Strawberry and Basil Champagne Cupcakes

For Mother’s Day we decided to bake Grandma up some Strawberry and Basil Champagne Cupcakes! A little messy, but seriously delicious! I’ve always loved the subtle combination of Strawberry & Basil. It’s a cocktail pairing favorite of mine. So putting it in a cupcake was a no brainer. The champagne’s alcohol content will cook right out, just leaving the flavor. It also makes them extra fluffy & moist, so what’s not to love!

Making The Cupcakes

Because we’re going to be filling the cupcake with a Strawberry Puree and topping it with the Strawberry Basil Glaze, I’m just making a basic Vanilla Cupcake as the base (with Champagne, of course ;))

First, preheat the oven to 350° Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, & salt in a bowl. Next, in a separate bowl add your butter, sugar, & vanilla! Add in the egg whites, milk, & yogurt.

It’s time to combine both bowls together. Carefully, mix the wet and dry ingredients. Add the Champagne. Once thoroughly mixed, divide them into the cupcake liners. Bake for ten minutes, rotate pan and bake an additional 10 minutes or until middle is thoroughly cooked. You can check with a toothpick to see if it comes out clean. Once they’re done cool completely before filling and glazing! This is also the perfect time to make the filling & glaze!

Making The Puree

The Strawberry Vanilla Puree is simple. Combine the following ingredients in a blender or food processor:

1 lb strawberries
1/2 cup Sugar (I used Sugar 2.0)
1 Tsp vanilla extract
1 Tsp lemon juice
1 Tsp cinnamon

In order to fill them we will need to cut out some of the center. They do make cupcake corers for this exact thing. I don’t have one yet though, so I just used a knife to carefully cut out the middle in the size of a dime. Just make sure NOT to cut all the way to the bottom. Take the center piece out and fill with your Puree until its right under the top. No overflowing!

Strawberry Basil Glaze

Finally, it’s time to glaze ! In the food processor combine:

1/4 Cup Almond Milk

3 Tbsp Strawberry Vanilla Puree
1/2 Cup Sugar
1/2 Tsp Vanilla Extract

2 Tbsp fresh basil

Carefully, spoon the glaze on top of the cupcakes. Next I spooned a few dots of the puree right on top of the glaze and than took a toothpick to create a design on top! These cupcakes will keep in the freezer (or fridge for up to 3 says) BUT, they are of course much better eaten right after being glazed!!