

Putting it all together

Fill up the muffin tins with batter. If you’re making Starbucks-style muffins with baked in filling, use a small spoon to make some space. Or use clean hands, dampen a finger and poke a space into the middle of each muffin. The moisture will keep the batter from sticking to your finger. Take the Vegan Cream Cheese Filling from the fridge, stir to loosen, then deposit a teaspoon or two of filling into each of the muffins.

Use a fork to blend the crumb ingredients together until well combined and crumbly. Sprinkle the crumb evenly over top of the muffin batter.

Place the pumpkin seeds in a bowl or on a plate. Spread them out, then spray with cooking spray. Sprinkle icing sugar over top then stir to coat them all over. Sprinkle the coated pumpkin seeds over top of the muffin batter and press them on to the muffins’ surface gently so they stick.

Bake your muffins!

Bake at 425°F for 8 minutes, then turn down the temperature to 350°F and continue baking for 20 more minutes for a total time of 28 minutes. Remove from the oven and let the muffins rest for 5 to 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Now your Vegan Starbucks Cream Cheese Pumpkin Muffins are ready! Enjoy them warm and fresh from the oven. You can also store these in the fridge for a few days but I like to freeze my leftovers. They thaw wonderfully. Just heat in the microwave by cooking on high for 15 seconds at a time until they are just warm to the touch.

I really hope you enjoy these vegan Starbucks cream cheese pumpkin muffins. Please let me know in the comments if you try it and how it went for you! And if you’re on Instagram, please upload a picture and tag me @marystestkitchen so I can see it too! I love those photos.

For more vegan Pumpkin Spice goodness, try these recipes:

• Caramel Pumpkin Spice Doughnuts
• Pumpkin Spice Scones
• Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls
• Tim Horton’s style Pumpkin Spice Muffins

Printable recipe for Starbucks Cream Cheese Pumpkin Muffin

easy easy recipe muffins pumpkin recipe recipe with video starbucks tim hortons