Sunday, January 1, 2012

Favorite Recipes of 2010 & 2011

Happy New Year! What a year 2011 was.  Last year, we moved 3,000 miles, lived on both coasts, changed jobs, came back to our home church, celebrated our 2-year wedding anniversary, changed websites (from Cooking our Way Through California to From Anne's Kitchen), seen lots of family (although it never feels like enough), and, of course, cooked and baked our way through the year.

It has been so fun to continue to find recipes and create new things.  While I'm usually a creature of habit (recalling 7th grade as the year of the bagel and cream cheese lunches every.single.day), there are just so many new things to try that it's hard to find time to make some of our old favorites! Of course, I'm blessed to have a husband who eats just about ANYTHING - vegetarian, seafood, new cuisines, etc.  These are a list of our favorites from the past two years (I didn't do a best of list  for 2010 so I figured I had two years' of material to work with):


Best of 2010-2011:

Appetizers:
Boneless Buffalo Wings: These boneless buffalo wings appear just about any time we have appetizers for dinner.
Honey & Thyme Flatbread: These are simple to make and delicious.  I love how the earthy thyme balances the honey.  These typically disappear from our kitchen within 24 hours of making them.

Breads:
Homemade Naan: Sometimes, I make Indian food just so I have an excuse to make this naan as well.
Homemade Flour Tortillas: With my favorite tortilla press, homemade tortillas are seriously easy and only have 4 ingredients.

Breakfast (my favorite meal!):
The Best Blueberry Scones: We dubbed the best recipe of 2009 and it's still true.
Baked Pumpkin Doughnuts: Seriously considering making these for a FOURTH time for our New Year's brunch.

Main Dishes:
Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin AND Island Spice Pork Tenderloin: I made both of these for my in-law's Christmas dinner and while totally different, both were a huge hit!
Chicken Tikka Masala: Our favorite recipe of 2010!
Healthy Chicken Pot Pie: A serious favorite.  I make it all the time and it's so comforting and delicious (also, a great use for any leftover turkey from Thanksgiving!).
Crispy Bourbon-Glazed Salmon: Probably my favorite seafood recipe -- just don't skimp on the sauce.  I need to put this back on the menu!
Stacked Roasted Vegetables Enchiladas: We love Mexican and this was one of my favorites. The right amount of cheese and tons of vegetables!

Soups:
Corn Chowder: I'm pretty sure this remains my husband's favorite soup.
Chicken & Chickpea Soup: I make this anytime we're feeling under the weather.

Vegetables:
Roasted Cauliflower: Don't knock it before you try it.  The cauliflower caramelizes beautifully. This was served at both of family Christmases!
Kale Chips: Crispy and surprisingly delicious. We eat them all year long.

Snacks:
Homemade Wheat Thins: So easy and taste remarkably like the store bought ones (just with 6 ingredients instead of 20+).
Restaurant-Style Salsa: The only salsa I make now.
Chocolate Chunk Toffee Granola Bars: My favorite granola bars and probably my favorite afternoon snack.

Miscellaneous
New Favorite Pizza Dough: It still remains our favorite!

Desserts:
Crumb Cake: Oh. my. goodness.  This needs to happen again. We pretend this is a breakfast sometimes (and just call it crumb coffee cake).
Chocolate Caramel Crackers:  The first time I made these, they were supposed to be for a church function.  They were so good, I actually had to make a second batch for the church because I refused to share the first.

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