Cream Cheese Banana Muffins

We all know the real reason I made these muffins was for the cream cheese filling in the center. And ohhhhh, is it worth it.

Growing up, I never disliked cream cheese but I was never a fan of anything (i.e. toppings/sauces) in excess. My older sisters lived on plain bagels with cream cheese and so I copied them. I always put an almost undetectable layer of cream cheese on my bagels so I could be just like them. Over the years, I realized a healthier smear of cream cheese added great value. They’ve always known everything.

I’m making up for lost time, adding cream cheese to anything I can think of. When a recipe calls for a cream cheese filling, I imagine it’s essentially a little piece of cheesecake added to whatever you’re baking. Naturally, I seek cream cheese centers on everything for this reason. If you do too, definitely try these: Cream Cheese Coffee Cake, Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting, and Blueberry Lemon Muffins.

These muffins come together really quickly. No electric mixer is needed; a whisk will do the job. The batter is really moist, just like you’d expect from a bakery banana muffin. The moisture comes from the banana (the riper the better), buttermilk, and oil instead of butter. The filling is just cream cheese mixed with sugar and that you plop in the middle of the muffins before baking. Something that takes so little effort, surely shouldn’t taste this good….la vie est belle.