Yoo Eatz

Several months ago, I was watching an episode of Rick Bayless's Mexico: One Plate at a Time in which he made ice cream from ate (a fruit paste) and cream cheese. I think I drooled. I had heard my Hawaiian friends talk about the wonders of guava and cheese, so were it not for my lactose intolerance, this ice cream sounded fantabulous! So it got me thinking about cupcakes (a little easier on the stomach...and yes, I can eat small amounts of cream cheese), and it turns out that it's not a brand new idea. There were several recipes I came across in my search that used guava juice, paste, and syrup for the cake and basic cream cheese frosting to adorn them. Not having easy access to guava paste and syrup -- which I figured would create a more robust fruit flavor than juice -- I pulled a jar of 100% guava fruit jam out of the cupboard and repurposed a Martha Stewart orange marmalade recipe. The only change I would make next time is to fill the cupcakes with some guava jam...I think it would give a little more of a guava punch to the cupcake and nicely balance the cream cheese frosting.

Guava Cupcakes

(adapted from Martha Stewart Living)

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 3/4 tsp. salt

• 1/2 c. unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2/3 c. granulated sugar
• 1/3 c. guava jam (preferably 100% fruit)
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3/4 c. milk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter, sugar, and jam until fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Add vanilla, and mix well.
3. Alternate adding flour mixture and milk in three additions, scraping down the bowl after each. Mix until just combined (be careful not to overmix).
4. In a cupcake paper-lined muffin pan, fill each muffin cup with batter and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean, about 22-24 minutes for regular-size cupcakes or 15-18 minutes for mini cupcakes. Rotate pans halfway through for regular-size cupcakes and after 10 minutes for mini.
5. Let cupcakes cool in pans on wire racks. Top with this cream cheese frosting recipe.

Makes 18 regular-size cupcakes or 36 mini cupcakes.