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| Ⓒ Provided by Food52 |
By Anne Byrn, Food52
Cakes have become an icon of American culture and a window to understanding ourselves. Be they vanilla, lemon, ginger, chocolate, cinnamon, boozy, Bundt, layered, marbled, even topped with meringue—they are etched in our psyche. Cakes relate to our lives, heritage, and hometowns.
In 1960, women who frequented the nightclub scene sipped pink Champagne, or at least that’s what the gossip columnists said. In England, Princess Margaret was out sipping pink Champagne in the wee hours, and pink Champagne was the drink of choice of Hollywood starlets, too. Women’s clubs hosted pink Champagne luncheons on festive occasions. And when not poured into glasses, pink Champagne was a fashionable color of jewelry, even a shade of shag carpeting.
Johnson’s Model Bakery in Medford, Oregon, that same year baked a Christmas Pink Champagne Cake, and later variations popped up in Oregon and California. From the Yosemite Bakery in Modesto, California, to the Modern Cake Shop in Eureka, Kansas, where the cake was 'filled with Bavarian champagne-flavored butter cream,' this cake was fun, fresh, and hip. It is still baked at McGavin’s Bakery in Bremerton, Washington, containing no Champagne, and at the Madonna Inn in San Luis Obispo, California. The Los Angeles Times has said this cake is one of its most requested cake recipes of all time. It is just right for showers, bachelorette parties, weddings, valentine's day and graduations.
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Ingredients
Cake
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for the pan
- 3 cups cake flour, plus more for the pan
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 5 large egg whites, room temperature
- 1 cup pink Champagne, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 drop pink food coloring (or more for darker pink)
Pink Champagne Buttercream Frosting
- 1 3/4 cups (3½) sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
- 8 cups (or more) powdered sugar, sifted, divided
- 4 tablespoons pink Champagne
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 drop pink food coloring (or more for darker pink)
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Directions
Step 1
Make the Cake: Place a rack in the center of the oven; heat to 350°F. Butter and flour 3 (8-inch) cake pans, shaking out any excess flour.
Step 2
Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl. In a large bowl, whisk the egg whites, Champagne, vanilla, and oil until well blended.
Step 3
In another large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the sugar and butter for 3 to 4 minutes, until creamy and light. Add the flour mixture and the egg white mixture alternately, beating to combine after each addition, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Stir in the food coloring.
Step 4
Divide the batter among the prepared pans. Bake for 23 to 27 minutes, until the cakes just pull back from the sides of the pans. Let cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edges of each pan, give each cake a gentle shake, then invert it once and then again onto the rack to cool completely, domed side up, for 30 minutes.
Step 5
Prepare the Frosting: In a large bowl, using the electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter for about 1 minute, until creamy and smooth. Add 6 cups of the powdered sugar, the Champagne, and vanilla. Beat on medium speed until smooth. Add the remaining 2 cups of the powdered sugar, adding more if needed to make the frosting thick but spreadable. Increase the mixer speed to medium-high, add the food coloring, and continue to beat for about 30 seconds, until the frosting is fluffy.
Step 6
To assemble the cake, place 1 layer on a platter. Spread about 3⁄4 cup of the frosting to the edges. Place the second layer on top and repeat. Place the third layer on top. Frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting. Garnish with white chocolate shavings, sliced strawberries, coconut, or edible rose petals, if desired, depending on the occasion.
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