A perfect combination of booze and sugar, these champagne cupcakes are perfect to help ring in the New Year!
Happy (almost) New Year!
2022 is here people, and if you’re like me you might be feeling a little confused as to how we got here so fast, or you’re excited for the year to come. Either way, we’re here, and you have that party to go to… you told them you would bring something but what to bring? Enter the champagne cupcake.
I had a ton of fun (arguably a little too much) making this recipe. Along the way I discovered a few tips and tricks that will help you get the best results.
Let me tell you why you need to make these cupcakes.
- They’re delicious. Next question.
- They are a gorgeous soft pink and pair well with a New Years silver or gold color scheme.
- You will feel like a total baddie baker as you make the champagne infused buttercream.
- You get to brag to all of your friends, and maybe that cutie you have your eye on, that you made the champagne cupcakes that everyone is raving about because, they will be.
Convinced yet? Let’s talk about the showstopper in this recipe; the champagne buttercream.
When I wrote this recipe I knew the cupcakes would be good but I never knew that they would help me conquer a fear–opening a champagne bottle on my own! Who can relate to this fear?
Friends, I didn’t even know I possessed this fear until I was standing in my kitchen, 12:06am, staring at a bottle of unopened champagne, the only thing standing between me and sweet sweet sleep–making the champagne buttercream.
Well obviously I googled “how to open a champagne bottle without dying”, *shameful millennial confession* and with the motivation of google, adrenaline and a hint of exhaustion, I did it!
If I can do it injury free, so can you! Plus what’s awesome about conquering the fear of opening a champagne bottle on your own is that you feel so accomplished you’ll be in the mood to celebrate, with a glass of champagne, that you can now pour. It’s high risk, high reward.
Here are a few simple instructions on how to prepare the champagne syrup for the buttercream:
- Open the champagne. Boom, did it, you’re a rockstar.
- Pour 1 cup of the champagne into a saucepan and turn heat to medium/high to bring champagne to a boil
- Reduce the heat to a simmer and allow the champagne to reduce down to about ⅓ cup of syrup. Note I have not added sugar to this syrup because you will be adding it to your buttercream that has lots of sugar already, we’re just looking for that boozey flavor!
- Once reduced, pour syrup into a heatproof container and allow to cool completely before adding to your buttercream. If you pour the syrup in hot you risk melting the butter in the frosting.
Can baking be therapeutic?
I often talk about baking being a therapeutic hobby but I’d like to share more about why I feel that way as well as how it can become a relaxing hobby for you!
When I bake, it’s my creative time. I may put on my favorite nostalgic movie or tv show in the background, or a Spotify playlist titled “French café” and leave my troubles behind.
Sometimes I pour myself a glass of wine and light a candle. Then, with the mood set, the mixing of batter, kneading of dough and smoothing of icing is my only care in the world.
When I say baking is therapeutic, sometimes people respond saying “not for me it isn’t!” I completely understand why someone might feel that way. There have been plenty of times where I spend hours on something only for it to fail or something breaks that shouldn’t or I forget to clean as I go and am left with a disastrous kitchen to clean.
So I should in reality, have a caveat to my “baking as therapy” claims…
Baking is therapy when you curate the experience to be relaxing.
How do you curate that relaxing experience for yourself, you ask?
How to make baking therapeutic…
- Prepare your mind–know that it’s okay if the cake doesn’t rise, or the butter wasn’t chilled enough. Shift your mindset from seeing your failures as mistakes to seeing them as opportunities for learning.
- Prepare your space–I cannot and will not bake on top of a messy kitchen. If I were to do this I would be starting from a place of stress! Take an extra 10 minutes to clean any dishes in the sink and wipe down the counters, this small effort will pay you back greatly in brain space and clarity.
- Clean as you go! I’ll tell you the one way to make baking stressful and tiresome, is to not clean as you go! After I use each ingredient that I no longer need, I put it away.
After each major step in the process, I wipe down the counters and put dishes that are no longer needed in the sink. If there is chill time or baking time I don’t sit, I do the cleaning then. Make this shift and you’ll really notice the difference!
By the way, this last tip really helped me when I was on The Great American Baking Show–and the crew that cleaned up behind us made a point to tell me that my workspace was always so clean they didn’t have much to do!
I would reply by saying “it’s how I stay sane in this tent!”
Additional suggestions:
*Maybe try printing off the recipe instead of looking at it on your phone, tablet or laptop and use this time to unplug from technology for a few hours
**Invite friends or family over to share your creation with you. Time spent with loved ones over food is a universally special experience
And that’s how I discovered baking for my mental health. If you try any of these suggestions, let me know how it went for you! I’m really invested in spreading this message to others in hopes that baking will enhance your lives more than it already does!
Happy Baking and Happy New Year!
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Champagne CupcakesYield: 18 cupcakes Prep Time: 30 minutes Baking Time: 20-25 minutes Total Time: 55 minutes max |
Ingredients:
For the cupcakes
- 1 1/4 c granulated sugar
- 3/4 stick unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs (room temperature)
- 1 egg whites (room temperature)
- 1 1/2 cups cake flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup buttermilk (room temperature)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
For the frosting
- 3/4 cup (3 sticks) unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 6 cups powdered sugar (10x sifted is the best)
- 1/3 cup champagne syrup (1 cup champagne)
Instructions:
The Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 325oF (162 oC) and prepare 2 cupcake trays with 18 cupcake liners. It should fill 1 1/2 cupcake trays.
- In a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer, place 3/4 stick of unsalted butter and 1 1/4 cups of granulated sugar and beat on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy (at least 2-3 minutes)
- While the butter and sugar are mixing, in a medium bowl measure out 1 1/2 cups of cake flour, 1 tsp of baking powder and 1/8 tsp of salt. Lightly whisk this mixture together.
- Add in 2 whole eggs, 1 egg white one egg at a time to the butter sugar mixture, mixing after each egg is added and only adding a new egg after the previous one is incorporated into the batter. Add 1/4 cup of vegetable oil and 1 tsp of vanilla extract and mix on low speed until incorporated.
- Scrape down the bowl to make sure everything is mixed thoroughly. At this point, your batter should look pretty light and fluffy.
- Alternate adding the flour mixture and the buttermilk to the batter, starting and ending with the flour. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture, then put my mixer on low speed until it’s incorporated, then 1/2 of the buttermilk, mix on low, 1/3 of the flour, mix, last 1/2 of the buttermilk, mix, final 1/3 of the flour mixture until all is barely incorporated.
- Finally, take a spatula and finish mixing the batter lightly by hand to ensure it is even and smooth.
- Pour even amounts of batter into the cupcake tins and bake, at 325°F (162 ℃) for 20-25 minutes depending on your oven and environment.
- Once cupcakes are baked, take them out of the oven and let them cool for at least 20 minutes on the counter or a cooling rack.
- Let the cupcakes cool completely before decorating with champagne buttercream.
The Frosting:
- Pour 1 cup of champagne into a saucepan and simmer for 8-10 minutes until champagne has reduced down to a syrup and you are left with roughly 1/3 cup of champagne syrup. Set aside to cool completely.
- In a large bowl, beat 3/4 cups of room temperature butter on medium speed with a hand or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until smooth (about 30-45 seconds)
- Add in 6 cups of powdered sugar cup by cup while mixing on low speed. Do this carefully, it can make a mess.
Increase the speed to medium once most of powdered sugar is incorporated and add in 1 tsp vanilla extract and ½ tsp salt - Add 1/3 cup of completely cooled champagne syrup a little at a time making sure that the buttercream does not get too runny.*
- Turn speed to low to release any air bubbles that accumulated in the beating process
- Pipe champagne frosting onto completely cooled cupcakes in your desired design and enjoy!
Notes:
*Many factors can affect the consistency of the buttercream from the temperature of your butter to the temperature of your champagne syrup. If the buttercream is too runny, place it in the fridge for about 10 minutes to firm up, then remove and mix again until smooth. If it is still too runny, add more powdered sugar bit by bit to thicken it up, adjust with a pinch of salt if need be.
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