Drop of Disney

Happy New Year! 2018 was full of a lot of changes for me, but also a lot of exciting things, like travel and time with family, and friends. A big highlight of my year was the opportunity to spend time with my family in Disney World. My favorite part of going to Disney World is seeing the fireworks in the Magic Kingdom. I love how the music, the projections on the castle, and the fireworks come together to create a beautiful, sparkling, magical experience.

When I thought of the dessert I wanted to celebrate New Year’s with, I immediately thought about those fireworks as celebrating the new year is also sparkling, magical, and filled with new hopes and dreams. And so, I’m excited to share these fireworks inspired cupcakes! Of course, since it is New Year’s, there’s a little bit of champagne in them too.

These cupcakes are made with a champagne cake, topped with a champagne buttercream frosting, and decorated with a sparkly candy firework. Since champagne is a bit expensive, especially just to bake with, sparkling wine works just as well. Most of the alcohol does come out in the baking, but these cupcakes are probably best enjoyed by adults.

The cupcakes themselves are pretty straightforward, but there is an additional step for making the frosting. For the frosting, I made a champagne reduction and then used that to add the champagne flavor. To make the reduction, simply bring the champagne to a boil and then let it simmer for 8-10 minutes until it has reduced to about 1/4 of a cup. Save 2-3 tablespoons (to taste) for the frosting. While the cupcakes are still warm, brush each cupcake 1-2 times with the leftover reduction to get a deeper champagne flavor and keep the cupcakes moist.

To make the fireworks decorations, I used white candy melts. Once melted, I put the candy melts in a piping bag and piped a firework design onto wax paper. The design doesn’t have to be perfect, but do remember to add a longer stem to the bottom of the design that will stick into the cupcake. Once the design is piped and the candy melt is still wet, sprinkle some sanding sugar onto it to make it appear sparkly. For my fireworks, I used silver and gold sugar, but you could use any color that you like.

Once the candy fireworks are dry, simply press the stem into the frosting on the cupcakes. If you keep the cupcakes in the fridge, like I did, the frosting will be a bit hard. To avoid breaking the candy fireworks, I recommend using a use a small knife or spoon handle to make a small hole in the frosting for the candy to go into.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and a great start to 2019!

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Champagne Fireworks Cupcakes

Celebrate the new year with these sparkling champagne cupcakes inspired by Disney’s bright and magical fireworks!

Course Dessert

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Servings 12 cupcakes

Ingredients

Cupcakes

• 1 ¼ cups flour
• 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1 egg + 1 egg white, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup champagne or sparkling wine

Frosting

• 1 cup champagne or sparkling wine
• ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• piping bag
• star tip

Candy Fireworks

• ½ bag white candy melts
• sanding sugar
• piping bag

Instructions

Cupcakes

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners.
2. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, beat sugar and butter together on medium speed until light and fluffy.
4. Reduce to low speed and add the egg and egg white to the butter mixture one at a time. Beat well after each, and add in vanilla.
5. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in three additions, alternating with the champagne in two additions. Beat until just combined, being careful not to over beat.
6. Divide the batter evenly into the prepared muffin pan, filling each about ¾ of the way full.
7. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
8. While the cupcakes bake, start the champagne reduction for the frosting. In a small saucepan, bring the 1-cup of champagne to a boil over medium-high heat. Once it’s reached a boil, reduce the heat to medium and allow to simmer until reduced to about ¼ cup (8-10 minutes). Once reduced, reserve 2-3 tablespoons for the frosting and use the rest to brush the tops of the warm cupcakes.
9. Let cupcakes cool completely on a wire rack.

Frosting

1. In a large bowl, beat butter, sugar, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons of the champagne reduction together until smooth.
2. Taste and add additional champagne reduction if needed.
3. Transfer frosting to a piping bag with a star tip and frost cupcakes.
4. Once frosted, cupcakes can be placed in the fridge to help the icing set.

Candy Fireworks

1. Place a piece of wax paper onto the counter or onto a baking sheet.
2. Place candy melts in a microwave safe bowl. Melt in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds.
3. Transfer to piping bag and cut a small amount of the tip off. Pipe fireworks design onto the wax paper. Make sure to add a stem to the bottom of the design that will stick into the cupcake.
4. While the candy melts are still wet, sprinkle sanding sugar on top of them.
5. Once the candy has set, shake off the excess sanding sugar and stick into the frosted cupcakes. If your cupcakes have been in the fridge, use a small spoon handle or a knife to press a small hole into the frosting for the candy firework to go into.

Recipe Notes

cupcakes adapted from little sweet baker