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Tropical flavors of pineapple, papaya, and passion fruit mixed in a delicate cupcake then topped off with a sweet and tangy passion fruit frosting is a delicious bite of the tropics.

I love receiving packages in the mail and so does my son. Any time I bring one in off of the porch he yells package and goes running for the scissors. Whether it’s something for him or someone else he just likes opening the box and seeing what’s inside.

So last week when we got a big box from Melissa’s Produce he went running for the scissors yelling “big package!” I cut the box open and he was so excited to see inside. He loves fruit and immediately saw a bunch of baby bananas and started asking for them.

I’m not going to lie, I was pretty excited about receiving a big box of produce as well. We took turns taking things out of the box and I told him what the unusual fruits were that he didn’t know the names of.

After we had all the produce out I started thinking of what I could make. I knew I would make banana muffins with the muffins and I thought I could use the blood oranges in a cake.

Looking at the papaya and passion fruit I starting thinking of a tropical dessert I could make. I tossed around a cake, cupcakes, or some type of muffins. Eventually these Tropical Cupcakes with Passion Fruit Frosting are what I decided on.

I grabbed a few passion fruit, a papaya, and a star fruit. I wish I had a fresh pineapple but I didn’t so I had to settle for canned pineapple in this case.

I didn’t have a recipe so I tried two different cupcakes to see which I liked better. One was the clear winner.

Ingredients:

flour
baking powder
baking soda
salt
butter
sugar
pineapple
papaya
passion fruit
powdered sugar
butter

To make the cupcakes combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. Mix the ingredients together and then set aside.

In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugar. Add in the pineapple, papaya, and passion fruit pulp and mix well until combined.

Add the flour mixture to the fruit mixture and mix until a thick batter forms. Fill the cups in a muffin tin 3/4 of the way full. Bake the cupcakes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

To make the frosting combine the powdered sugar, passion fruit pulp, and vanilla and mix until smooth. Spread onto the cooled cupcakes then top off with a slice of starfruit.

Can I use fresh pineapple?

Of course. I wish I had had fresh pineapple but all I had was canned. Use the same amount of fresh pineapple and make sure it is chopped into small pieces.

How do I know when a papaya is ripe?

A papaya is ripe when you can easily push into the flesh. You want to make sure it’s soft enough that it’s easy to mash into the cupcakes.

Why does your papaya look different than mine?

I used a strawberry papaya but you can use any type. It doesn’t really matter as while they have different flavor profiles they all have similar texture and underlying flavors.

Do I have to use a starfruit for decoration?

No you don’t. I think it’s a really way and easy way to decorate the cupcakes and it’s certainly tropical. Other fun and easy decorations would be a wedge of fresh pineapple, a cocktail umbrella, or even a cherry on top.

The cupcakes tasted so fresh and tropical. They tasted like pineapple upside down cupcakes with a tropical twist. There were chunks of the pineapple and papaya in the cupcakes.

More Tropical Fruit Recipes:

The frosting is unlike anything I’ve had before. Because it’s made with fresh passion fruit there are seeds in the frosting. I wasn’t sure how that would taste but I really like the crunch of the passion fruit seeds in the frosting.

While the frosting is sweet like traditional buttercream it has a tartness to it that really works. It makes the whole dessert not overly sweet. I can totally imagine myself sitting on a beach with a fruity cocktail enjoying one of these cupcakes. They are totally delicious!

If you’ve tried my Tropical Cupcakes or any other recipe on Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks please take a minute to rate the recipe and leave a comment letting me know how you liked it. I love hearing from you! You can FOLLOW ME on: