Vanilla Cupcakes with Strawberry Champagne Jam Filling

Stephanie pops open the champagne to make her special strawberry champagne jam cupcakes topped with delicious vanilla icing. Combining the universal celebratory drink with the universal celebratory food, these cupcakes are the perfect dessert for any celebration!

• Vanilla Cupcake
  • 1/2 cup room temperature unsalted butter (113g)
  • 1/2 cup canola oil (120ml)
  • 1 1/2 cup sugar (300g)
  • 4 eggs, room temperature
  • 2 tbsps vanilla extract
  • 3 cups AP flour (375g)
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 1/4 cups room temperature buttermilk (300ml)
• Strawberry Champagne Jam
  • 1 3/4 cups strawberries, washed, hulled and quartered (approximately 1/2 lb.)
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1/3 cup champagne or sparkling white wine
  • 2 tbsp powdered pectin
  • 1 1/4 cup sugar

1. Vanilla Cupcake
   1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line 24 cupcake wells with paper liners. Set aside.
   2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter, canola oil, and sugar until creamy.
   3. Add eggs, one a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla extract.
   4. In a separate medium sized bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
   5. Hand mix the dry ingredients alternating with buttermilk to the butter mixture, starting and ending with the flour mixture. Mix until just combined. The batter should be smooth and completely combined.
   6. Using an ice cream scoop, divide batter evenly into each cupcake liner. Each cupcake should be ¾ full. Bake in preheated oven for 16-18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcake comes out clean.
   7. Once cupcakes are cooled, scoop out the center of each cupcake with an apple corer or spoon being careful not to core all the way through. If you accidently remove too much cake, it is okay to take a small amount of the removed cake and patch it into the bottom of the opening.
   8. Spoon strawberry champagne jam into each opening. The jam should reach the top of the cupcake; be careful not to overfill.
   9. Ice cupcake with your favorite vanilla buttercream icing. Included is a recipe for vanilla crème fraîche buttercream. 
2. Strawberry Champagne Jam
   1. Place the prepared strawberries in a medium, heavy bottom pan and mash with a potato masher or whatever you have available.
   2. Add the lemon juice and champagne. Add the pectin and stir constantly bringing the strawberry mixture to a boil. Add the sugar, stirring to combine. Bring the jam back to a boil and allow to cook for 10-15 minutes to thicken.
   3. Remove any foam that forms on top of the jam and place in a container to cool, if using for cupcake filling. If planning to store jam in jars, prepare glass jars and lids, ladle jam into jars and screw on lids. Place filled jars in canner with water, boil jam filled jars for 10 minutes, remove and allow to cool. Jam filled jars can be cooled (at least 24 hours) and frozen.