Hummingbird Cupcakes

If you're looking for another perfect Mother's Day treat, might I suggest these hummingbird cupcakes? The cupcake batter is chock-full of flavorful ingredients like pineapple, bananas, coconut, and walnuts, and the finished cupcakes are topped with a cream cheese frosting and a stunning dried pineapple flower.

Jen from Beantown Baker and I made these together on our last baking date along with the Peeps and hot cross buns we've already shared with you.

Hummingbird Cupcakes (adapted from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes)

Ingredients

3 cups flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
2 cups mashed ripe banana
2 cans (8 oz. each) crushed pineapple, drained
1 cup walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped
1 cup unsweetened coconut
Cream cheese frosting (recipe below)
Pineapple flowers (recipe below)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350. Line muffin tins with cupcake liners.

Whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.

Beat butter, vanilla, and sugar until combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until incorporated. Scrape sides of bowl as needed. Continue to beat until mixture is pale and fluffy.

In another bowl, stir together the banana, pineapple, walnuts, and coconut. Add to egg mixture and beat until combined. Stir in flour mixture.

Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full, and bake for 25 to 28 minutes. Cool completely before frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

2/3 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
2 2/3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Preparation

Beat butter and cream cheese until fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes on medium-high.

Reduce to low and add sugar, 1/2 cup at a time. Add vanilla and mix until smooth, scraping sides of bowl as needed.

Pineapple Flowers

Ingredients

2 large or 4 small pineapples, peeled

Preparation

Preheat oven to 225. Line two baking sheets with Silpats or parchment paper.

Using a small melon baller (or a spoon), remove and discard pineapple "eyes."

Use a sharp knife to cut pineapple into very thin slices (the thinner they are the better they dry out). Place slices on baking sheets.

Bake until tops look dried, about 30 minutes. Flip slices and bake until completely dried, 25 to 30 more minutes (or longer as needed).

Pinch center of each pineapple slice and shape into a cone. Let cool in a clean muffin tin to form a flower shape. Once cool, flowers can be stored stacked for up to 3 days at room temp in an air-tight container.

The cupcakes look best the day they are made. If you plan to make them ahead of time, I would suggest not topping them with the pineapple flowers until you are ready to serve them.

Are you doing anything for Mother's Day?