Santa Monica Monthly – April 2021

CREAM CHEESE FILLING:

• In a deep medium bowl, combine the cream cheese, Besti and vanilla. Use a hand mixer to beat until smooth.
• Transfer the cream cheese mixture onto a sheet of plastic wrap, and wrap in a long, thin log shape, twisting the ends.
• Freeze for at least 30 minutes.

MUFFIN BATTER:

• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat together the softened butter and Besti, until fluffy.
• Beat in the eggs, then the cream and vanilla.
• Beat in the almond flour, baking powder, and sea salt, until uniform. The batter will be thick.

STREUSEL:

• In a medium bowl, stir together the almond flour, Besti Brown, cinnamon, and sea salt, until uniform.
• In another small bowl, stir together the melted butter and vanilla.
• Add the melted butter mixture to the brown sugar mixture and stir until crumbly.

ASSEMBLY:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (162 degrees C). Line a muffin tin with 12 parchment paper liners.
• Sprinkle 1 cup of streusel (or about 2/3 to 3/4 of the total amount) over the muffin batter. Use a rubber spatula to gently fold in, but do NOT stir or mix until uniform (you want streaks of streusel).
• Spoon the muffin batter into the muffin cups, filling a bit less than halfway full.
• Remove the cream cheese from the freezer. Slice the log into 12 slices (about 2 teaspoons each). Place a slice in the center of each muffin cup.
• Spoon the remaining batter over the muffin cups, filling them to the top.
• Crumble the remaining streusel over the muffins, about 2 teaspoons per muffin.
• Bake for about 22-28 minutes, until the streusel is darker golden and an inserted toothpick comes out clean. If the muffins start to brown too much, tent the top with foil and continue baking until done.