Champagne Engagement Cake

Champagne Engagement Cake

cake:

• • 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

  • 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

  • 2 1/4 cups granulated sugar

  • 4 eggs

  • 2 teaspoons vanilla

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour

  • 1 teaspoon coarse Kosher salt

  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

  • 1/8 teaspoon baking soda

  • 2/3 cup champagne (I used a dry champagne, Korbel brand, so it wouldn't make the cake overly sweet)

  • 1/2 cup milk

buttercream:

• • 1 cup champagne

  • 2 1/2 (5 sticks) cups unsalted butter, room temperature

  • 5 cups powdered sugar

  • 2 tablespoons meringue powder

  • 2-3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Bake the Cake:

Preheat the oven to 350. Spray the bottoms of your cake pans with non-stick spray.

Note: For my tiered cake, I baked the batter in three 8-inch round pans and two 6-inch round pans, but you could also make just one tier, with thicker cake layers, divided between three to four 8 or 9-inch round pans. Just watch the doneness of the cake, as it will differ based on the size of the pans and how much batter they contain.

In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, butter, and sugar for 4-5 minutes until light and fluffy, scraping the bowl occasionally. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Beat in the vanilla.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl in three additions, alternating with the milk, then the champagne, starting and ending with the flour. Mix just until combined.

Divide batter between the pans. Bake just until a toothpick comes out clean, 15-20 minutes for the 6-inch pans and 20-25 minutes for the 8-inch pans. Set cakes on wire racks, cover loosely with a clean kitchen towel, and cool completely.

Make the Buttercream:

First, make the champagne reduction so it can cool. Pour the champagne into a small saucepan and simmer over medium low heat until reduced to 1/2 cup. Cool completely in the refrigerator.

In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the butter until smooth, about 1 minute. In a separate bowl, combine the powdered sugar and meringue powder. With the mixer on low, add the powdered sugar by spoonfuls, until mostly incorporated. Add the champagne reduction, a spoonful at a time (you may not need all of it), then the cream; increase speed to medium high and whip for 5 minutes until very light and fluffy.

Frost the cake and enjoy with a glass of champagne.

If you'd like to see how I made the simple fondant roses, I'll post a tutorial on that within the next month...

Recipe from Curly Girl Kitchen