raspberry lemon cheesecake streusel muffins
Pretty little crumble-capped muffins for this week’s treat!
This morning I endured my toughest marathon training workout yet. It involved 60 minutes at goal pace – or goal effort, as I’m phrasing it considering summer is not a time to marry myself to a pace. The session went very well but I haven’t wanted to move much since finishing my errands this morning. Not helped by realizing I made a mistake purchase and need to mend it before the weekend else it’ll ruffle my feathers until I do so.
Going back to the store, though, requires moving. and I’m fairly happy here on the couch, watching baseball, floofing around my computer, particularly talking about these Raspberry Lemon Cheesecake Streusel Muffins. They’re real gems, these guys are.
Cake on Cake
You may recall my last time playing with a cake-cheesecake marriage. In fact, I’m still quite proud of my Strawberry Cheesecake Swirl Bars, and those inspired a different riff on the combination. I haven’t muffin’d since my Bakery Style Espresso Chocolate Chunk Muffins and I figured I was due.
Happily, these are just as soft and thoroughly rippled with raspberries as I hoped. The crumb is moist, the cheesecake filling a burst of lemony tang, and the ginger-hinted streusel a simple but scrumptious addition that brings them above the everyday muff.
Batter Up!
I like to get the streusel done first, but that’s personal preference and it doesn’t really matter what order in which you concoct the trio of ingredient groups. For continuity sake, let’s start there in the breakdown.
I’ve used both cold and melted butter for streusels past, and for the muffins I chose cold. I grated my butter and set it in the fridge to stay hard. The temperature isn’t as crucial as it would be with, say, biscuits or scones, but try to keep it pretty solid. When ready, cut the butter into some flour, sugar, and ginger until a crumbly mixture forms. Pieces should be no larger than a pea.
Now, for the batter. Melt and cool some butter, then whisk it with honey, lemon juice, buttermilk, Greek yogurt (makes for such a lovely texture!), eggs, and vanilla.
No need to switch bowls for the dry ingredients! Add in the flour, baking powder and soda, and salt. Stir until just mixed – this is when the last streak of dry ingredients folds into the batter. Gently stir in the raspberries until reasonably distributed.
Last, the cheesecake filling. I used my hand mixer for this, but if you have a Kitchenaid or similar, all the better. Beat together softened cream cheese, lemon zest, sugar, an egg, and a bit of vanilla until creamy.
Assembly and Stuff
Line two cupcake tins with parchment liners, or spray well with oil. I should’ve mentioned that the oven is to be preheated to 350, but I forgot above and don’t feel like disrupting my flow, so here you go.
Spoon about half of the batter into each cupcake tin. Then, plop about 1 tablespoon worth of cheesecake filling in the center. It’s okay if it scoots around the peaks and valleys of the batter! Finish with a layer of the remaining batter. Sprinkle the streusel atop each, and bake the muffins. My oven finished them in 25 minutes, but it may take up to 30. Check with a toothpick to see if just a few little crumbs stick to the wood. If so, they’re done! If not, keep baking in 1 minute increments.
If you’re not quite ready to let go of summer goods – or you live in Florida where every damn produce item is pretty much always in season – make these muffins for a solid brunch option. I had some leftover raspberries for my daily oat bowls, or you could pick up a few more and make a Pink Raspberry Vodka Lemonade over the weekend. Or tonight. Whichever. I myself intend to reach for a glass of prosecco tonight to celebrate my marathon training-induced immobility. Yeehaw!
Tried this recipe out? Leave a comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter, melted (1 stick)
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 1/2 cup plain full-fat Greek yogurt
- 2 eggs, at room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 cups fresh raspberries
lemon cheesecake
- 4 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 egg, at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
streusel
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 4 tbsp butter, grated, cold
- 1 tsp ginger
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two 12-slot cupcake tins with parchment liners, or spray with oil.
- To make the streusel, cut the cold butter with the flour, sugar, and ginger powder until the mix has no pieces larger than peas. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together melted butter, honey, lemon juice, buttermilk, Greek yogurt, eggs, and vanilla, until combined. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, whisking until just combined. Do not overmix. Fold in raspberries with a rubber spatula.
- To make the cheesecake filling: with a hand or stand mixer, beat the cream cheese, lemon zest, sugar, egg, and vanilla.
- Divide half of the batter between the prepared cupcake tins. Scoop about 1 tablespoon worth of cheesecake filling in the center of each. Top with remaining batter – it is a-okay if some of the cheesecake peaks out the top. Evenly sprinkle streusel atop each muffin.
- Bake 25-30 minutes in preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted in the center removes with just a few moist crumbs. Let cool in the tin about 10-15 minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool an additional 10 minutes or so.
