Have you ever been invited to look through somebody else’s recipe collection? Maybe your grandparents’? Or your mom or dad’s, or your mother-in-laws’? At times like that, the wrinkled, stained and water-spotted ones always catch my eye, because those are the ones that have been made time and time again.
As we reach the end of the year, I wanted to take a look through a different sort of recipe collection. Over the years, we’ve collected about 300 recipes on our blog. That’s a lot of recipes! It made me wonder which of them were your favorites over this past year. Since I couldn’t look for wrinkles and water-stains as clues, I took a look at our site stats. Here are the most-viewed recipes of the past year. Many of them were featured on our blog several years ago, but they’ve remained popular!
1. Mango Float
This is the number one favorite on our blog right now! If you’re not familiar with this dessert, no doubt what comes to mind is some form of root beer float. But no, this magical Filipino dessert involves mangoes floating upon a delicate bed of graham crackers and whipped cream. Mm!
2. Apple Oat Crisp
As our blogger Jennifer Hetrick puts it, “A freshly baked apple oat crisp, warm from time bubbling lightly in the oven, pulls at the senses and taste buds like magic from the orchards, wafting its way throughout the home.” And you know this recipe is good because it comes from our chef, Chuck Smith!
3. Winter Cranberry Salad
This makes an excellent Christmas or New Year’s appetizer, but it also makes good use of winter produce and can be enjoyed all winter long!
4. Bottomless Corn Pie
This recipe comes via our blogger Jennifer Hetrick, who writes: “I finally began to appreciate some of my Pennsylvania Dutch (technically German) heritage a few years ago through some culinary exploring. My favorite dive into this subculture of food quickly resulted in corn pie made with in-season, locally grown sweet corn.”
5. Watermelon Green Smoothie
Green smoothies have been gaining popularity for the past few years. Throw in some fresh spinach or kale with your fruit smoothie, and: POW! Your pink, red, or peachy smoothie is now a brilliant shade of green, but still tastes the same! And, you’ve snuck in some great healthy bits. What’s not to like? Using juicy peaches and watermelon in a watermelon green smoothie means not having to resort to bottled juice for the liquid!
6. Heirloom Tomato Salsa
Put this one on your list of recipes to make in the summer, when those gorgeous local heirloom tomatoes are in season again! In the meantime, this recipe is still really good with non-local tomatoes.
7. Jackie’s Prizewinning Pumpkin Pie
Longtime Wolff’s friend and employee Jackie Clanton took home first prize at our recent staff Pumpkin Pie Contest! You can use any one of our heirloom pumpkins for this recipe—Jackie used Red Kuri squash!
8. Rutabaga Carrot Ginger Soup
Our blogger Susan Edelman writes, “The fresh ginger in Rutabaga Carrot Ginger Soup warms things up and adds a little something extra. It’s one of those recipes where, although quantities are suggested, amounts can vary depending what you find in your pantry or at the market. This winning combination will please every family member!”
9. Rosemary Lattes
A latte made with a rosemary infusion is sweet and rich, with graceful notes of rosemary in each sip. Drinking one is a way to carve out time in the daily routine, and to appreciate the surprising blend of herbs and coffee.
10. Rambutan Martini (Rambutini)
In a blog article written shortly before New Year’s, it seems appropriate to close with a recipe for a strong, fancy drink. This Rambutan Martini recipe comes from Wolff’s own chef, Chuck Smith, who writes:
“The trouble with rambutan is the vexing question of what, exactly, to do with them. What do you do with them? Well, like so many other exotic fruits, the best thing to do, once they’re ripe, is eat them completely raw. I’ve seen someone consume half a dozen of them in a row. I myself prefer to eat only one at a time, and eat it very slowly. It is a fruit worth savoring. Not gorging upon. That said, I feel there are other, unexplored applications for them. Using them in a cocktail seemed the obvious course of action. The icy temperature of a martini does something to accentuate the floral notes in their flavor profile. Plus, the odd appearance of the fruit is disguised by the welcoming sight of a delightfully frosted cocktail glass.”