Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter, softened
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 2/3 cup brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 12 tablespoons Blueberry Rhubarb Jam (or preserve of your choice)
Streusel
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped walnuts
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine streusel ingredients and set aside. Prepare 12-cup muffin tin by either lining cups with parchment paper or by greasing interior of cups with butter.
- In a mixer bowl, blend butter and cream cheese. Add brown sugar and beat until creamed, then add eggs and beat until fluffy. Stir in vanilla extract.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour, spices, baking powder, and salt. Add to butter-cream cheese mixture and beat just until combined.
- Generously cover the bottoms of muffin cups with batter. Then, drop 1 tablespoon of jam into each cup. Distribute remaining batter between the 12 muffin cups, and sprinkle on streusel topping.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean of batter (it will probably have jam on it). Allow muffins to set for 2 minutes, then remove from tins and cool on wire rack.
These spicy muffins are nicely dense, with sweet, gooey pockets of jam in the middle. The streusel topping creates perfect little cakes made for eating with a fork and a cup of tea!
Jam and Jelly Pairings
Here are a few of my other favorite jam and jelly recipes, paired with some of the baked goods that show them off to great advantage. Feel free to come up with your own combinations, based on your personal preferences.
- Teatime Muffins with Blueberry Rhubarb Jam
- Spiced Cake with Jam with Black Raspberry Jam
Leah Smith is a freelance writer and gardener. She works on her family’s Michigan farm, Nodding Thistle, where they produce and preserve much of their own food. Contact her at NoddingThistle@gmail.com.