Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners and set aside.

In a very small bowl, stir the instant espresso powder into 1 teaspoon of hot water until fully dissolved. Set aside. Dissolving it first prevents bitter, uneven specks in the finished muffin.

Make the cream cheese filling. Beat the softened cream cheese with a hand mixer on medium speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and beat until light and fluffy, about 1 more minute. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, vegetable oil, eggs, granulated sugar, dark brown sugar, sour cream, vanilla extract, and the dissolved espresso mixture. Whisk until smooth and everything is fully combined.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and fold with a rubber spatula just until no dry streaks remain. The batter will be thick. Stop mixing as soon as it comes together.

Spoon the batter into the lined muffin cups, filling each about halfway. Add a generous tablespoon of the cream cheese filling to the center of each cup, pressing it gently into the batter. Spoon a little more batter over the top of each until the cups are about three-quarters full. Use a toothpick to swirl the cream cheese through the top layer of batter two or three times for a marbled look.

Bake for 20 to 22 minutes, until the tops are set and spring back lightly when touched. A toothpick inserted into the batter portion (not through the cream cheese center) should come out with just a few moist crumbs. The muffin tops will look deep brown from the espresso and pumpkin combination, which is normal.

Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Let them finish cooling for at least 20 minutes before eating. The cream cheese center needs time to set up, and the espresso flavor mellows and blends beautifully as the muffins cool.