Champagne Cake Balls
Looking for the perfect dessert to bring to a New Year’s Eve party or other celebration? Give these champagne cake balls a try! A champagne reduction is added to buttercream frosting that is then mixed with citrus scented vanilla cake, rolled into balls, and coated in white chocolate. Add some metallic sanding sugar or sprinkles to dress them up for the occasion!
Make the Cake
The base of these cake balls is a vanilla cake with a little bit of orange or lemon zest added to compliment the flavor notes in the sparkling wine. Follow these steps to prepare the cake:
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 inch cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. Since this cake will be crumbled, you can omit the parchment paper if you prefer, but some of the cake may stick to the pan leading to harder cleanup.
Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
Cream together butter and sugar in a large bowl using a stand mixer or handheld mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add egg, milk, vanilla, and orange or lemon zest and mix on medium speed until fully combined.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low speed until just combined.
Pour the batter into your prepared cake and smooth it out so it is an even thickness. Bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Place on a wire rack an allow the cake to fully cool in the pan.
Make the Champagne Reduction
In order to get the flavor of champagne without adding excess liquid, this recipe calls for a champagne reduction. Simply simmer champagne (or other sparkling wine) in a small saucepan over medium heat until the liquid has reduced to about 1/3 of its original volume. It will also appear darker in color as the water evaporates. See the photos below for reference.
Allow the reduced champagne to cool completely before using it for the frosting!
Make the Champagne Frosting
Once the champagne reduction has cooled, you can make your champagne frosting.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or a large bowl and handheld mixer), beat the butter on medium speed until smooth. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and salt. Mix on low speed until combined. Add 2 tablespoons of the reduced champagne and increase the speed to medium-high and mix until the frosting is light and fluffy. Taste and add more reduced champagne as desired, mixing completely between each addition.
You may see some separating or breaking of the frosting when you add the champagne. A little separation is ok since the frosting will be mixed with the cake and you won’t notice the texture.
Mix it All Up!
Once the cake is cool, remove it from the pan and crumble it into the bowl of frosting. If you want a very uniform texture in your cake balls, discard the firmer outside pieces of the cake.
Using a stand mixer or handheld mixer, mix the cake and frosting together on medium speed until the cake is fully mixed into the frosting and the texture is mostly uniform.
Form the Cake Balls
Spoon out 1 to 1.5 tablespoons of the cake mixture and roll it into a ball using your hands. Repeat for the rest of the dough. Place the cake balls on a baking sheet and refrigerate for at least 1 hour to firm up.
Coat and Decorate the Cake Balls
These cake balls are coated in a thin layer of white chocolate. I would not recommend using dark or milk chocolate in this recipe because they may overpower the champagne flavor.
Melt white baking chocolate and a little bit of vegetable oil in a medium bowl over a double boiler or in the microwave, stirring often.
Remove the cake balls from the refrigerator and roll one at a time in the melted white chocolate and place on a wire rack or parchment paper. You can use a fork to aid in coating the cake ball, picking up to allow excess chocolate to drip back in the bowl. Immediately sprinkle the sanding sugar and/or sprinkles over the cake ball before the white chocolate coating has set. You have to work quick! My white chocolate coating began setting within a few seconds, but your timing may differ based on temperature and humidity conditions.
Store the cake balls in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
I hope you enjoy this fun and festive treat!
Champagne Cake Balls
Ingredients
- 1 and 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 cup whole milk, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp orange or lemon zest
- 3/4 cup champagne or other sparkling wine
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 10 oz white baking chocolate, chopped
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- metallic sanding sugar and/or sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 inch springform pan or cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- Cream together the butter and sugar in a large bowl using a stand mixer or handheld mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg, milk, vanilla, and orange or lemon zest and mix on medium speed until fully combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low speed until just combined.
- Pour the batter into your prepared cake and smooth it out so it is an even thickness. Bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Place on a wire rack an allow the cake to fully cool in the pan.
- Add the champagne or sparkling wine to a small saucepan and bring to a low boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and allow to simmer until the liquid has reduced to about 1/4 cup. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or a large bowl and handheld mixer), beat the butter on medium speed until smooth.
- Add the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and salt. Mix on low speed until combined. Add 2 tablespoons of the reduced champagne and increase the speed to medium-high and mix until the frosting is light and fluffy. Taste and add more reduced champagne as desired, mixing completely between each addition.
- Once the cake is cool, remove it from the pan and crumble it into the bowl of frosting.
- Using a stand mixer or handheld mixer, mix the cake and frosting together on medium speed until the cake is fully mixed into the frosting and the texture is mostly uniform.
- Spoon out 1 to 1.5 tablespoons of the cake mixture and roll into balls. Place the cake balls on a baking sheet and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Add the white chocolate and vegetable oil to a bowl and melt over a double boiler or in a microwave, stirring often.
- Remove the cake balls from the refrigerator and roll one at a time in the melted white chocolate and place on a wire rack or parchment paper. You can use a fork to aid in coating the cake ball, picking up to allow excess chocolate to drip back in the bowl.
- Immediately sprinkle the sanding sugar and/or sprinkles over the cake ball before the white chocolate coating has set. Allow the coating to set completely at room temperature or in the refrigerator before enjoying.
Notes
Storage Instructions: Store the cake balls in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
