Spongy and Moist Puerto Rican Guava Delight Cakes

What are Guava Delight Cakes?

The guava delight cakes are gooey guava paste layered between the batter. I have to confess a little secret. I did not care for guava paste as much as a child. But when I tasted it baked into a pastry or a cake, I loved it. This preference still stands today.

Another little secret is, I wouldn't say I like the original guava delight cakes. The cake part is not as cakey and fluffy but somewhat drier. So, brace yourselves; this is NOT "traditional guava cakes."

Are Puerto Rican Guava Delight the same as Cuban Guava Delights?

Yes, Puerto Rican Guava delights are the same as Cuban Guava Delights. We culturally share a lot of similarities. So much so that we call ourselves sister islands. Also, remember that Puerto Rico and Cuba share the same colonial upbringing as most Latin America. I have not explored other countries' guava delights or a variation thereof, but I am almost certain other countries would have a similar cake.

What are the key ingredients for Guava Delight Cake?

Guayaba. Guayaba is the Spanish word for guava. Guava fruit comes in different sizes, sweetness, and colors. I know I say, "growing up . . ." through my posts, but the truth is between my home, my grandmother's house, and my grand-aunt's house, someone was constantly growing something. Of course, it is usual for any household to produce various fruits and vegetables in their backyard and share/exchange goods with neighbors, but I digress.

Growing up, we had both pink guavas and white guavas. My grandmother would make candies, jams/preserves, and pastes from the pink guavas. Some guavas are as large as baseballs, others as small as golf balls. Some guavas are sour, and some taste as if they had been injected with honey.

Ingredients

• Coking Spray for baking or butter to butter the pan
• Two sticks of butter
• Three cups of flour
• One tablespoon baking powder
• Half teaspoon of salt
• One and a quarter cup of sugar
• Four large eggs,
• One tablespoon vanilla extract
• one and a quarter cup of milk
• one pound of guava paste, divided into 16 slices

Let's make some cakes!

1. Let the butter, eggs and milk come to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. butter two 9-inch-round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper, butter the parchment and dust the pans with flour, tapping out the excess.
2. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. In a large bowl, beat the butter and the sugar in a large bowl with a mixer until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the bowl
4. Next add the vanilla
5. Add the flour mixture and the milk alternating between the two. Divide the flour into three and the milk in half.
6. Pour half of the batter into the baking dish.
7. Take the guava paste slices and place them over the batter. The paste will not melt and spread, so keep this in mind while placing them over the batter. An alternative for the paste could be a guava preserve or jam.
8. Cover the guava with the other half of the cake batter.
9. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick or a fork comes out clean. Let the cake cool. Unmold and cut into bars, about 12 to 16 pieces depending on your liking.

📖 Recipe