Guava Cheese Cupcakes with Dulce De Leche Frosting
I’ll never forget the year I accidentally won a cupcake contest. It was about 15 years ago, back when cupcakes were the dessert of the decade, and the challenge was to create a flavor for Miami’s own DJ Laz. IYKYK 😎
Knowing his Cuban roots (which are the same as mine) and his party-loving personality, I came up with a Miami-inspired flavor called Oye Morena (one of his songs). Out of 15 entries, he picked mine!
The flavor was: vanilla cupcakes filled with guava and cream cheese and topped with dulce de leche frosting and shredded coconut flakes. There are honestly the next best sweet treat after pastelitos de guayaba!
I remember seeing the post and thinking, “Wait… did I just win?” I had never won anything before in my life. That moment pretty much sealed my fate as a recipe developer, and now these cupcakes have become one of my favorite Cuban-inspired desserts to make for family celebrations.
Let me show you how to make these award-winning guava cheese cupcakes!
How To Make Guava Cheese Cupcakes
Making these cupcakes is easier than it looks! Just mix the batter, bake until golden, then fill each cupcake with guava marmalade and cream cheese before topping with creamy dulce de leche frosting and a sprinkle of shredded coconut flakes.
The result? Soft, moist vanilla cupcakes that taste like a Miami bakery classic. The full recipe is below!
👉🏼 Can’t find guava marmalade for the filling? It happens. Here’s what you can do. Swap in tangy guava jam or melt guava paste with a bit of water until smooth and spoonable!
These guava cupcakes are definitely my go-to, especially after winning that super Miami DJ Laz contest years ago (please comment down below if you’re from South Florida and miss DJ Laz on Power 96!) but…
I will say that sometimes I reach for a silky guava swirl cheesecake or scroll through my collection of guava recipes for inspiration. There’s truly no wrong way to enjoy guava!
Guava Cheese Cupcakes with Dulce De Leche Frosting
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup buttermilk, room temperature (regular milk works too)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Guava & Cheese Filling
- 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- 4 ounces guava marmalade*
Dulce De Leche Frosting
- 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup dulce de leche, store-bought
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar together then add eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla extract. Mix until well combined.
- Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix until just combined. Careful not to over mix.
- Using an ice cream scoop or cookie scoop, scoop the batter into the cupcake liners about 3/4 of the way full.
- Bake for 20 minutes, or until the toothpick comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool before filling and frosting. Set aside.
- While the cupcakes are in the oven, let's make the frosting. In a bowl or stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until combined.
- Add the dulce de leche, milk, and salt. Whip for 1-2 minutes until smooth. Fit a piping bag with an open star tip and fill it with frosting. Set aside.
- Using a sharp knife, cut a circle into the center of the cooled cupcakes to create a little pocket about 1 inch deep.
- Fill the cupcakes with the guava marmalade and a sliver of cream cheese. Gently press the circle piece back on top of the cupcake.
- Pipe the dulce de leche frosting over the cupcakes. Sprinkle with shredded coconut flakes. Enjoy!
