Throwing a Shower? Sparkling Champagne Cupcakes Will Make You A Huge Hit!

I am sure, if you are like me, you have been invited to, or thrown many showers for your girlfriends. Whether they are baby showers, wedding showers, or house warming parties, figuring out what to make can get very daunting. The ideas can easily get lost in your head with all the other things that need to be done.

I came across these amazingly looking champagne cupcakes that I thought would be a perfect addition to any celebrated event. I am literally drooling over these cupcakes, and any excuse to bake with a wine glass in my hand gets a thumbs up from me. Thanks to Sprinkle Bakes for this fantastic dessert and beautiful pictures.

Cake:

1/2 cup butter softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup champagne, or your choice of sparkling wine

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time beating well after each addition. Add vanilla and mix. Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt, set aside. in a medium sized bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup champagne and 1/2 cup sour cream (mixture will fizz and bubble a little). Add flour and champagne mixture alternately, beginning and ending with flour. Batter will be thick.

Fill cupcake papers with 1/4 cup level measures of batter. Bake for 17-22 minutes. Set aside.

Champagne Pastry Creme Filling:

1/2 cup heavy cream, divided
1/2 cup champagne
2 tbsp cornstarch
5 tbsp granulated sugar
1 whole egg
2 egg yolks
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla

In a medium bowl, whisk cornstarch in 1/4 cup of heavy cream. Combine the remaining heavy cream, sugar and 1/2 cup champagne in a saucepan; bring to a boil then remove from heat.

Beat the whole egg and egg yolks into the cornstarch/heavy cream mixture. Pour 1/3 of boiling champagne mixture into the egg mixture, whisking constantly so the eggs do not cook. Return the remaining champagne/heavy cream mixture to a boil. Pour in the hot egg mixture in a stream, whisking constantly until the mixture thickens. Remove from heat and beat in the butter and vanilla.

Cut a divot into the top of each cupcake and fill with pastry cream. Trim the cut-out cake pieces flat to make a “lid” and place on top of the filled divot.

Champagne Frosting:

1 cup plus 1 tbsp. champagne
2 sticks of butter softened
2 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

Place 1 cup of champagne in a small saucepan. Simmer over medium-high heat until reduced to 2 tablespoons. Transfer to a small bowl or condiment cup and allow to cool.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, cream softened butter and powdered sugar together. Once the frosting is thick and fluffy, pour in the reduced 2 tbsp. champagne plus 1 tbsp. champagne from the bottle and mix well.

Frost the cream-filled cupcakes and decorate with pastel dragees.

From: Sprinkle Bakes