2011 Year in Review: Favorite Recipes

13

Happy (almost) new year! I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays, and hopefully some time off work, too. We had a great break, but it was definitely tiring since we did a lot of traveling. We also spent a lot of time in front of family paparazzi in an effort to get a family picture (we never get any!), and this is what we came up with. (My son hasn’t stopped drooling in like 14 months, I swear.)

Today I’ll be making a traditional Greek vasilopita, and then swearing off desserts for the next year. Or for a couple days, anyway.

I’m not usually one for many round-up posts in my blog, but I really love doing one at the end of each year. It gives me a chance to revisit all of the new things I’ve made and remind myself of the ones I loved the most, so I can be sure to make them again (if I  haven’t already). Plus, it gives any new readers (hi!) a Cliff’s Notes version of the last year, to make sure they see the best of the best. Feel free to check out roundups from the past four years, too!

Below are a list of your favorite posts (based on statistics) and mine. Some of them overlap, which means you should make those first, obviously. 🙂 Happy new year and happy cooking!

Your Favorite Recipes

1. Slowcooker Shredded Beef for Tacos/Burritos
2. French Onion Soup
3. Greek Salsa
4. Yellow Butter Cake with Chocolate Frosting
5. Bagels
6. Gigantes Plaki (Greek baked bean casserole)
7. Pasta with Portobello Mushrooms, Caramelized Onions, and Goat Cheese
8. Almond Joy Ice Cream
9. Goat Cheese and Pancetta Stuffed Mushrooms
10. Panko-Crusted Fish Sticks

My Favorite Recipes (in order of posting date)

Osso Buco Braised veal shanks that are fall-off-the-bone-tender and flavorful, topped with a fresh gremolata

Cassata Cake This is one of my two favorite types of cake (the other, yellow with chocolate frosting, was one of your favorites, too), and is definitely one of the best cakes I’ve made. Rum-soaked sponge cakes are layered with cannoli filling and topped with whipped cream. What’s not to love?

Slowcooker Beef for Tacos/Burritos This is one of the easiest dishes to make, since the crockpot does most of the work for you. But, it’s also one of the most flavorful meals, too. We love this and it’s become a staple. It even made an appearance at my son’s first birthday party!

Chipotle and Tomatillo-Sauced Black Bean Enchiladas with Spinach and Pepper Whew, that title is quite a mouthful, but so are these enchiladas. It was a given that I’d love enchiladas topped with one of my favorite homemade salsas and filled with my favorite way to make black beans. This is, by far, one of my favorite vegetarian dishes to date.

Chicken and Smoked Sausage Gumbo If you’ve ever wondered if the time to make a roux and simmer gumbo (not to mention the calories) is worth it, then the answer is a resounding yes. This is the stuff dreams are made of: a hearty, amazing stew with an incredible depth of flavor.

Amygdalota One of my two favorite Greek cookies! So glad I finally got around to making them, and even more glad the results were fabulous.

Almond Joy Ice Cream The title pretty much says it all, no?

Sticky Toffee Pudding This is really not a pudding at all, but an exceptionally moist cake studded with dates and drenched in toffee sauce. It’s one of my favorite desserts, and I promise it will be one of yours, too.

Bagels I was so impressed with how these turned out for my first attempt. Not nearly as difficult as I’d imagined, and the perfect texture.

Guacamole Salad This is a light, refreshing salad that is the perfect accompaniment to a Mexican dish, or really any summer grilling.

Greek Nachos A Greek twist on standard nachos, these start out with baked pita triangles and are topped with Greek salsa, a spiced lamb mixture, and tzatziki.

Drunken Noodles Although the search for some of the ingredients in this dish left me beat, it was all worth it in the end. This spicy Thai pasta dish will definitely trump your favorite delivery spot.

Barbecued Chicken Kabobs I credit these things with making my son interested in meat again. Bacon paste (yuuuuup) assures these kabobs stay perfectly moist, and an easily adaptable and ridiculously quick to whip up barbecue sauce makes these a great meal for the whole family.

Short Ribs in Chipotle and Green Chili Sauce With the first bite I took of this meal, I knew instantly they would make it onto this year-end list. That’s a ringing endorsement.

French Onion Soup Most likely my favorite soup on the planet.

Butternut Squash and Poblano Gratin With roasted poblanos, slightly sweet butternut squash, and loads of cheese, there is really nothing not to love about this. It’s my new favorite side dish.

2011 Year in Review: Favorite Recipes

blogherads.adq.push(['Middle1', 'skm-ad-Middle1']);
//

13 thoughts on “2011 Year in Review: Favorite Recipes

  1. ooo dear goodness the shortribs, the drunken noodles, and the avocado salad look amazing!! you’ve had a great year, and I’m so glad I started reading recently. Can’t wait to see what 2012 holds!

  2. Such a cute family photo! You guys are adorable.

    I really need to remember to make that cassata cake for our next family get-together…we used to get it at every birthday and it will eternally be my favorite.

    Happy New Year, chica!

  3. Wow! I missed a lot of these because I discovered you later in the year, but I am drooling over at least 5 of the recipes! I REALLY want to try your enchiladas. It’s always nice to have vegetarian options around, and I just bought ingredients to make traditional short ribs, but I kinda want to switch to yours. . . . I’m glad you did a round-up!

  4. I love everything you do…you know I’m a big fan but I’m not going to comment about any of the food today. I just want to say it made me happy to see your family photo. The little one is gorgeous! Best wishes to all of you in 2012!

  5. Thank you so much for your year in review. I just started following you this year, so this list was fabulous for me! I now have another 4 recipes to add to my list of recipes to try 🙂

    And, yup, your Panko Crusted Fish Sticks is my go-to recipes for white fish!

  6. Great round up, and thanks for reminding me of all these great recipes of yours I’ve been meaning to try out. My roommate is Mexican American from New Mexico and just made an enchilada bake this afternoon for NYE… reminds me of yours. All the best for 2012 .. and ps. Your soon is adorable, absolutely drool worthy!

  7. That is a beautiful family picture. You all look great!
    Wishing you and your family the most wonderful and Joyous New Year. To more delicious roundups. Hugs, Ivy

Leave a Reply to Anonymous Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *