Each year, I like to come up with a New Year resolution that encourages me to learn more or pursue my hobbies. In previous years I’ve pledged to watch through the AFI Top 100, learn how to cook my favorite takeout meals, and do more photo shoots with friends. This year, I’m pledging to try at least 52 new recipes.
Each week when I make my meal plan, I try to include a new recipe. I have a running list in my to do app of new recipes I find that I want to try, and this is a great way to get through some of them. It gives me an excuse to try new things, keep our meals varied, and to absorb and learn more about how to craft a great recipe. I’ll post links to the recipes I try along with any thoughts and recommended adjustments. Starred recipes are ones I loved and would make again.
Some weeks may have more than one and there may be some weeks that are skipped. At times, I may be developing my own recipes for upcoming books/posts and won’t be able to include them here. But for the most part, I hope to include the recipes I try along with my thoughts. If you have a similar resolution, this may help you find some fun recipes to try!
Keep checking back throughout the year to see new recipes added. And if you have a fave cookbook, food blogger, or recipe you think I should check out, let me know in the comments!
August 6: Eggless Vanilla Cake* and Eggless Vanilla Cupcakes*. I was in charge of making a smash cake and cupcakes for a one-year-old’s birthday, and he’s allergic to eggs. These recipes were simple and turned out delicious! When I tried the batter, I could really taste the apple cider vinegar, but that harshness bakes out nicely. Is it as good as traditional cake? Not quite. But it’s a great substitute!
July 9: Walk-Along Chili* and Sweet Potato Black Bean Chili*. I made some meaty and vegetarian chili dishes to bring camping. I froze them, left them in the cooler, and just reheated them in a pot when we were ready for them. It was delicious and the perfect hearty, warm meal after a chilly day outside. I definitely recommend pre-making food and freezing it for camping–I’ll absolutely do this again!
June 6: 4 Ingredient Banana Pancakes*. I continued the brown banana brigade with these banana pancakes. I used cake flour and added some flax seed, and they were delicious!
June 5: Banana Mini Muffins*. I had some brown bananas and this recipe made the perfect mini muffins that were even toddler approved! I’ll definitely make these again.
May 19: Parmesan Chicken and Kale Saute. Not bad, but I would halve the onion and add a bit more lemon and red pepper flakes.
May 18: Spicy Baked Pasta with Cheddar and Broccoli Rabe. This wanted to be a mac and cheese, but wasn’t quite there. Because of that, the creaminess was mostly lost, and you just tasted a lot of bitter broccoli rabe. Having leeks and chives instead of just onion felt strange, and it needed some more flavor overall. But the oil-covered bread crumbs and cheese made for a nice crusty top. I’ll use that technique again in the future.
May 14: Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce* from the Cravings Cookbook. We grilled the chicken for a bit too long, but the marinade was delicious! Would make again.
May 12: Greek Lemon Chicken and Orzo*. I great fresh, easy, and healthy meal! I made it for dinner and have leftovers ready for lunch. I’ll be adding this to my lineup of meal plan options.
April 4: For Easter I made these adorable bunny rolls, but used a cinnamon roll filling/frosting instead of marmalade. I also made Yumm “Angel Eggs” to go with standard deviled eggs, but I think standard eggs win out.
March: I’ve been creating and testing recipes for the Tomb Raider cookbook. It comes out October 26th and is available for pre-order now!
February 27: Greek Lemon Rice*. This is a great basic rice pilaf recipe! I think it would be a fantastic base for some chicken souvlaki and tzatziki.
February 26: Slow Cooker Chicken and White Bean Stew. Flavor was lacking–you’ll want to add a lot of lemon juice, salt, and pepper at the end. But overall, fine for an easy slow cooker meal.
February 24: Greek Chicken Skillet. It’s good, but I’ve made similar versions I’ve liked a bit better.
January 25: John’s Crispy Roasted Potatoes* from the Cravings Cookbook. It’s a fairly simple roasted potato recipe, but it teaches you to preheat some oil so the potatoes start searing as soon as they touch the pan. Genius! I’ll add a bit more flavor to the potatoes next time, probably my go-to mix of salt, pepper, garlic, oregano, with a sprinkling of feta and lemon juice at the end.
January 25: Milk Bar Birthday Cake. Whew! This one takes some doing and it’s incredibly sweet, but it’s definitely a show stopper! Another recipe from Monthly’s Creative Baking with Christina Tosi.
January 20: Mongolian Beef and Broccoli*. A friend passed along his slow cooker beef and broccoli recipe and it was so easy and delicious! I need to slow cook things more often.
January 16: Milk Bar Pie. Another recipe from Monthly’s Creative Baking with Christina Tosi and it’s decadent! One slice was enough to do me in. I’m not normally an egg set pie kinda person, but I can definitely see the appeal.
January 4: Cornflake Chocolate Chip Marshmallow Cookies from Milk Bar. I’m taking Monthly’s Creative Baking with Christina Tosi class and it’s amazing. Our first challenge was to make these cookies. They’re delicious, but ended up a bit flat/caramelized/ugly looking. The cornflake crunch*, however, is highly recommended for snacking, topping ice cream, and adding into any cookie recipe.
January 2: Vanilla Chai Mug Cake*. I wanted to make a tea-infused cake for a virtual Bridgerton watch party I had with some friends and this hit the spot! Delicious and moist. My only complaint is that it made a small amount. I’d double or triple the recipe in the future. (May have to play with cooking times a bit in that case.)
January 1: Panda Express Orange Chicken and Express Chow Mein from Damn Delicious. I wanted to try my hand at making some takeout faves, and these were both fine, but not as good as takeout (and made for a very messy kitchen). The orange chicken was a bit too orangey and the sauce was a bit too thin, but I loved the flour/cornstarch mixture for coating the chicken. Will definitely use that again! The Chow Mein was good and will be an easy base recipe to add to in the future. I think I added too many noodles so it wasn’t as flavorful. I’d make more sauce in the future. (I also added in some peas and mushrooms I had on hand and used a bag of coleslaw mix as an easy way to get the shredded cabbage and carrots.)
December 30th (Bonus, but it was so delicious, I want to include it): Beef Stifado*. This is going to become a go-to winter stew. The cinnamon and other spices also makes it feel very Christmassy. I’d love to make this a traditional Christmas Eve dinner! I used frozen pearl onions instead of shallots (it was just easier to find) and just put them in at the end (no browning). Still delicious, and the smaller onions made it easy to get one with a little bit of beef in the same spoonful.
What amounts/ratio of spices and feta do you use in your go-to roast potato mix? Sounds delicious and I want to try it!
Ooh, great question! Normally it’s just a quick shake over the pan, but I’d estimate 1/2 teaspoon salt and oregano, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, and a tablespoon minced garlic. And then right before serving, I sprinkle 1/4 cup crumbled feta and a few splashes of lemon juice over the potatoes.