Wow. You all sure love cupcakes. Like, seriously. Out of over 400 entries (holy moly!), the lucky winner was randomly selected:
A huge congratulations to Ashley who will be receiving her very own Best Ever Cupcake Icing Kit from Bake it Pretty!
Didn’t win? You can still get a Best Ever Cupcake Icing Kit for your very own. For the reasonable price of $16.95 it’s well worth it. (And yes, the kits have sold out once again! Have no fear though, Amanda plans to restock them by February 4th. You can request to be notified as soon as the kits are restocked).
Spreading the cupcake love!
It’s obvious to me now that you all love giveaways. Actually, love would probably be an understatement. The way you pounced on the artisan chocolate we gave away last fall, and then this? Well, I get it. I’m in the process of tracking down some more fabulous goodies and prizes to give away in the coming months. Don’t worry, this isn’t going to become one of *those* blogs… the only giveaways I will support are those for items or products that I personally use and adore. Not random stuff to giveaway just because I can. So stay tuned! :)
Yes, I did just put pork and blueberry in the same sentence. The same recipe in fact. And you know what? It was quite tasty! As someone who didn’t grow up eating the other white meat, I have to say I’ve never been a big fan of pork. Growing up, it’s just not something my family ever ate. Maybe it’s the fact that my mother is Jewish, so obviously she wasn’t raised on a regular diet of pork products (and it’s not like pork was important enough for my dad to actually get up and cook it). Because of that, pork has always tasted “funny” to me. Bacon? Yes please. Pork tenderloin? I’ll eat it, but I won’t love it. Ham? I’ll take turkey. Taylor, on the other hand, could eat (and has eaten) sandwiches piled high with 3-4 different kinds of pork with gusto… on a daily basis… and be perfectly content (and might I say, in heaven).
I typically find pork chops to be the only cut of pork that I actually enjoy, especially if it’s smothered in sweet and tangy blueberry sauce. Maybe that’s because the blueberry sauce is strong enough to put a damper on the porkiness of the pork… but I have to say we’ll definitely be making this one again.
And don’t forget! Tomorrow is the last day to enter to win the Bake it Pretty Cupcake Frosting Kit! I’ll be closing entries at midnight tomorrow, so be sure to get your entry (and bonus entry!) in before then.
4 boneless pork chops
1 shallot, finely diced
1/2 cup red wine
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup blueberries
1/2 lemon (zest and juice)
2 tablespoons butter
Fresh parsley, roughly chopped
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425°F.
Salt and pepper both sides of each pork chop. Heat a tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat in an oven-proof skillet big enough to hold all four pork chops. Brown the pork chops, about 1-2 minutes on each side. Remove the pan from heat and pop it into the oven. Remove when the pork is just cooked through, about 10-12 minutes.
While the pork chops are in the oven, prepare the sauce. Heat a tablespoon of oil in a small saucepan over medium high heat. Sauté the shallots until soft and golden. Add the wine and water and let boil down for 1-2 minutes. Add the blueberries. When the skins begin to burst, add the lemon zest and juice. Let the sauce continue to boil and thicken until the pork chops are ready.
Once the pork chops are ready, remove the pan from the oven and place the pork chops on a cutting board and let them rest while finishing the sauce.
Turn the heat off under the saucepan and stir in the butter until it is completely melted. If using unsalted butter, add a pinch of salt. Serve the pork chops either whole or sliced, topped with the blueberry sauce and fresh parsley. Since the pork chops were finished in the oven, they should still be nice and juicy.
I often get asked how I decorate my cupcakes. So I figured a post dedicated to the ‘how’ of it all was in order. However, to be honest, I don’t think it is something that can be taught. It’s a matter of practice. Get yourself a plate or silicone mat, and a vat of buttercream, and go at it. Fill your piping bag with frosting, and create swirl after swirl on the plate. When it’s full, simply scrape off the buttercream, refill your bag, and repeat. I’m serious here. You need to figure out for yourself what is comfortable as far as holding the piping bag, and become familiar with the proper pressure and motion you need to use to create that perfect buttercream swirl.
As with many things, the right tools make all the difference. You’re not going to be able to achieve a big and beautiful swirl if your piping tip is too small. No practice can help that.
A few of my favorite and most useful tools (clockwise from left):
1. Piping bag. I have a few different piping bags, but I use this 14″ professional pastry bag more than any other. It’s just the right size for frosting a dozen cupcakes, and the poly canvas is a great texture to work with (that gets softer each and every time you use it). I have two, one with a larger opening for the jumbo tips, and one with a smaller opening for more dainty decorations. You can choose to use a coupler if you like (keep in mind the jumbo tips require jumbo couplers), though for the larger tips I find it unnecessary and just more to wash (and possibly lose).
2. Piping tips. The right tip makes all the difference. These jumbo tips are perfect for cupcakes. Play around with the 4 different shapes and find the one you like best. I personally love the Closed Star Tip, demonstrated below, which I use for just about all of my cupcakes.
3. Spatula. If I could only have one spatula for the rest of my life, this would be it. It’s a half-sized spatula from Le Creuset. The perfect size to make loading your piping bag a breeze. Not to mention it’s turquoise, and that makes me happy.
4. Flower veiner. If you want to make perfect blossoms out of fondant, gumpaste, or marzipan (as seen here or here), these silicone molds are amazing. For larger flowers, I use this Blossom set (pictured – which includes a flower cutter as well), or for smaller buds this Five Petal Press set.
5. Cupcake wrappers. Be warned. Once you see all the adorable cupcake wrappers available at Bake it Pretty, you’ll need to dedicate and entire drawer to them. It’s an obsession I tell you.
6. Sprinkles. Because sprinkles make everything better. There are lots of sprinkles available at Bake it Pretty, including the White Pearlized Jimmies pictured above.
7. Food coloring. Want pretty buttercream? These Americolor gel food colorings will give you beautifully bold colors with just a drop or two.
8. Cupcake scoop. Maybe the best $15 you’ll ever spend. This large scoop from Pampered Chef doles out the perfect (and I mean PERFECT) portion for a standard size cupcake. No more overfilled cups. Also check out the small scoop, which, coincidentally, is the perfect size for mini cupcakes.
The Closed Star Tip, my personal favorite for frosting cupcakes. I know a lot of the pros use the jumbo round tips, but for the life of me I can never seem to get a round tip to produce anything short of a pile of poop. Sorry, but it’s true. For that reason I stick to my star tip.
Beyond getting ahold of the right tools, you’re on your own. As I mentioned above, practice really does make (almost) perfect. But, to get you started, I thought actually seeing a swirl or two couldn’t hurt. Keep in mind I am self-trained here. This is the technique I picked up after frosting dozens and dozens of cupcakes. You may find your swirls look better when piped differently. You’ll get different results if you start the swirl in the center (more of a rose like effect rather than a towering swirl) instead of the edge. You’ll see different patterns depending on the angle at which you hold the piping bag, the pressure you put on it, and the speed at which you move. So many variables I can’t even begin to describe. Again, it’s just a matter of practicing. It’s not like having dozens of ugly practice cupcakes sitting around is a bad thing, either. :)
My swirls are far from perfect. They are often uneven, too tall, or lopsided. I haven’t yet mastered the ‘end’ or ‘tip’ of the swirl, getting that perfect point to top it all off. As it stands, these cupcakes need a topper like a flower or cherry to disguise the rough break in the buttercream. This has a lot to do with the consistency of the buttercream—meringue buttercreams will usually give you nicer ends than American buttercream. Always a work in progress!
And now that we’ve discussed tools and techniques, it’s time for a giveaway! As you’ve probably noticed if you clicked any of the links above, I am a huge fan of Bake it Pretty. It’s a bakers paradise, with just about everything you need to make gorgeous cupcakes, candies, and more. Lucky for you folks, Amanda has generously donated one of her very popular Best Ever Cupcake Icing Kits (so popular in fact, that they sold out before I had a chance to write this post prior to Christmas – I’ve been waiting patiently since then for the kits to be restocked). Each kit includes a 14″ professional pastry bag, four jumbo piping tips perfect for buttercream swirls of all shapes and sizes, as well as a tips & instructions card to help you get started.
Sometimes, you just have to use up what’s in the fridge. Call it guilt, not wanting to let perfectly good produce go to waste, or call it thrift, since we paid for that food, may as well use it. Whatever the motivator, the mis-matched, partially used, and almost forgotten bits and pieces must come out of the fridge eventually. Our solution is usually just to throw them all in a pasta. Which sometimes, doesn’t go so well. You end up with a bland or just plain sorry excuse for a dinner.
But other times, this improvised leftover dish turns out to be simply delicious. I’d go so far as to say it is one of the best things we’ve made (for dinner) in weeks. And something we will intentionally purchase the ingredients to make again. Success. Our clear-out-the-fridge game show meal has now become a weeknight staple.
Brussels sprouts get a bad wrap. And sure, they can be bitter if cooked incorrectly (then again, chocolate can be bitter too, so what does that say about Brussels sprouts?) The trick to this dish, and keeping it’s quick-cooking time in tact is the shred. Think of the sprout as a mini cabbage. Just thinly slice it crosswise much like you would a whole head of cabbage. What you end up with are nutty ribbons of Brussels sprout bliss. Yes, I just used Brussels sprouts and bliss in the same sentence. And I meant it, too.
Sometimes the best pasta dishes are those that don’t really have a sauce. There is no congealed, curdled, or creamy concoction coating the noodles… there is simply no need for it. Rather, the ingredients co-mingle with the spaghetti, playing off the pancetta and the nuttiness of the Brussel sprouts with the just barely cooked cherry tomatoes. Needless to say, there is no lack of flavor here.
16 oz. spaghetti
2 oz pancetta, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
about 1 dozen Brussels sprouts, shredded (about 2 cups)
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
salt and pepper
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to boil. Cook spaghetti until al dente according to package instructions.
Meanwhile, preheat a large saucepan over medium heat. Add pancetta, and a dash of olive oil if your pancetta is particularly lean. Cook until just starting to brown.
Add garlic and onion and cook until fragrant, about 3 minutes.
Add Brussels sprouts to pan and cook until tender and slightly translucent, about 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and quickly saute until just softened. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Drain spaghetti, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water. Add noodles to Brussels sprout mixture. Toss until coated, adding pasta water a bit at a time if necessary. Divide onto plates. Top with Parmesan cheese and serve.
Welcome to Love and Olive Oil, the culinary adventures of Lindsay and Taylor. We're all about quick and flavorful dishes that don't hurt the wallet. We invite you to our kitchen and share in our love for food and our desire to always find something new to eat. more about us →
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. The perfect size to make loading your piping bag a breeze. Not to mention it’s turquoise, and that makes me happy.
And now that we’ve discussed tools and techniques, it’s time for a giveaway! As you’ve probably noticed if you clicked any of the links above, I am a huge fan of 
