JALAPEÑO POPPER CREAM CHEESE MUFFINS

1 Spray 12 cup muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray with flour (or grease and flour tin). Set aside.

2 In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, garlic powder and onion powder. Add 1 diced jalapeno, cheddar cheese and 1/3 cup parmesan cheese and toss until evenly combined.

3 In a separate medium bowl, whisk egg then add milk, sour cream and butter; whisk just until combined. Gently fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients – don’t overmix (it will be very thick). Remove 1/4 cup batter to be used in cream cheese filling.

4 In a separate bowl using a handheld mixer, beat cream cheese until very creamy. Add 1/4 cup reserved batter and continue to beat on medium high speed until smooth (don’t worry about the cheese chunks). Stir in 1 diced jalapeno.

5 Add a heaping tablespoon batter to each muffin cup and spread out slightly, followed by a heaping tablespoon cream cheese mixture then top with remaining batter. Sprinkle evenly with remaining Parmesan cheese.

6 Bake at 375 degrees F for 20-25 minutes. Let muffins cool in tin on wire rack for 5 minutes then gently remove from tin and continue to cool on wire rack.

7 Store any leftover muffins in an airtight container at room temperature for 5 days. I like to reheat leftover muffins in the microwave for 10 seconds or so.