• 🍫 Chocolate tree has large dark green leaves that shade the fruit pods which grow directly from the trunk and branches.
• 🍫 The flesh of the fruit is eaten as a dessert, and the seeds are the raw material of chocolate. Hot chocolate can be made by drying the seeds, roasting, grinding, and adding milk.
• 🍫 This exotic rare tree makes a gem of a houseplant collection.

• 🌸 Frilly and Fabulous - Guava flowers may be small, but they're packed with fluffy white stamens that give them a soft, powder-puff look.
• 🌸 Pollinator Magnet - Bees and butterflies love guava blooms, making them a great addition to a pollinator-friendly garden.
• 🌸 Scent-sational - The flowers have a light, pleasant fragrance that adds a touch of sweetness before the fruit even arrives.
• 🌸 Bloom to Fruit - Each flower can turn into a delicious guava fruit, making them both beautiful and productive.
• 🌸 Part of the Showy Family - Guava (Psidium) belongs to the Myrtaceae family, which also includes eye-catching bloomers like Eucalyptus, Bottlebrush (Callistemon), and the stunning Rose Apple (Syzygium).

• 
  🔴Cook Grumichama cherries with sugar and lime juice.
• 🔴A deep red jam with a cherry-meets-blackberry flavor.

Grumichama Jam: Quick-n-Fun Exotic Recipes

Ingredients

• 2 cups fresh Grumichama cherries (Eugenia brasiliensis)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tbsp lime juice

Instructions

1. Remove seeds from Grumichama cherries.
2. Place fruit in a saucepan with sugar and lime juice.
3. Simmer over low heat until thick and glossy, stirring often.
4. Pour into sterilized jars and let cool before sealing.

• ▫️The best tasting and most beautiful tropical cherry
• ▫️Why grow Grumichama? Benefits of Brazilian Eugenia Tree - Cherry of the Tropics

• 
  🍹 Banana Daiquiri Recipe Ingredients:

• · 1 ripe banana
• · 2 ounces light rum
• · 1 tablespoon sugar
• · 1 ounce lime juice
• · 1/2 ounce triple sec (optional for added depth)
• · Ice cubes
• · Slice of lime or banana for garnish

• 🍹Instructions:

• · Prepare the Banana: Peel the banana and cut it into chunks.
• · Blend the Ingredients: In a blender, combine the banana chunks, light rum, sugar, lime juice, and triple sec.
• · Add a handful of ice cubes. Blend on high until the mixture is smooth.
• · If the mixture is too thick, you can add a small amount of water or more lime juice to adjust the consistency.

• 
  · Pour the mixture into a chilled glass. Garnish with a slice of lime on the rim of the glass or a small wheel of banana. Serve immediately and enjoy the refreshing tropical flavors!
• · This Banana Daiquiri is not only refreshing but also offers a creamy texture and a perfect balance of sweetness and citrus. It's a fantastic choice for hot days or when you're in the mood for something a bit exotic. Cheers!

• 💋Top Ornamental Banana Varieties - Which One Belongs in Your Garden?
• 💋Best Edible Bananas to Grow - Sweet, Unique, and Delicious!
• 💋How Many Banana Varieties Can You Grow? (More Than You Think!)
• 💋Top 10 fruit you'll ever need for your health benefits: #5 Banana growing and fun facts
• 💋How to make tasty Carambola Banana Whip
• 💋Why Bananas? They are good for you and are fun to grow
• 💋Bananas help you feel fuller and enhance your mood

• 💛 At Top Tropicals, we have a few dozen varieties of Bananas (Musa sp.) - ranging from popular commercial and plantain types to spectacular ornamental bananas with colorful, tropical foliage.
• 💛 Banana plants are a favorite in Southern gardens, indoor plant collections, and greenhouses in cooler climates. Fast and easy to grow, they transform any space into a tropical paradise in just one season and can produce fruit for you in as little as 8–18 months after planting.
• 💛 Bananas are a powerhouse of nutrition, packed with potassium for heart health, fiber for digestion, and vitamins B6 and C for immunity. They’re a natural energy booster, great for snacks, smoothies, and even baking. Plus, their tryptophan content can improve your mood, and their low sodium helps regulate blood pressure.
• 💛 With so many delicious and unique varieties, growing different types of bananas lets you enjoy a range of flavors, textures, and uses - whether fresh, blended, or cooked - making them a must-have in any tropical or indoor garden!

• 💋Top 10 fruit you'll ever need for your health benefits: #5 Banana growing and fun facts
• 💋How to make tasty Carambola Banana Whip
• 💋Why Bananas? They are good for you and are fun to grow
• 💋Bananas help you feel fuller and enhance your mood

• 🟢Delicious Sweetleaf tea can be made with Mexican Aztec sweet herb (Lippia dulcis).
• 🟢Steep Aztec sweet herb leaves in hot water with lime peel.
• 🟢Naturally sweet, no sugar needed!




Sweetleaf tea: quick-n-fun

Ingredients

• Fresh or dried Aztec sweet herb (Lippia dulcis) leaves
• Hot water
• Lime peel or a slice of lime

Instructions

1. Bring water to a boil and pour over Lippia dulcis leaves.
2. Add lime peel or a slice of lime.
3. Let steep for 5–10 minutes.
4. Enjoy this naturally sweet tea—no sugar needed!

A homemade tropical wine with rich berry flavor and a hint of earthiness. This traditional Brazilian recipe turns fresh Jaboticaba fruit into a deep purple wine with a unique aroma and flavor somewhere between grape and plum. Easy to make, fun to share!

🍴 Jaboticaba wine: quick-n-fun exotic recipe

Ingredients

• 4 lb fresh ripe Jaboticaba fruits (Myrciaria cauliflora)
• 2 to 3 cups granulated sugar per gallon of pulp
• 1 gallon non-chlorinated water
• 1 tsp wine yeast (optional)
• 1 cinnamon stick or a few cloves (optional)
• Clean glass fermenting jar or food-grade bucket with loose cover

Instructions

1. Wash and lightly crush Jaboticaba fruits. Do not remove skins; they add flavor and color.
2. Mix crushed fruit with sugar and enough water to make about one gallon of pulp. Stir until sugar dissolves.
3. Cover loosely and leave in a warm place (70-80F). Stir once or twice daily. Fermentation begins within 1-2 days.
4. Let ferment 5-10 days, stirring daily. When bubbling slows, strain through cheesecloth into a clean jug.
5. Seal loosely with an airlock or vented cap. Rest 2-4 weeks in a cool, dark spot (60-70F).
6. Carefully pour clear wine into bottles, leaving sediment behind. Cork and let age a few more weeks.
7. Chill before serving. Enjoy responsibly!

Tips

• Reduce sugar to 1.5 cups per gallon for a drier wine.
• Add more sugar after first fermentation for a sweeter dessert wine.
• Add a spoon of honey for a floral note.
• Save the skins to make Jaboticaba syrup or jam.

• ▫️What does Blue Jaboticaba taste like?
• ▫️How Blue Jaboticaba is different from regular Jaboticaba?
• ▫️What is Jaboticaba? I like the sound of this word!

• 
  🟢Halve an avocado, scoop out a little extra.
• 🟢Fill with sauteed shrimp tossed in garlic-lime butter.
• 🟢Enjoy instant tropical feast!

Avocado shrimp boats: Quick-n-Fun exotic recipes

Ingredients

• 2 ripe avocados
• 1 cup shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Fresh parsley, chopped (for garnish)

Instructions

1. Halve the avocados and scoop out a little extra to make room.
2. Sauté shrimp in butter with garlic and lime juice until pink and cooked through.
3. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Fill avocado halves with shrimp mixture.
5. Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.