Strawberry Champagne Cupcakes
These Strawberry Champagne Cupcakes are made with soft and moist strawberry cupcakes topped with a creamy and tangy Moscato infused strawberry cream cheese frosting.
Servings: 12 cupcakes
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- ¼ cup freeze dried strawberry powder ½ oz, 14 g
- 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour 200 g
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar 133 g
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup pureed strawberry 4 oz, 113 g
- ⅓ cup buttermilk room temperature, 74 g
- ¼ cup vegetable oil 50 g
- 1 large egg room temperature
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 8 drops red food color optional
Frosting
- 8 oz cream cheese room temperature, 227 g
- 8 oz unsalted butter room temperature, 227 g
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup powder sugar 100 g
- ¼ cup freeze dried strawberry powder ½ oz, 14 g
- 3 tablespoon Pink Moscato
Instructions
Prepare the strawberry powder
- Add 1 oz of freeze dried strawberry to a food processor and process until a powder forms. Keep a kitchen towel draped over the food processor while it’s working to prevent the strawberry powder to escape and fly everywhere.
- This should yield ½ cup. Use ¼ cup for the cupcake batter and the remaining ¼ cup for the strawberry cream cheese frosting.
Make the cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a muffin pan with cupcake liners and set aside.
- Add ¼ cup of strawberry powder to a small mixing bowl along with flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Mix with a whisk to distribute evenly. Set aside.
- In the same food processor used previously for the freeze dried strawberry, add the fresh strawberry and puree. Add strawberry puree in a medium mixing bowl along with buttermilk, vegetable oil, egg, vanilla extract, and red food color (if using). Beat together with a whisk until smooth.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredient mixture and fold until just combined.
- Use a large ice cream scoop to divide batter into the previously prepared muffin pan. One flat scoop of batter for each cupcake cavity, or about ¼ cup of batter each.
- Bake in the middle oven rack for 16 – 17 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a cupcake comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool to the touch, remove cupcakes from the pan and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.
Make the frosting
- Allow the cream cheese and butter to come to room temperature and softened before you get started. It can speed up the process to cut them into small cubes.
- In the stand mixer bowl, add softened butter and cream cheese along with the pure vanilla extract, mix with the whisk attachment at medium low speed and gradually increase speed to medium high and beat until thoroughly combined.
- Stop the mixer to add powder sugar and the remaining ¼ cup of strawberry powder, mix at low speed to incorporate the powder mixture into the cream mixture, then gradually increase speed to medium high and beat until thoroughly combined and fluffy.
- Add up to 3 tablespoons of Moscato and beat again until combined. Use more or less depending on your preference, you can taste the frosting before adding more.
- Add a piping tip of your choice to a pastry bag, fill with the frosting and add frosting to the cooled cupcakes.
Notes
- I didn't use Moscato in the cupcake batter since alcohol tend to dry out cakes. But for more champagne flavor you could try adding ¼ cup of Moscato and reduce the buttermilk to ¼ cup.
- 1 package of freeze dried strawberry I buy from Target is typically 1 oz.
- These cupcakes are best enjoyed the day they are made, but they can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Allow them to come to room temperature before serving.
- Unfrosted cupcakes can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature overnight, then add frosting in the morning, if desired. Frosted cupcakes should be refrigerated if not eaten right away.
Nutrition
Serving: 95g | Calories: 342kcal
