Mimosas! To me, mimosas are the ultimate in self-pampering, and a surefire sign that a lovely day is ahead of me. You can keep your manicures and facials and massages. I just want breakfast and a mimosa (or two). And some quiet, although I doubt that's possible. My love of sweets naturally leads me to want to morph one of my favorite beverages into a baked good. These Mimosa Cupcakes are orange and champagne cake topped with a champagne Italian meringue buttercream. In honor of Mother's Day coming up, I tried my hand at making some citrus-colored fondant roses and peonies to dress them up.
My first mimosa ever was on a vacation that my husband and I took to Mexico pre-kids. White sand beaches, clear water, and grass-thatched umbrellas to lie beneath. (I hate the sun and love the beach--a difficult combo, but our resort had me covered. Pun intended.) I had a mimosa with breakfast Every. Single. Day. It was paradise.
Now with a mimosa in-hand I can close my eyes and transport myself there, if only momentarily, because it's likely that I'm about to hear a not-so-small voice yell "MUMMAAAA!!!" or get hit in the face with a stuffed animal. Or both. Times have changed, but mimosas are forever.
These cupcakes are flavorful and not too sweet. Italian meringue buttercream is my new favorite, and I'm putting it on everything because it's so delicious. This champagne version is no exception. It's creamy, smooth, and decadent without being too sweet. These cupcakes would be a perfect end to your Mother's Day brunch. Or just have them for breakfast. No judgement here.
A few notes to help you on your way:
- You can choose to use all-purpose flour for this recipe if that's all you've got on-hand, but cake flour will result in a lighter, fluffier cake. If you can't find cake flour at your local grocery store, you can find it [here].
- The step to reduce the champagne for the buttercream is absolutely necessary, allowing you to add the concentrated champagne flavor to the buttercream without adding a lot of liquid. Check the recipe notes for other helpful hints on making sure your buttercream is a success!
- You can spread the buttercream with a knife or dollop it on top with a spoon if you'd like. I piped the buttercream with a 1M tip.
So go ahead and pamper yourself or someone special with these Mimosa Cupcakes. And Happy Mother's Day to Moms, those who are like Moms, and to those who wish they were Moms. To all those celebrating, those dreaming, and those grieving. Much love to all of you. <3
Other posts you may like:
Champagne and Chocolate Strawberries Cake
Mimosa Cupcakes
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- 1 ¾ cups cake flour (see note)
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature (1 stick)
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 egg whites
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ tablespoon orange zest
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- 2 tablespoon orange juice
- ½ cup champagne
Champagne Reduction
- ½ cup champagne (see note)
Instructions
For Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350F. Spray muffin pans with nonstick spray or line with paper liners. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine the dry ingredients (cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Add egg whites and vanilla, beating to combine. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Add orange zest and sour cream. Beat to combine. Scrape down the sides of the bowl (seeing a trend here?).
- Add dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the orange juice and champagne, mixing until just combined.
- Divide the batter between the muffin cups, filling each about ⅔ full. Bake 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool 10 minutes in the pan, then remove and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.
For Champagne Reduction:
- Pour champagne into a small saucepan. Over medium-high heat, reduce champagne to about 2 tablespoons in volume. Reduction will be syrupy (see note).
For Buttercream:
- Put egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer, taking care to ensure no yolk is in the bowl (see note).
- In a small saucepan, combine water and /2 cup sugar. Stir to moisten sugar, and do not stir after that (see note). Warm over low heat until sugar dissolves.
- Once sugar is dissolved, increase heat to medium-high. Cook until syrup reaches 246F-250F.
- When syrup reaches 240F, begin beating the egg whites using the whisk attachment. Once frothy, add cream of tartar and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Beat on high until stiff peaks form.The goal is for the egg whites to reach stiff peaks at the same time the syrup reaches temperature. If the egg whites are done early, let the mixer run on low speed until the syrup comes to temperature.
- Once syrup is to temperature, remove from the heat. With the mixer running on low speed, carefully pour the syrup into the egg whites in a slow, steady stream (see note).
- Beat mixture on medium-high until the bottom of the bowl is no longer warm to the touch. Then add butter, 2-3 tablespoons at a time, allowing the butter to incorporate completely after each addition.
- With mixer on low, drizzle in champagne reduction. Beat to combine.
- Top cupcakes with buttercream.Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and is only an estimate.
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