It's always a fun time of year when I pull all the stats to determine what recipes you loved in the past 12 months. Here are the Top 10 recipes for 2020.
Well, what a year it has been.
If last December you would have told me we'd have a world wide pandemic on our hands the following year I would have laughed in your face. School canceled? Toilet paper shortages? Small businesses closing?
All of it was HARD. There really is no way around that. But, I will say we learned a lot about ourselves. We learned that family is #1 and getting extra time at home, albeit hard, was worth it. And as a food blogger I learned people got themselves back in the kitchen. Maybe they were forced into it, but they started cooking more nonetheless.
Some of my all-time most popular recipes TOOK OFF. These are ones that have been around for years and continue to have great pageviews - my famous banana bread, my crockpot mac-n-cheese, my million dollar casserole. All big hits, all the time.
But, it's always so much fun to look back at the new recipes I unveil each year. I pull the stats from January to December and see what people loved {and hated}. Here are the Top 10! Plus a few honorable mentions that were just outside of the cut.
Which one was your favorite?
#10 - Smokey Beef Queso
I debuted this fantastic queso in late September, right when football season was ramping up - great timing! What makes this one fun is that it cooks on the SMOKER, so every bite has a tasty, underlying smokey bite. But of course, not everyone has a smoker, so I gave directions for the crockpot and oven too. All three ways are delicious! This is a perfect New Year's Eve appetizer, by the way.
Honestly, this is one of my favorite recipes of the year. My family LOVES it. Rice is incredibly easy to make in the Instant Pot {it comes out perfect every time} and putting this "Hawaiian" twist on regular friend rice is so yummy. We eat this at least once a month - sometimes I throw in some chicken or beef to amp it up - and we love having an egg roll on the side.
It's no surprise about one month into the pandemic I created these bars. I needed a sweet treat. These bars have everything - a chocolate chip cookie, a brownie and a sweet peanut butter surprise. They all melt and bake together! I have yet to met a person who doesn't love these bars, but make sure you have a glass of milk to wash them down.
Another quarantine dessert! I'm sensing a trend here with my feelings. But this bar is super cool, as it only contains five simple ingredients. Even better you combine those five ingredients into a food processor, pulse & mix together, press it all into a pan and bake. That is it! Animal crackers, pecans, sweetened condensed milk, butterscotch chips and chocolate chips. You'll be amazed at how good they are.
Pizza time! We ate a lot of it this year. And wowza - I created this skillet pizza back in April and it took off. I've sent so many direct links to this recipe from fans asking for it. The dough is easy to make, can sit on the counter all day and creates a sweet crispy crust with a chewy, tender middle. My husband who can take or leave pizza, requests this often. It's his favorite. The dough makes two large pizzas and is perfect for Friday nights in.
Back in January {when we are all craving lighter foods}, I debuted these bars. Chewy, slightly sweet and filled with healthy ingredients - they are the perfect snack to prep on Sunday for the week ahead. I love having one mid-afternoon for a little boost to tide me over till dinner. Pantry ingredients are all you need! My kids love these for an after school snack, so I'm often doubling the batch.
Moms everywhere love the idea of not standing at the griddle flipping pancakes for 30 minutes. This sheet pan version really took off! Who wouldn't want to save time and cook just one BIG pancake in the oven, cut into squares and be done? They can be doctored up any which way - chocolate chips like shown here, but we also love blueberries dotted in the batter, or even just plain.
Growing up we called this dip, simply "delicious dip". It's at every family event and gathering! We never really talk about who is bringing it but it always shows up. It's perfect as a potato chip dip, but we also love dunking cut up veggies in it too. It is that dip that will make people ask, "what is this?" as they turn their head and reach for more. Bring it as an appetizer for your next party, it will go fast.
I never wanted to write and publish a post like this one, but now looking back I'm glad I took the time that morning at 4 a.m on Tuesday, March 17th. I hadn't been able to sleep - I was incredibly stressed about the kids now being suddenly at home and out of school - so I just started typing. I pulled all of my easy family meals and put them together in a post that ended up getting a lot of traffic. We all were stuck at home and people needed resources. I'm hoping this recipe post helped many.
#1 - Apple Pie Bars
This recipe was the surprise of the year. I honestly had absolutely no idea it was so popular until I glanced at this year's stats. It's an old family recipe, my Mom has made it for years, and once people have one they claim it's their favorite. These apple pie bars are like regular apple pie, but thinner and with an incredible thin glaze drizzled on top. Each Fall I make a big pan to share with friends.
Honorable Mentions
These next five recipes just missed the cut! Equally as popular, there are some fun ones in this bunch.
I'd love for you to tweet or message me with the recipe that was YOUR favorite in 2020! Just tag me at @sweetsavoryeats and I'll be sure to respond back.
Cheers to a great ending in 2020 and a wonderful New Year ahead. As always, I want to thank you for your continued support of my food blog. For 11 years you've been reading and sharing and making my recipes and I'm eternally grateful.
