Sparkling Cider Cupcakes

These deliciously moist and incredibly soft sparkling apple cider cupcakes are all you need to ring in the New Year!

Still unsure of what to bring or serve at this year’s New Years Eve party? Well, one look at the photos to follow should make that decision easy for you…

Similar to the classic champagne cake, these sparkling cider cupcakes are light and elegant, yet brimming with flavor. Instead of infusing these moist fluffy cakes with champagne, I decided to go the non-alcoholic route by using my favorite beverage of choice for special occasions–crisp sparkling apple cider. And with the amount of alcohol you’re bound to consume on one of the craziest nights of the year, you’re definitely going to need something to soak it up. So why not have 1, or 2, or 3, or 15 of these?

Instead of simply adding sparkling cider straight into the cupcakes, I decided to go one step further by making a sparkling cider reduction. I figured it would add more of that wonderfully crisp flavor that we all love about sparkling cider. I didn’t just want these to be a plain ol’ white cupcakes. I wanted them to be SPARKLING CIDER cupcakes. I know it’s another step to add on to making these cupcakes, but it’s SO worth it.

DO IT.

Although these cupcakes require the extra (yet totally necessary) step of reducing the cider first, they’re rather simple to make–combine the dry ingredients, combine the wet ingredients, incorporate the dry into the wet, then bake! See? Easy like summa’ time–err winter time, I guess?

Oh, and one important thing to note. Please resist the temptation to over-mix the batter. I’m sure you’ve read this a million baJillian times already, but believe me, there’s a reason why you’ve read this a million baJillian times. If you want those perfectly domed and cushiony cupcake tops, you need to be nice to your batter. Don’t be a batter bully!

To add even more sweet sparkling cider seduction to these cupcakes, I added some of the cider reduction to buttercream. I hate to sound like a broken record–or I guess broken CD for us Millenials–but try not to over-mix the buttercream. I noticed that when you whip too much air into this kind of buttercream it can form tons of air bubbles making the buttercream look a bit rough and not silky smooth. It’s probably not a huge deal, but it won’t look perfect to a person with OCD, like myself…

I used the Wilton 1M Swirl tip to create the beautiful towering swirls on top of these cupcakes. I have to tell you, this tip is AMAZING. I just bought it last week because I could not for the life of me get that perfect ice cream swirl on top of my cupcakes with the tips that I had. And believe me, I have A LOT of tips. If there’s one tip to have in your cake-decorating kit, or just to have, it’s this one. It’s a life-changer, people.

I also purchased some pretty golden sprinkles to go along with the golden nonpareils that I so painstakingly placed individually with a tweezer onto each cupcake. True story. However, if you don’t have any decorating tips or fancy shmancy cake stuff, the cupcakes will will taste just as heavenly if you sloppily slather the buttercream on top and call it a day.

Merry New Year, everyone!

Sparkling Cider Cupcakes

These deliciously moist and incredibly soft sparkling apple cider cupcakes are all you need to ring in the New Year!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 50 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 18 Cupcakes

Ingredients

  

For the Sparkling Cider Reduction

• 2 cups Sparkling Apple Cider (I used Martinelli's)

For the Cupcakes

• 1 ⅔ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¾ cup unsalted butter softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• ¾ cup Greek yogurt
• ½ cup sparkling cider reduction
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

For the Buttercream

• ½ cup salted butter softened
• ½ cup shortening*
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 6-8 Tablespoons sparkling cider reduction
• Sprinkles

Instructions

 

To make the Sparkling Cider Reduction*

• In a medium heavy saucepan over medium-high heat, bring sparkling cider to a boil. Continue boiling and stirring until reduced to 1 cup, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat; chill in the refrigerator to cool completely.*

To make the Cupcakes

• Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a 12-count muffin pan with cupcake liners.
• In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until combined; set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on medium speed until lightened and creamy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until combined, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Beat in the Greek yogurt, sparkling cider reduction, and vanilla on medium speed.
• Pour half of the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until combined. Add the remaining dry ingredients, then mix until just combined, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
• Fill cupcake liners 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with few crumbs attached. Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the Buttercream

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and shortening together until smooth and creamy. Add 2 cups of powdered sugar and beat until smooth.
• Add the sparkling cider reduction, starting with 6 Tablespoons, along with the remaining 2 cups of powdered sugar, and beat until combined. Add more of the cider reduction, if needed to get the right consistency.
• Frost or pipe buttercream onto cupcakes, as desired. Garnish with sprinkles. Cupcakes keep well covered tightly at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Notes

*Shortening can be substituted with more butter, if desired.
*Sparkling Cider Reduction makes enough for both the cupcake batter and buttercream frosting.
*Cider reduction can be placed in the freezer to speed up the process. Just be sure to keep an eye on it so that it doesn't freeze.