Pink Champagne Cupcakes

Remember the whole wheat imposter flour of 2010? The deal breaker was the champagne cupcakes I attempted to make. I slaved over them for a coworkers birthday and wound up with muffin-like dense "cupcakes" that went directly into the garbage. This Sunday was not only Mother's Day, but also a girl at work's last day. I was ready to give it another shot and boy am I glad I did.

The good news? They only use about 3/4 of a bottle of champagne which leaves plenty of champagne for the baker to enjoy

Pink Champagne Cupcakes with Pink Champagne Frosting
2/3 cup butter, at room temp
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup champagne *You can use pink champagne if so inclined. I chose not to because it's flippin' expensive. Instead I toss in some pink food coloring. For these I used wilton's rose petal*
6 large egg whites, at room temperature *stay tuned for more information on egg whites*

Preheat oven to 350 F. Insert liners into a medium cupcake pan.
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes
In a separate bowl, sift together all dry ingredients.
Blend all the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture, alternating with champagne
*This batter is extremely thick, but don't worry*
In a large clean bowl, beat the egg whites on high speed until stiff peaks form. Fold one-third of the whites into the batter until blended, then add the rest and fold until well-blended *I just used the stir function on my mixer because my arm almost fell off attempting to fold it with a spatula.*
Fill the cupcake liners three-quarters of the way full. Bake 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean

Brush cooled cupcakes with champagne

Champagne Frosting

3/4 cup vegetable shortening
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temp
3 tablespoons champagne
4 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

In a large bowl beat the shortening and butter until creamy.
Add the champagne. Slowly add confectioners' sugar and beat until smooth. If necessary, add additional champagne to achieve desired spreading consistency.

*WARNING!!!* These cupcakes are meant to be eaten fresh. They do not taste the same the day after, which most likely has to do with the champagne.  Consider yourself warned.

Tutorial on making those pretty roses to come....

This post is linked up to the linky parties I participate in. Be sure to check them out for some great ideas!