St.Germain-champagne Cupcakes!!! (Gluten-Free)

Now that it is beginning to look a lot like summer... Memories of a little champagne cocktail that I used to drink that first summer I was of legal age comes to mind... At one of my favorite restaurants in Olympia... created by my good friend and first favorite bartender, Leroy Thomas..... This is my cupcake interpretation of the "Hearts On Fire"....

Gluten-Free St. Germain-champagne Cupcakes!

Ingredients:

1 and 1/4 cup                    Gluten-free all-purpose flour (Your favorite brand)
3/4 tsp.                              Baking soda
1 pinch                              Sea salt, fine
5 tbls.                                Unsalted butter
1 cup                                 Sugar
2                                       Eggs, room temp
1                                       Egg yolk, room temp
2/3 cup                             St. Germain (elderflower liqueur)
1 tsp.                                Pure vanilla extract


Pre-heat oven to 350. Line a standard muffin pan with cupcake liners. In a stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time until fully incorporated. Beat in vanilla extract. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Add flour mixture alternately with St.Germain until fully incorporated. Pour into cupcake liners (almost all the way because gluten free cupcakes don't rise very well). Bake until done (toothpick comes out clean).

Champagne Buttercream

2 sticks                              Unsalted butter
4 oz.                                  Cream cheese
1/2 cup                              Dry champagne
3-4 cups                            Powdered sugar



In a stand mixer, cream butter until lightened. Beat in cream cheese until fully incorporated. Slowly add powdered sugar one cup at a time until fully incorporated. Slowly add champagne until fully incorporated.