Ingredients
- Crumb Topping
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, diced into cubes
- Cream Cheese Mixture
- 4 ounces brick-style cream cheese, softened (lite is okay)
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Muffins
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
- 1/3 cup buttermilk
- 2 tablespoons natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons red liquid food coloring
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat oven to 375F. Spray a Non-Stick 12-Cup Regular Muffin Pan very well with floured cooking spray or grease and flour the pan; set aside.
Crumb Topping - To a medium bowl, add the sugar, flour, and using two forks or a pastry cutter, cut in the butter until you have coarse crumbs; set aside.
Cream Cheese Mixture - To a separate medium bowl, combine the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and beat with a handheld electric mixer until smooth, or whisk by hand until smooth; set aside.
Muffins - To a large bowl, add the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and whisk to combine; set aside.
To a separate medium bowl, add the egg, oil, buttermilk, cocoa powder, red food coloring, and whisk to combine.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir just until moistened. Batter is thick and some lumps will remain, don't overmix. Fold the cream cheese mixture into the muffin batter, being careful not to overmix. Some streaks of cream cheese should remain. Turn batter out into prepared pan, filling each cavity about two-thirds full. Evenly sprinkle each muffin with the crumb topping.
Bake for about 17 to 19 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs but no batter, Allow muffins to cool in pan for about 10 minutes, or until they've firmed up and are cool enough to handle, and then transfer to a rack to cool completely.