Strawberry Cheesecake Streusel Muffins

Valentine's week. Liam is having none of it. Nora wants to make Valentine's cards for her entire class plus the cafeteria lady plus the principal plus me plus Ma plus Pop. She is making twenty-eight cards. I bought two packs of construction paper.

Clinic was steady. Two new patients. One a woman who had moved from Mattapan and needed a primary. I did her intake in forty-five minutes. She has hypertension and three kids and a husband on disability. I started her on lisinopril and gave her my pager. She is going to be a good patient. I can tell.

Group Tuesday. The Valentine's check-in. Bernadette had us name what we missed about being part of a couple. The new ones cried. The older ones said the small things — splitting the chores, the second opinion, the warm side of the bed. Henry said the way she would touch his arm at restaurants when he was talking too much. He said it like he was reading from a page. The room was quiet for a beat.

Walking to the cars he said happy Valentine's, late, early, whatever. I said happy Valentine's. He said I am not asking you anything. I said I know. He said I just wanted to say it once. I said okay. We drove home. I sat in the driveway five minutes. Henry is shy and I am not for him and he knows that. He just wanted to say it. I keep that at face value.

Wednesday Kettle. Thirteen quarts. Holding.

The Valentine's cards: Nora finished them Friday at the kitchen table. She made them all herself. She drew a little heart on each one. She put MISS PRIYA on six of them in different colors of ink. Priya is going to know. Liam said Nora why do you keep writing Priya's name. Nora said because she is my person. I almost cried into the dishes. Seven years old.

Saturday pancakes. Burned the first. Heart-shaped at Nora's request — first time we did this in the new house. The heart shapes were uneven. Sean would have laughed at them. I laughed at them for him.

Sunday dinner at Ma's: pot roast, with hearts cut out of the carrots by Nora. Ma let her do it.

Food of the week: heart pancakes. Burned the first one for Sean. Always.

The heart pancakes were uneven — burned on the first try, lopsided on the rest — and they were exactly right. But that Saturday stayed with me, and when the weekend came back around I wanted something I could make ahead, something Nora could find on the counter and know it was made for her. These strawberry cheesecake streusel muffins are that thing: pink from the berries, a little tender in the middle, sweet enough to feel like a gesture. Burn the first one if you need to. I always do.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 22 min | Total Time: 42 min | Servings: 12 muffins

Ingredients

Streusel Topping:
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Cheesecake Filling:
4 oz cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Muffin Batter:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups fresh or frozen strawberries, hulled and diced

Instructions

Make the streusel. Combine flour and sugar in a small bowl. Work in the cold butter with your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside in the refrigerator while you prepare the rest.
Make the cheesecake filling. Beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla together in a small bowl until smooth and creamy. Set aside.
Preheat and prep. Heat oven to 375°F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or grease well.
Mix the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar.
Mix the wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the melted butter, eggs, sour cream, and vanilla until smooth.
Combine. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined — a few lumps are fine. Gently fold in the diced strawberries. Do not overmix.
Fill the cups. Spoon about 2 tablespoons of batter into the bottom of each muffin cup. Add a heaping teaspoon of cheesecake filling to the center of each, then cover with another 2 tablespoons of batter, enclosing the filling.
Add streusel. Sprinkle the chilled streusel evenly over the top of each muffin, pressing very gently so it adheres.
Bake. Bake for 20—22 minutes, until the tops are lightly golden and a toothpick inserted into the muffin portion (not the filling) comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.

Nutrition (per serving)

Strawberry Cheesecake Streusel Muffins — Because Some Saturday Mornings Ask for More Than Pancakes