Everything you love about the holidays wrapped into one little muffin! This simple recipe creates super impressive eggnong cheesecake stuffed pumpkin muffins with a gingerbread cookie crust and it is finished off with a dunk in a bath of thick eggnog glaze.
This recipe uses a box of Krusteaz pumpkin spice muffins as the base, which is so moist and flavorful and makes the recipes so simple. Krusteaz even featured my recipe on their website and youtube channel so be sure to check it out here.
To take it to the next level I whipped up a simple, creamy eggnog cheesecake filling that doubles as the glaze, and placed a gingersnap cookie on the bottom for a nice crunch.
To make these little beauties, I just beat together some cream cheese, powdered sugar, spices, vanilla and of course, eggnog for the eggnog cheesecake filling/glaze.
Then, I just scooped the filling on top of 12 gingersnap cookies to create a crust and filling in one, and popped them in the freezer to firm up for about 1-2 hours. This is so the filling doesn't melt away during baking! I thinned down the remaining filling with eggnong to create the glaze.
Once the filling had firmed up, I placed them in the bottom of my cupcake pan, that I had sprayed with non-stick spray.
I prepared the pumpkin spice muffins according to the package and scooped
the muffin batter on top of my filling topped cookies and popped them in the oven.
Bake... bake... bake...
Then, comes the best part! Once the muffins are baked and cooled, dunk the top of each muffin into the glaze, and watch it drip down the sides.
You can add sprinkles, chopped walnuts or dried cranberries, even some crushed gingerbread cookies to the tops of the wet glaze if desired, or leave 'em plain!
Glazed Eggnog
Cheesecake Pumpkin Muffins with Gingerbread Cookie Crust
Yield:
12 muffins
Ingredients
Eggnog Cheesecake Filling/Glaze
- 1 (8 ounces) package cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (OR 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/8 teaspoon ground clove)
- 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon eggnog, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon rum flavoring extract, optional
- 12 gingersnap (or gingerbread) cookies
Pumpkin Muffins
- 1 package Krusteaz Pumpkin Spice Muffin Mix
- 2/3 cup water
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1 large egg
Directions
In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Beat in powdered sugar, spices, 1 tablespoon eggnog, vanilla and rum extract until creamy and well combined. Set aside about 1/4-1/2 cup in a small bowl for the glaze. Spoon the rest of the mixture into 12 small mounds (about 1 tablespoon each) on top of each gingersnap cookie and place in the freezer to firm up (at least 15 minutes, but preferably an hour or two).
Prepare the glaze by stirring in ¼ cup eggnog, one tablespoon at a time, to the reserved filling mixture, until thin enough for glazing muffins.
Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray a muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray.
Stir together muffin mix, water, oil and egg just until moistened. Place each frozen filling topped cookie into each of the 12 muffin cups. Scoop the muffin batter on top; making sure all filling is completely covered. Bake 14-16 minutes or until tops of muffins spring back when lightly pressed. Let cool in pan for 5-10 minutes before removing to wire rack to cool completely.
Dunk the top of each muffin into your bowl of glaze, stirring in more eggnog as needed if glaze gets too thick.
If you like these, be sure to check out my:
Eggnog Cupcakes
Cinnamon-Sugar Gingerdoodle Cookies
Gingerbread Cupcakes
Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes
Click here for more Holiday recipes & treats!