My daughter recently catered a birthday dinner for a very bubbly, champagne loving girl, and she knew that Champagne Cupcakes had to be on the menu! The good news is that these are great cupcakes not only for a birthday dinner, but for an Oscar party, too! Aren’t we all going to an Oscar party on Sunday?? They’re also good for many other champagne worthy events: birthday parties, engagement parties, showers, weddings, New Year’s Eve, promotions, retirement parties, bon voyage parties, welcome home parties, mortgage burning, mortgage acquisitions, the crowning of Miss America, and so on and so on… 🙂

This recipe makes a very light and not-so-sweet cupcake. The champagne flavor really comes through if you brush champagne on the cakes before adding the frosting—this was my daughter Hannah’s idea, it wasn’t in the original recipe. 

Then, Abby got into the act and made Champagne Cupcakes and Pink Champagne cupcakes for a friend’s bridal shower and sent me the photo above.

Pink Champagne Cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

For Cupcakes:

• 3 cups cake flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup butter, at room temperature
• 1½ cups granulated sugar
• ¾ cup pink champagne, plus extra (about ½ cup) for brushing onto baked cupcakes—I used Chandon Rosé
• 6 egg whites
• 4-5 drops red food coloring—optional

For Frosting:

• 1 1lb box powdered sugar
• 1 stick butter
• ¼ cup pink champagne
• 3-4 drops red food coloring (optional)
• Candy pearls (I found these in the cake decorating section of the grocery store)

DIRECTIONS

For Baking Cupcakes

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Line two muffin tins with cupcake liners, and set aside.
2. With an electric mixer, beat eggs whites with the whisk attachment until stiff peaks form, then set aside—if you have only one bowl for your electric mixer, you’ll have to remove the egg whites to another bowl.
3. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt.
4. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the 2/3 cup butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
5. Slowly mix in 1/3 of the flour mixture to the butter-sugar mixture and beat until combined. 
6. Add in ½ of the champagne, beat until combined.
7. Add another 1/3 of the flour mixture, mixing until fully incorporated, then add the remaining ½ cup of champagne, beating until combined.
8. Beat in the remaining flour mixture and the food coloring, mixing until combined.
9. Gently fold in 1/3 of the whipped egg whites into the cake batter and mix until fully incorporated. Fold in remaining egg white mixture until combined.
10. Divide the batter between the muffin tins, filling each cupcake liner 1/2-2/3 full of batter. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
11. Let cupcakes cool in pan for 5 minutes, then remove and let cool completely on wire rack.
12. Once cupcakes have cooled, poke 8-10 holes in each cupcake using a toothpick. Using a pastry brush, coat each cupcake with champagne.

For Making Frosting

1. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and champagne.
2. Slowly add the powdered sugar and food coloring, mixing well until the frosting is smooth—if it’s too stiff, add more champagne, if too runny add more powdered sugar.
3. Transfer frosting to a pastry bag fitted with a decorating tip (or a Ziploc bag with the corner cut off), and decorate cupcakes.
4. Top with candy pearls.

Makes 24 cupcakes which will keep well for a day or two.