This is the best recipe for Pink Champagne Cupcakes with bubbly sweet champagne flavor, perfect for special occasions.
Dress them up a little and create the perfect display for all your showers and events! They aren’t just cute… they are so delicious.
Years ago when we first moved to Kansas City, through Dean and Deluca, I discovered a great local bakery, Three Women and an Oven. They offered the most beautiful (and best tasting) pink champagne cupcakes.
At the time, I had never even heard of a champagne cupcake, but they were so subtly sweet it became my favorite treat!
There are a few things that set these cupcakes apart. First, their size… which makes the perfect cake-to-icing ratio. Second, they are glazed and then iced! The glaze that covers and hardens on them takes them to the next level. The fluffy buttercream tops it off.
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
Celebratory – These bite sized pink champagne cupcakes are the perfect baby shower dessert, and great for birthday parties and New Year’s Eve as well!
Elegant Upgrade – Champagne adds a distinctive essence to these beautiful treats.
Shortcut – Make these by upgrading your favorite cake mix! Yes! It’s the easiest little trick and I just know you’re going to love them.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- Cake Mix – one box of white or vanilla cake mix.
- Pink Champagne – see below for recommendations
- Vegetable Oil
- Eggs
- Food Coloring – Optional
Glaze
- Powdered sugar – the only kind of sugar you’ll ever need for frostings and glazes. Learn how to make powdered sugar here if you’re ever in a pinch.
- Milk – I like to use whole for frostings, but anything you have on hand will work.
- Pink champagne {rosé} – see below for suggestions on style!
Pink Champagne Frosting
- Butter – softened, I like to use salted butter to balance the sweet but unsalted is fine too.
- Powdered sugar – also called confectioner’s sugar.
- Pink champagne {rosé} – anything you want, just make sure you like it so you can drink the rest of the bottle!
- Vanilla {clear if you have it} – it’s so easy to make your own homemade vanilla!
- Red food coloring – turns your icing into the perfect shade of pink to compliment your cupcakes.
Tools to Use
- Mixer (You can also mix by hand)
- Mini Bundt Pan (as pictured in this recipe)
- Or, a Mini Muffin Pan
- Baking Spray
Test Kitchen Tips
- This recipe is written for miniature cupcakes. If you’re doing a traditional sized cupcake, you’ll need to bake longer – aim for 17 minutes.
- Baking Dishes – While we showcase these little cupcakes in a mini bundt pan, you can bake in traditional paper cupcake liners if you’d like.
- Need a substitution for an ingredient? Learn more about baking substitutions here!
Best Champagne to Use in Baking
- Your favorite rosé! But truly, any bubbles will do. No need to splurge.
- Brut Nature
- Extra Brut
- Brut
- Demi-Sec – medium dry
- Doux – sweet
Sparkling Wine Options
- Prosecco (try these Prosecco Mimosas one day, too!)
- Moscato
- If you like how it tastes, you’ll love it in these pink champagne cupcakes and frosting!
Pink Champagne Cupcakes
Ingredients
Cupcakes
- 1 box white cake mix
- 1¼ cup pink champagne {rosé}
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- 3 egg whites
- 3-5 drops red food coloring
Glaze
- 3 cup powdered sugar
- ¼ cup milk
- 2 tablespoons pink champagne {rosé}
Icing
- ½ cup butter softened
- 4 cup powdered sugar
- ¼ cup pink champagne {rosé}
- 1 teaspoon vanilla {clear if you have it}
- 2-3 drops red food coloring
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350℉.
- Combine cake mix and champagne.1 box white cake mix, 1¼ cup pink champagne
- Add vegetable oil, egg whites and red food coloring until combined. Don't over-mix.⅓ cup vegetable oil, 3 egg whites, 3-5 drops red food coloring
- Pour batter directly into bundt or muffin tins just over half full.
- Bake 10 minutes. Remove, allow to cool and trim any excess off with a cake knife. Flip onto a wired rack stacked over an easily cleanable surface.
- Combine glaze ingredients and microwave until pourable. Pour in a circular motion to cover most of your cupcakes – it's easiest to do this while they are on a wire rack, to allow the glaze to run off. Allow to solidify a few minutes.3 cup powdered sugar, ¼ cup milk, 2 tablespoons pink champagne
- Combine icing ingredients. Put into an icing bag with your favorite tip or cut the corner of a ziplock bag to insert your tip. Pipe onto your cupcakes.½ cup butter, 4 cup powdered sugar, ¼ cup pink champagne, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 2-3 drops red food coloring
- Refrigerate before serving.
Julie’s Tips
- This recipe is written for miniature cupcakes, as pictured. If you’re doing a traditional sized cupcake, you’ll need to bake longer – aim for 17 minutes.
- I like to make these pretty cupcakes in a miniature bundt pan. It elevates them for special occasions and it eliminates the need for cupcake liners. You can however bake in muffin or cupcake tins.
- Store up to 3 days in an airtight container at room temperature or up to a week refrigerated.
- Substitute with sparkling white wine if you prefer.
Champagne Suggestions
- Use your favorite rosé! Any bubbles will do… No need to splurge.
Brut Nature
Extra Brut
Brut
Demi-Sec – medium dry
Doux – sweet
You can substitute sparkling wine if you prefer.
Prosecco
Moscato
Storage Notes
Store up to three days in an airtight container at room temperature or up to a week refrigerated. You can also freeze these cupcakes! Simply store in an airtight container and defrost overnight before serving.Estimated nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and is not guaranteed.
Iโm substituting champagne with the loriann sparkling wine. How much do I use when making the cake? Does the sparkling wine give a good taste also? Which do you prefer rating best taste?
I haven’t tested sparkling wine. Let me know if you do!
This recipe is the “bomb”! The cupcakes go to the next level. I made this recipe four times before I got the “pink” in my cupcakes. I did add extra red food coloring, and used a cookies sheet with parchment paper on the bottom. Not to mention the only thing that made them cook all the way through were Wilton baking strips so the outside would not burn, but the inside cooked well. But, my final cupcake was amazing. The only other thing I did was to invert the cupcake into a bowl to glaze it. Insuring the whole cupcake was glazed. Thanks for the recipe. I LOVED IT!
I’ve made these twice! They are just delicious, but I keep getting a soft brown or tan cupcake. NOT PINK! How did you get them to stay pink? I’ve even turned my oven down to 325 degrees and they’re better, but still have a light brown color instead of pink. My other question is the glaze. I’ve made the glaze twice, but it seems that it is a milky color and does not come out as perfect as yours which is a clear glaze. HELP! I need them for a bridal shower and want them perfect just like yours. They really wowed me and are such a show stopper.
I used this recipe but made a double layer cake instead of cupcakes. I didn’t use the glazed just the icing. I also substituted Sparkling Cider for Champagne because the cake was for my sister’s office. It tasted wonderful, very light texture, and the icing was so fluffy.
Hi Allie! That is NEVER a bad idea! So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing. Happy New Year!
I made the without the pink champagne ๐ BUT used sparkling red grape juice. The tasted really good and all the little kids got Bundt cakes and sparkling juice to drink. It was fun and yummy. Thanks for your recipe!
That works, too! Glad you enjoyed them!