Aperol Spritz Cupcakes
Having spent some time in northern Italy, I think I can safely say that the Aperol Spritz is one of my favorite cocktails. That bittersweet orange flavor of the Aperol with plenty effervescent bubbles from sparkling wine, often Brute Prosecco. It is the perfect aperitif to drink during the hot summer months, maybe with a stunning view of Lake Como to seal the deal.
But I wanted to see if there was a way to transform the classic Aperol spritz into a unique dessert, and I think the best way to do that is by turning it into cupcakes!
Here is the plan, I’m going to do a Prosecco and orange cupcake brushed with a syrup made with reduced Prosecco, topped with a bright and delicious Aperol buttercream and garnished with a candied orange slice, and I think it will be a perfectly delicious cocktail inspired drink. Besides, who doesn’t love cupcakes?
Prosecco or sparkling wine cupcakes are quite fascinating, in my opinion, essentially the bubbles in the wine help the cupcakes rise and give you a very light texture while also cooking out the alcohol. It’s not something I’ve done much, but I’m confident that I can pull it off.
I say let’s just jump right into it!
Makes 12 cupcakes
(For a non-alcoholic variation, see below)
For the Orange Prosecco Cupcakes:
1 1/3 cup flour
1 3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
Zest of 1/2 an orange
2 eggs at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup Prosecco, freshly opened
For the Prosecco syrup and Candied Orange Slices:
3 large orange slices, cut into quarters
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup Prosecco
1/2 cup sugar, plus more for coating
For the Aperol Buttercream:
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
3 cups powdered sugar
3 to 4 tbsp Aperol
(Don’t want the alcohol? Not to worry. There is non alcoholic Prosecco, club soda or any sparkling water would also give you some nice bubbles and instead of the Aperol, try blood orange juice or regular orange juice plus a bit of red food coloring. The instructions would be all the same.)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F then grease and line a muffin pan with 12 cupcake liners. Set aside.
Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl, then set aside.
In an electric mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, sugar and orange zest, starting on low then moving up to medium as the butter and sugar start to become creamy.
Add the eggs, one at a time and beating well after each addition, then beat in the vanilla. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture, followed by the Prosecco and repeat until all of the flour and Prosecco are added and combined. Fill each hole of the muffin pan 3/4 full, an ice cream scoop helps with this, and bake for 16-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Let the cupcakes cool for about 5 minutes in the pan before removing and letting them cool on a wire rack.
While the cupcakes bake, place the orange slices and water into a saucepan. Bring that to a boil, boil for 2 minutes, then remove the orange slices and discard the orange water. (The initial boiling is to remove any bitterness from the orange peel) Return the orange slices to the pot along with the Prosecco and sugar, bring that to a simmer, then cook for about 10-15 minutes, or until the liquid reduces to a syrup-like texture.
Remove the orange slices, shake off the excess syrup, coat them in sugar, then leave on a wire rack to dry and cool. Also, strain off the syrup they cooked in and set that aside to cool.
(Don’t want to bother with the orange slices? That’s cool, but I do recommend making that syrup.)
For the frosting, beat the butter, vanilla and salt with an electric mixer with the paddle attachment for about 1 minute, or until the butter becomes creamy. Slowly add the powdered sugar, beating until combined, then add 3 tbsp of Aperol, 1 tbsp at a time. Taste it and add more Aperol if needed. Load the frosting into a piping bag with a large star tip.
(I would err on the side of caution when adding the Aperol as adding too much at once could cause the frosting to split)
To assemble, brush some of the syrup used to candy the oranges onto each cupcake. Pipe some of the frosting onto each cupcake to create a rosette pattern (Or just spoon it on, doesn’t matter to me), and garnish with a candied orange slice.
