A simple recipe for made-from-scratch pumpkin streusel muffins topped with a buttery, crumbly, pumpkin spice streusel. These pumpkin streusel muffins are a fantastic breakfast treat!

Fall screams warm, comforting baking, and I’m here to give you your new favorite breakfast muffin. This recipe takes the same base as my award-winning applesauce muffins, but is dressed up for fall with pumpkin replacing the applesauce, and the addition of a buttery pumpkin spice streusel.

The best part about these muffins is that they are super easy to make. There’s no fancy baking skills required, and the recipe is very forgiving. Spoon or scoop your flour, these muffins come out ready to eat!

What do I need to make Pumpkin Streusel Muffins?

Pumpkin Puree

First off, use pumpkin puree, NOT pumpkin pie filling. They are different, and they will give you different results. I use the puree from a can and have never tried this with homemade pumpkin puree. If you give it a shot, you should let me know how it goes!

Applesauce

Applesauce is the secret sauce in these muffins. It adds a both a sweetness and moisture to the crumb. I use regular unsweetened applesauce normally, but I have tried it with the cinnamon applesauce and liked that slight addition of the cinnamon flavor. Not enough to change the recipe, but it was a fun variation!

Pumpkin Pie Spice

And the award for the most basic fall flavor goes to: Pumpkin Pie Spice. In these muffins, it’s anything but basic. This simple spice blend adds warmth and flavor, and will go in both the muffin and the streusel. Store-bought spice works great, but if you need a recipe for a homemade version, I like this one from Live Well Bake Often.

Butter or Margarine

I’m not a butter snob, and I use margarine typically for my baking. These muffins will bake up well with either. The streusel also works with either butter or magarine. With both though, if you’re using butter, make sure to use unsalted butter for best results.

Granulated Sugar

This adds a light sweetness to the muffin that is perfectly complimented by the streusel crumble on top.

Eggs

Eggs provide both fat for richness and protein to bind together the ingredients. These can be replaced with bananas, if you’re looking for an egg-free recipe. The final taste is different, and your muffin will be slightly more dense than the ones in the pictures.

Vanilla

Vanilla brings out the warmth of the pumpkin pie spices. Again, no snobs here, so this recipe was tested with the imitation vanilla from Walmart and came out delicious. I’m sure premium ingredients would make things even better, but for those on a budget, these come out great even with the cheap ingredients.

Flour

This recipe uses all purpose flour. It has not been tested with any other type of flour.

Baking Soda

This is the leavening that makes the muffins rise up and helps give you that gorgeous crumb!

Brown Sugar

Used only in the streusel, this adds a depth of flavor to the crumbly, buttery perfection on top.

Can I freeze pumpkin streusel muffins?

Yes! This recipe freezes well in both batter and baked forms. For the batter, seal it in a freezer-safe, air-tight container. You can freeze it for up to 2 months.

Baked muffins also freeze well. I put them in freezer bags, then take them out a few hours before I want to use them and let them thaw on the counter. Baked muffins will freeze for up to 1 month.

How do I store pumpkin streusel muffins?

These are very moist muffins, and are best eaten or frozen within the first few days. They will keep in an airtight container for 1 week.

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