I am usually not quite motivated enough to bake anything for breakfast. Once in a while, however, I find some recipe that gives me that push I need to get myself up and in the kitchen. This is one of those recipes.
If you never believe another one of my recipe endorsements, believe this one. These little treats are so, so good. Quinn actually says that they are the best thing I’ve ever made. Granted, I’ve heard him say that about some other things, too. Even so, it’s a short list. When asked, he rattled these off without great labor: sweet and salty cake, pear bread, brownie peanut butter cups, chocolate mascarpone brownies, and chocolate-glazed hazelnut mousse cake.
The first endorsement for these treats came from the author of The Buttercup Bake Shop Cookbook who says she eats one every morning. So many of her employees do, as well, that they must bake a double batch in order to have enough for their customers. Having sampled these now, I can see how they could easily become part of one’s morning routine. Quinn has been nagging me about making more since before he polished off the last one.
Although they are made in muffin pans, that’s about as far as the similarities go. They do not have the consistency or the look of muffins. They are much more moist and a bit creamy. Of course, I’m a bit of a sucker for swirled things, so that’s just an aesthetic bonus for me.
I used black raspberry preserves for these and was very pleased with that flavor combination. I also made a few with sour cherry jam. We’re pretty sure that we liked those even better. I would love to try these with blueberry or strawberry, too. No matter what your preference, just make them. And don’t just save them for breakfast. They’re a great little sweet any time of day.
Ingredients
- 1 cup + 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1/4 to 1/3 cup raspberry preserves
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°. Grease and flour a large (1-cup capacity) 12-cup muffin tin*.
Combine 1 cup flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Beat cream cheese, butter, and sugar on low speed of an electric mixer until fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in vanilla. Add dry ingredients, alternating with milk. Add remaining 3/4 cup flour and mix until combined.
Spoon batter into muffin cups. Top with 3 small dollops of preserves and swirl into the batter using a small knife.
Bake for 20-25 minutes*, or until a pick inserted into the center comes out clean. Do not overbake.
Notes
*For regular sized muffin tins, decrease baking time by 2-3 minutes. Makes about 20 buns.
Recipe adapted from The Buttercup Bake Shop Cookbook.
April 8th, 2009 at 3:42 pm
Wow these look good!!!
April 8th, 2009 at 3:50 pm
Oh my gosh. Yum!
I just came across your site today and I’m in love! There are SO many recipes I want to try out. Keep them coming!
April 8th, 2009 at 3:56 pm
Ooh, I’m going to have to make these next. I wonder how they’d be with marmalade inside?
April 8th, 2009 at 4:01 pm
Great sweet treat!
April 8th, 2009 at 4:11 pm
the sour cherry jam…oh heavens yes!
April 8th, 2009 at 5:09 pm
I think these might just feature at my next brunch party!
April 8th, 2009 at 5:35 pm
I love breakfast treats. I’m going to make these for some friends I have coming over for brunch on Friday.
April 8th, 2009 at 6:09 pm
I’m a new reader to your blog, and I’m glad I am! This recipe sounds fantastic since I’m always looking for ways to use my favorite raspberry preserve. Question, though: the recipe says “1/4 teaspoon cup milk”; I’m guessing it’s 1/4 CUP since it says to alternate it with the flour mixture, but just to be sure, is that what you meant?
April 8th, 2009 at 6:34 pm
Maria, it is 1/4 cup. Thanks for pointing that out! I will change it in the recipe.
April 8th, 2009 at 7:46 pm
Those look delicious. You know I’m a fool for raspberry anything! Then put cream cheese with it?! Yum.
April 8th, 2009 at 8:35 pm
I’ve made those several times and they are always a hit. I usually use raspberry, since that’s what everyone likes, but black raspberry would be outstanding as well.
April 9th, 2009 at 7:08 am
These look yummy!
April 9th, 2009 at 12:37 pm
Black raspberries? Never heard of it! We were wondering why they didn’t look red.
Delicious.
April 9th, 2009 at 12:37 pm
Those look amazing! What a glorious breakfast..I would have to have quite a few I think as they look so moreish
April 9th, 2009 at 1:10 pm
Very nice treat! They look delicious. Thanks for sharing the recipe
April 9th, 2009 at 6:58 pm
With an endorsement like that, how can I not make these?! Thanks for sharing!
April 9th, 2009 at 8:06 pm
I bet these are delicious! I love raspberries!
April 9th, 2009 at 8:49 pm
that looks heavenly!
April 10th, 2009 at 6:35 am
Wow!!! these look great, can’t wait to try them!
April 11th, 2009 at 9:08 am
I made these yesterday. They were great!! My kids really loved them, too. I wished I’d had raspberry, but I used strawberry in some and blackberry preserves in some. YUM!
April 11th, 2009 at 10:28 pm
Making a batch of these now, but I was little confused by the recipe — it’s 6 large buns, not 12, right? My big muffin tin fits 6…
April 12th, 2009 at 10:39 am
Jeff, the recipe makes 12 extra-large buns. I used a standard-sized muffin pan and made 20.
April 12th, 2009 at 6:07 pm
Made these this morning, and the two of us have already powered through four before the morning was up. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
April 12th, 2009 at 8:03 pm
Thanks for the clarification Jennifer. For the record, these were amazing and embarrassingly easy, even though I ended up making 6 monstrous buns. I can’t wait to make another batch, weigh each one so they’re even, etc. So good.
April 15th, 2009 at 8:29 am
wow! these sounds delicious…..definitely gonna try it.
April 19th, 2009 at 7:02 am
I am all about breakfast, and all about sweets. These look fantastic Jennifer, and trusting you one more time is……..easy.
April 19th, 2009 at 9:30 am
I made this with strawberry preserves. I think I need to use more than the recipes calls for. They were so good. Made 6 extra large and 6 regular size. My 2 year old ate 2 of them, husband is requesting them next weekend. Thanks
April 20th, 2009 at 8:10 am
yummy. They would be good with pear, blueberry, raspberry, strawberry…. jams or jellies.
April 21st, 2009 at 10:51 am
holy smokes…I made these (sort of) last night w/elderberry jam in a mini loaf pan.
Heaven with coffee!
April 23rd, 2009 at 7:16 pm
Delicious!!! Can’t wait to try this recipe. Thank you.
April 28th, 2009 at 3:41 pm
These look super yummy! My boyfriend is a big fan of blueberry muffins, which are fun to make and eat every once in a while, but I am excited to try a different type of breakfast cake!
May 2nd, 2009 at 6:51 pm
Hi Jennifer, I’ve been following your blog for a long time and enjoy every recipe and picture you post. I’ve made a few of your featured recipes and printed out many more to try one day…and they’ve all been delicious. I wanted to ask you about these buns–I made them today with strawberry jam and they turned out very good, but I realized that I forgot to split the flour until too late, so I ended up adding all the flour alternatively with the milk…do you happen to know what effect that would make to the resulting buns? My cream cheese buns are more “light and airy” than your pictures and description imply, so I wonder if it’s because of that missed step. I guess I’ll have to make them again the right way and see if they turn out more like yours, haha. Anyways, I hope the job is going well, although I have to admit I am sad that you don’t get to post as often as you used to. I started my own baking blog awhile ago, please feel welcome to stop by if you have a free minute =) Thanks again for your time and wonderful site.
May 4th, 2009 at 6:55 pm
DPLK, my guess is that alternating the flour and the milk helps the batter get to the right consistency without overmixing. I wouldn’t guarantee that to be the right answer, but it’s my theory. Thanks for your very kind words about BoB!
May 8th, 2009 at 2:46 pm
I immediately ran out and bought all the ingredient s for these, i made a few changes to the recipe-agave nectar instead of sugar, honey nut cream cheese, and blackberry jam. I can’t wait till they are out of the oven!
May 10th, 2009 at 7:16 pm
We are definitely going to try these although not quite sure which flavor to go with – blueberry, raspberry, or strawberry. Seems like it would be good for a brunch.
Mark Garso 2327
June 15th, 2009 at 2:23 pm
yum.
June 20th, 2009 at 2:36 pm
These look so amazing. I am definitely trying this—and soon!
April 7th, 2011 at 10:15 pm
These were awesome! They were so easy to make (which is a huge bonus point with my busy schedule) I just threw everything in the bowl with the mixer going and before you know it, they were ready to eat! The raspberry swirl was pretty enough to make it for a group setting but normal enough to not seem fancy.
I used a full 225g package of cream cheese instead of the 200g listed in the recipe (8oz=200g)but I thought they turned out just fine.
I am definitely keeping this recipe for the future!
June 25th, 2011 at 9:07 am
I made these yesterday and although they were delicious, I did not taste very much cream cheese in them. Is that normal? Again, they were excellent, just not what I expected.
April 29th, 2012 at 6:39 pm
You’re killing me with these pics! To die for!
August 17th, 2012 at 9:29 am
So far your recipes are the most moist and amazing dishes I’ve ever made! My family and boyfriend can’t stop eating those coffee cake muffins I made yesterday, and I’ll be baking these for the morning tomorrow! Fabulous recipes come out great every time!
February 12th, 2013 at 1:01 pm
Has anyone tried these with apricot?