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5 from 2 votes

Champagne Cupcakes

A champagne cupcake topped with a champagne buttercream!
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time40 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 12 cupcakes

Ingredients

For the cupcakes

  • 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 6 Tbs. (3/4 stick)unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 1 whole egg plus 1 egg white at room temperature
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup champagne

For the frosting

  • 2 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
  • 2 1/2 sticcks unsalted butter (1 1/4 cups) softened to room temperature
  • 4 Tablespoons champagne
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

  • Preheat an oven to 350°F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with paper or foil liners.
  • In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat together the sugar and butter on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and add the egg and egg white one at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the champagne in 2 additions, beating until just combined; scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat just until no traces of flour remain, about 30 seconds; do not overbeat.
  • Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups, filling each about three-fourths full. Bake until the cupcakes are lightly golden on top and a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes. Then transfer the cupcakes to the rack and let cool completely, about 1 hour.
  • To make the cupcakes, combine the confectioners sugar and butter in your stand mixer and paddle attachment. Mix on medium-high until smooth and creamy. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides with a spatula. Add in the champagne and vanilla extract. Mix on medium-high speed for 8 minutes until light and fluffy. Once the cupcakes are cool, use a pastry bag and large pastry tip frost the cupcakes with the buttercream. (The frosted cupcakes can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days; bring to room temperature before finishing.) Garnish the cupcakes with nonpareils and colored sugars and serve. Makes 12 cupcakes.

Notes

  • Ingredients need to be at room temperature.  The key thing to these cupcakes is to make sure your butter and eggs are at room temperature. If you are like me, however, you don't remember to take your butter and eggs out ahead of time. One quick way to do this for your butter is just to cube your butter and let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes or so. But if your kitchen is cold like mine, then try one of these ways instead to bring your butter to room temperature quickly. To get your eggs to room temperature, simply putting them in a bowl of warm water for 10 minutes.
  • Measure your flour correctly. Too much flour can result in a dense cupcake as opposed to a nice light fluffy one. Measuring your flour wrong is one of the most common baking mistakes. You want to use what’s called the “spoon and level” method. You want to use a spoon and scoop the flour into your measuring cup. Don’t just scoop the flour directly into your measuring cup. This can result in a major overmeasurement! After you have spooned the flour in, then use a knife to level off the flour. Don’t tap the sides of the measuring cup, or pack your flour down. Both can also result in too much flour.
  • Make sure your baking powder is fresh. To test baking powder, place 3 Tablespoons of warm water in a dish. Add a 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder to the bowl. If the mixture fizzes moderately, then it's fresh. If it doesn't, throw it out!
  • Don't overmix. Any baked item made with flour runs the risk of becoming over-mixed and tough. For this cupcake recipe, once you have added all the flour in, you mix on medium high for 30 seconds. No more. If you mix any longer, you can go from having a light fluffy cupcake to a tough dense one.