Cupcake Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc and White Wine Cake

I don't think I've ever discussed a wine on here before, or at least one specifically per se, but I found this particular wine and figured it was fair game.; based on the name itself I thought that, by fate and consequence, I had to buy a bottle of Cupcake Vineyards. Now apparently it's a product of Marlborough, New Zealand (but bottled in California, which confuses me). The winemaker comments on the back are forcibly nostalgic, pressuring you to imagine a time back when through the most delightfully lame imagery, boasting of a "layers of complexity and a vibrant zing, reminiscent of your grandma's lemon chiffon cake."The flavor admittedly does have zest and zing. The nose is citrusy and slightly grassy, with a bit of kick that made me krinkle my nose a tad out of curiosity for some foreign smell I can't quite describe. The flavor is smooth and does indeed produce those key lime and grapefruit flavors that the label so proudly toted about. Around $9, it's a good wine. Nothing phenomenal, but one I would pick up again.

Of course, it being a cupcake wine, I decided I should use my usual wine cupcake recipe and give it a shot. However, recipes don't always go the way we planned. Due to a lack of cupcake papers, I decided to throw it into a springform and chop some strawberries over the whole thing. Furthermore I was out of olive oil, so sunflower oil was used instead.

Overall, the cake was a huge crowd pleaser. The citrusy notes of the wine stood out and were backed up nicely by the orange zest. The sunflower oil flavor was clean and fragrant giving a good background to the sweet and slightly tart to the tongue strawberries. This cake has a very fine crumb and is surprisingly moist for a cornmeal cake. A real winning, super-easy dessert.

White Wine Cornmeal Cake

What You'll Need...
1/2 cup of olive or sunflower oil
2 large eggs at room temperature
1 cup of sugar, plus 1/4 cup for topping
1/2 cup of dry white wine
1 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour
1/2 cup of yellow cornmeal
1 teaspoon of salt
2 teaspoons of baking powderFinely grated zest of one orange
4 strawberries, sliced thinly

What You'll Do...
1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2) In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, eggs, sugar, and wine until smooth. Add the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and the zest; whisk together gently.
3) Line a spring-form pan with parchment paper and brush with olive oil. Pour in the cake batter and arrange sliced strawberries on top. Sprinkle with remaining sugar.

4) Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. Allow to cool on wire rack.