Today we are excited to share a uniquely light and flavorful recipe with you for Pink Champagne Cake.
This elegant dessert, with its moist champagne infused layers & delicious buttercream is perfect for weddings, engagement parties, anniversaries, Valentine's Day, New Year's Eve, or any occasion that calls for something special.
Why Pink Champagne Cake? A Quick History!
Southern bakers have been flavoring their cakes with sweet beverages for decades (cocoa cola cake, 7 up cake, etc.)...but Pink Champagne cake takes that practice to a whole new level of delicious sophistication.
It is believed that Pink Champagne Cake first originated on the west coast in the '50s and '60s, and was a hugely popular choice for bridal showers, weddings, and bachelorette parties.
There's just something a bit glamorous about a dessert flavored with Pink Champagne, don't you think? The Los Angeles Times printed a Pink Champagne Cake decades ago and to this day it remains one of its most requested.
If you like Pink Champagne, you are going to fall in love with this recipe. While the pink champagne isn't overpowering, the flavor is unmistakable.
We love to fill it with our Pink Champagne Buttercream Frosting, but traditionally pink champagne cakes have often been paired with bavarian cream or coconut fillings.
We hope that you enjoy this fantastic recipe. Make sure to check out our other Pink Champagne Cake (doctored cake mix version) linked below, as well as our Strawberries and Champagne Cake!
More champagne cake recipes!
If you are looking for an easy doctored cake mix version of Pink Champagne Cake, we love this DELICIOUS recipe!: Pink Champagne Cake (doctored cake mix) Recipe.
Also, don't miss our Champagne and Strawberries cake recipe!
This amazing recipe consists of Champagne & Strawberry cake layers, a whipped strawberry cream cheese filling, and Champagne & Strawberry Buttercream Frosting!
Find the recipe here: Champagne and Strawberries Cake
We've also created a delicious Champagne Pound Cake as well!
More Cake Tutorials and Recipes
Don't miss our other favorite tried and true cake recipes in our Cake Recipes Section!
If you are interested in learning more about cake decorating, we have lots of fun cake tutorials to share in our Free Tutorials section, including a Free Cake Videos section!
Thanks so much for stopping by! We hope that you enjoy this champagne cake as much as we have!
Pink Champagne Cake {Scratch Recipe}
This flavorful Pink Champagne Cake will make any occasion feel more special!
Ingredients
For the Pink Champagne Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, grease and flour 3 (8 inch) pans
- 3 cups (342 g) cake flour
- 1 Tablespoon (15 g) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (2g) salt
- 6 egg whites (194g)
- 1 cup (242g) pink champagne, I used Andre Blush Champagne
- 2 teaspoons (8 g) vanilla
- 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil (18 g)
- 2 cups (400 g) sugar
- 1 cup (2 sticks) (226 g) unsalted butter, softened slightly
- Small amount of pink food color, I used AmeriColor Deep Pink but any pink would be fine. I added the color with a toothpick, just a small amount will give you blush pink
For the Pink Champagne Buttercream
- 4 sticks (452g) unsalted butter, softened
- 12 cups (1380g) powdered sugar (depending on the desired consistency, more sugar = more crusting) If you prefer a frosting that crusts less, see the note at the bottom of the recipe.
- 4 teaspoons ( 16g) vanilla
- 1 teaspoon (6g) salt
- ½ cup (122g) pink champagne
- Pink Coloring Gel of Choice (We used a touch of Americolor Deep Pink)
Instructions
For the Cake
- In a medium size bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside
- In another bowl combine the egg whites, champagne, vanilla and vegetable oil. Whisk until blended and set aside.
- In the bowl of your mixer, cream the butter and sugar 3 to 5 minutes. When it is light and fluffy add approximately ⅓ of the dry ingredients and mix until blended. Then add ½ of the liquid ingredients mixing until blended. Continue alternating dry and wet ingredients. Begin and end with dry ingredients (3 additions of dry and 2 wet). Add the pink color at any time during the mixing of the dry and wet ingredients. *Makes 7 ½ cups of batter.
- Pour into prepared pans and bake 25 to 30 minutes. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted the center comes out clean. Cool in baking pans 10 min. then turn out.
For the Pink Champagne Buttercream
- Cream the softened butter until smooth and lightened in color
- Blend in the salt and vanilla
- Gradually add the powdered sugar with the champagne until the powdered sugar is incorporated. Beat at medium speed 3 to 4 minutes. The texture will become very smooth. If you are tinting the entire batch of buttercream light pink, you can add a very small amount of coloring gel while it is mixing.
- This recipe makes approximately 8 cups of frosting.
Notes
A Note about the Buttercream...
*For a softer buttercream with a much lighter crust, cut the amount of powdered sugar from 12 to 9 or 10 cups and cut the amount of champagne form ½ cup to ¼ cup + 1 Tablespoon. Also, cut the salt to ½ teaspoon. This lighter consistency works well for cupcakes or cakes that don't require the Viva method of smoothing.
Hello, can you explain how you piped the circle design on this cake? It looks beautiful!
Thank you!
I could only find Verde Raspberry sparkling wine. Will there need to be any modifications to the doctored cake mix recipe or this frosting recipe? Since mine is sweet?
Hi Hilary, It will be fine to use your Raspberry sparkling wine with no changes to the recipe.
I made a test run of this cake. I want to make it for my future daughter in law’s bridal shower! The cake is very tasty! I didn’t have unsalted butter, but will use that next time. The frosting tasted too salty with salted butter and the salt called for in the recipe. Also, I will chill the frosting before piping, it was a hot day!
I ended up doing 9.5 cups of sugar instead since the champagne was so sweet & I wanted more whipped cream consistency frosting - came out amazing! Really enjoyed the Verde Raspberry sparking wine in both the frosting and the cake. Could be a good option too for people worried about alcohol percent since this is only 5% alcohol.
Came out great for our princess relaxed themed bday party with the Verde Raspberry
Hi Hilary, Your cake is very pretty! Thank you for the follow-up on using Verde Raspberry sparkling wine, helpful information to others who use the recipe. I'm happy you enjoyed the cake at your princess themed party!
Hi i am interested in making this cake for a wedding shower - however the mom and aunt want to taste it first - is there anyway you can tell me what measurements would be for a 6 inch round cake and also for the frosting? i don't want to have to make the 3 layered cake recipe and waste half of the ingredients?? Any help on this would be great! i want to make the taste testing cake this weekend!!
thank you so much! :)
Hi Robyn! You should be fine to half the recipes for both. That's the most that I've reduced a recipe.
thank you so much for your response! :)
Like many communities, COVID really knocked some businesses off their feet. In my community, it was a popular bakery, well known for its cakes, that succumbed under the crush of the pandemic and health issues for the owner. A family favorite of ours is Pink Champagne cake. Our bakery was the only bakery who could make not only pretty cakes, but GOOD cakes. You know how you come across a bakery that has fun looking cupcakes with exotic flavors and decorating or cookies and cake dressed up looking like it was heading to the ball, but ended up bowling with burgers and fries instead? Our baker could BAKE! The cake alone was good. If you can't enjoy the cake, the frosting can't save it. Because everyone failed miserably at making this beloved cake for birthdays and celebrations, I searched for a recipe and came across this one. I can bake, I thought. And I certainly can't do any worse than the last 4 years of $60 disappointments.
You guys, this recipe rocked my world. This cake was so insanely moist and easy to pull together, I am kicking myself for having poured money down the drain. This cake rivals our once treasured bakery. I brought this cake in a cake box for a birthday and my mother-in-law wondered where I got the cake. She was floored when she found out I made it.
I am going to warn you all, though. This cake will make you cocky and arrogant because it comes together so well. Follow the instructions. The measurements are spot on (and for those who worry, weighing the ingredients makes for a more precise execution of the bake).
Thank you for this outstanding recipe! You have saved many celebrations to come and it has been bookmarked my friend.
Blessings to you and yours.
Hi Kimberly- Thank you so much for your review of the Pink Champagne Cake! You made our day ;0) We are so glad that you all enjoyed it! Here's to many more years of champagne cakes to come xoxo
Cake looks so pretty. Would love this for a 10 inch 4 layer wedding tall cake. 4 tiers. Must I double or triple recipe? Will it withstand 3 more tiers on top?🙏
Morning
Can this recipe be used for cupcakes as well?
I have been using this recipe a few times before and just love it. The texture is almost velvet like and it is super is absolutely out of this world.
Thank you for sharing your recipes.
Hi Catherine, We have not baked cupcakes with the recipe but it should work well. For standard size cupcakes bake at 350 degrees F for 18 to 20 minutes.Thank you so much for your nice review of the recipe, we appreciate your feedback.