Pumpkin & Cream Cheese Muffins

1. Lightly coat one 12 cup muffin pan with oil or fill with liners. Give the liners a little spray of oil, too. Set aside.

2. In a small bowl, mix cream cheese, 1 egg, and 3 tablespoons of sugar until well combined. Set aside.

3. In another small bowl, mix 5 tablespoons sugar, 1/2 cup flour, pecans, butter, and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon until well combined. Set aside.

4. In a large bowl, combine 2 cups flour, 2 cups sugar, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and 2 teaspoons cinnamon until well combined. Set aside.

5. In the bowl of a stand mixer, lightly beat 2 eggs, pumpkin, oil, and vanilla together until well mixed. Incorporate the flour mixture slowly until a good batter forms.

6. Assemble your bowls in this order: batter, the cream cheese, and finally the pecan mixture.

Start by pouring batter into each muffin cup, filling it almost half way. Next, place about 2 teaspoons of the cream cheese mix into each cup. (Feel free to add more, as you’ll end up with extra cream cheese mix at the end.)

Fill the rest of the cup with the batter. Don’t be afraid to fill it up to the top so that when it rises, it blossoms into a nice, big muffin top.

Sprinkle as much of the pecan mix over the top of each muffin as you want. (It can only have delicious consequences.)

7. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 375 degrees or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Consume, ignoring the “serving size” if necessary.