People have occasionally commented that they wish I’d do a cookbook, an idea which has never really appealed to me because: a) my recipes are always based on someone else’s recipes (I’m not a recipe developer), b) it’d be a lot of work, c) who needs more recipes?, and d) all my favorites are already on the blog.
For the last 15 years, this blog has been a dumping grounds for my cooking experiments, discoveries, and trusted favorites. I’ve published the recipes mostly for my own benefit; it’s my personal record, as well as a handy family resource, and I reference the (ridiculously extensive) recipe index almost daily.
But then both my older daughter and my niece told me (rather aggressively) that I ought to make a hard copy of the recipes because they’re sick of looking up recipes whenever they want to make something.
scribbled recipe notes to eliminate computer scrolling
And the truth is, I’m kinda sick of searching my blog, too. The sheer quantity of recipes is overwhelming. The search bar feature is awkward and clunky. The index is disorganized. It would be awfully nice to have a streamlined binder with all my favorite selections. But would this sort of thing — a PDF of favorites that people could print off for themselves — even appeal to anyone besides me and a few family members?
this week’s menu
Obviously, narrowing down the list to just my top 30-50 recipes would be a struggle. Maybe I’d have to do several docs, like one for breads, another for main dishes, and another for desserts? I don’t know. I’m just brainstorming…
But now I’m curious about two things:
1. How many of you actually cook from this blog?
2. If you do, which top three recipes do you reference most often?
I have way more than three — it’s more like thirty — but just for funsies, I’ll go with buttermilk pancakes, brown sugar granola, and hot chocolate mix. It’ll be fun to see if there’s any overlap with our favorites!
***
*And speaking of looking up recipes on my blog, my brother just installed a new search bar thingy and it’s soooo much better than what I had before. Thanks, bro!
This same time, years previous: the quotidian (9.12.22), Coco, lemony mashed potato salad, the quotidian (9.12.16), making my children jump.
59 Comments
shandra pacheco
I am late responding, but I want to let you that I appreciate reading your recipes so much. I am living outside the USA and I have specially used the baking recipes from when you were outside the USA (as they are affordable and made with easy to find ingredients locally) as well as your granola recipes. Thanks so very much.
Liz Lockhart
Hobo beans – the google search that led me to your fantastic blog several years ago, Beef peposo and the Amish braided bread. We love lots of your recipes but those are real favourites!
Kristen
Your Russian pancakes are on a constant rotation over here. Sometimes sweet for company breakfast, sometimes savory for a fast dinner.
Michelle Topham
We love your bruschetta recipe. We make it all summer long when we have tomatoes in our garden.
Jennifer
Omg I made the apple cake today. It’s exactly what I’ve been craving apple-cake-wise. Exceptional!
Erin
My #1 sandwich bread go-to recipe is your Brown Bread recipe. I reference your recipes often, especially when in a cooking rut. Other often-referenced favs are oatcakes, any of the curries and chicken shawarma.
Janet
Jennifer, I reference your recipes all the time!
Whole wheat zucchini bread, zucchini parmesan lasagna, blackberry cobbler and so many more.
I would buy your cookbook and one for my daughter!
Janet, Belair WA
Derrelyn Phelps
Your Butter Chicken recipe is a favorite, and I can always count on you to have delicious desserts so when I have a hankering to try something new I come here first.
Elva
Judging from all these comments, you had better write a cookbook immediately! I would most certainly buy it!
Camille in NH
Turns out I’ve lifted so MANY more than three recipes from you over the years. I’ll try to keep my favorites list short. By the way, and it’s long overdue, Thank you!
Potatoes in cream with Gruyere (dinner tonight!)
Hobo Beans
Tomatoey potatoes & green beans
Simple Lasagna
Cheesy bacon toast
Laurie L
I use your blog for recipes regularly. I don’t find it cumbersome, but I have printed a few that I like a lot. Here is what I found that I’ve printed– means I make it regularly.
Ham and Bean Soup, Vegetarian Groundnut Stew, Thai Chicken Curry, Golden Chicken Curry. Most recent new favorite- Salvations Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Marie
Embarrassing but true – the only one I’ve made is the spicy Rosemary popcorn and I’ve made it quite a bit and I think it should go in any cookbook. A bold and perhaps ludicrous position, but I gotta be me.
Melissa
Sour cream and berry baked oatmeal. I always use dried cranberries, mix the whole thing together ( minus baking powder and melted butter) and refrigerate overnight. In the morning I add the baking powder and melted butter, bake, and serve! Love it!
Tricia
best every banana bread, Italian Wedding soup and sky high biscuits
katie
Jennifer, it really seems like that $5 you spent to get that curtido recipe was appreciated by a lot of families!
Jessica
There are really so many, but if I must…granola (my family’s fave), honey baked chicken, (I could drink that sauce) and the lemony meatballs-they are my favorite meal to bring to friends. Definitely make a cookbook!!
Linda
Rhubarb cake, orange cranberry scones, red lentil coconut soup are all favorites.
Genevieve
Chickpeas with spinach (my favourite quick dinner, a crowd pleaser and always fantastic topped with a fried egg as you recommended), raspberry ricotta cake and (embarrassingly) 7 minute egg…
Lauralli
I can’t do 3 because 5 are my favorites: sourdough crackers, crispy baked hash browns, pesto torte, $5 curtido, & Italian wedding soup. So many more things I’ve made and more still I have yet to try but want to!
Greta B.
Top faves:
Pots de crème
Swiss chard and sweet potato gratin
Lemony asparagus with crème fraiche
Roasted tomato sauce
Barbara M (CO)
I can’t believe nobody’s mentioned your best-ever recipe: Sour Cherry-Rhubarb Crunch!!!!
Cat
I want to add that I made your meatloaf last night, so good!
Jennifer in CA
Your blog is always one that I search through when I’m looking for a specific recipe or working through an idea. I trust your cooking so much! The first recipe I made of yours was cinnamon raisin bread, which is still exactly how I make it. I also use your jammy oat bars recipe (a common thread in the comments!), and your granola and scones recipes whenever I make those. Scrolling through your recipes today, now I want to make them all! Would love a pdf by category.
Margaret
I regularly get recipes from your blog! One favorite is roasted cauliflower soup with curry. (Not sure that’s the name) make it all the time and it’s always delicious!
Cat
The pepperoni roll sand the bread recipe to make them! I love all the recipes that get posted though.!
Carol S-B
I love so many of your recipes. I often cook from your blog. I’d buy a PDF (so easy to ship) or a cookbook. You and Julie V-R are my go-to’s when it comes to darn near anything!
Aimee
Soft tortillas!!
Candi R
I’ve read your blog probably since my late teens and continue to come back for the stories of motherhood, past trips out of the US, & cooking adventures.
I often search your dessert repitorie at Christmas time, we adore your Oatmeal Raisin Cookies and Eggnog. Other go to recipes are Shannon’s Creamy Broccoli Soup and Dinner Pie (Quiche). You’re YouTube video of pie crust methods is also very useful.
katie
We share a lot of the same approaches to cooking so I gather a lot of ideas from you, but often don’t use specific recipes. That said, some of your stuff has become so basic to my cooking that I don’t even think of them as coming from you anymore:
Roasted Tomato Sauce
Cranberry Orange Pie (I think this was you? I can’t find it right now.)
Nova Scotia Oatcakes
Vanilla Cream Cheese Braids
And on the rare occasion I make ice cream, I tend to pull from your recipes
I like that you filed “fruit cobbler” under main dishes.
BeckyJ
I love your recipes and usually go to your blog for ideas 🙂
Some of my go-to’s are lemon honey ginger tea (a must when I’m sick!)
Farmer boy pancakes
Pepperoni rolls
Jammy bars
Jenny S
I just made 2 batches of Refrigerator Bran Muffins last week and your Italian Wedding Soup is a fall favorite of ours.
For recipes that I want to try (both from here and other places on the internet), I usually print out a hardcopy and if I like it, then it goes into my trusty 3-ring binder.
esther
Ground nut stew, thai chicken red curry, the 5 dollar curtido! definitely want to try the pepperoni rolls and the pesto torte.
Melinda Armentrout
Jammy Bars, Roasted Pasta Sauce (the ONLY one I can and make fresh as well), Cherry Bounce, Lemon Cream Cake, Italian Cream Cake. Honestly anytime I want something different than my normal personal go-to recipes, I search yours!
Janelle Myers-Benner
Sky High Biscuits!!!!! But not reading all these comments, I want to try a bunch of other things. I would definitely utilize a pdf compilation of recipes!
Kate Quinn
Guayaba Bars!!!!!
JS
Lemon lentil soup, butter chicken, soft sourdough sandwich bread, sourdough English muffins, baked oatmeal, chickpeas and spinach, whole wheat zucchini bread, sloppy joes.
That’s more than 3, but those are the ones I know off the top of my head are in rotation in my kitchen! I always check the blog when I’m needing inspiration. I have thought also of printing recipes for my family, but I’ve just saved them all on an Evernote account for now.
TrishJ
I cook from your blog at least 10-12x/month! My favorites: pepperoni rolls, 5-minute bread, all your sourdough recipes, and “I’m in Love” potatoes with cream & gruyere. I’ve been following your blog for ages and I found you when you were mentioned in a post somewhere else on free-range parenting – maybe 14ish years ago?
Virginia
Saucy Cilantro, Whole Wheat Zucchini Bread, Baked Mac and Cheese
John H
Buttermilk Pancakes, Brown sugar Syrup, & Granola
Jen in MN
I usually go for the desserts. I loved the peach bourbon rosemary pie (not sure that’s the exact name!). I also loved the banana pudding and the almond amaretto pound cake. Also the soft sourdough bread recipe as cinnamon rolls. Oops, that’s four. 🙂
Charlsey
World’s best pancakes (remind me of how my granny used to make them and I refuse to use another recipe)
Oatcakes
Classic bran muffins
But I must say, I have been itching to try your raisin bread for several years now. I just don’t know how to dial back the recipe to make a smaller batch. But it’s on my list of recipes to try, among several others of yours 🙂
Amy in Oregon
Tamales!!!!!!
Dulce de leche
Peanut butter jelly bars
Top 3. bagels, pizza dough/rolls round out the top 5.
I do dream about your cheesemaking tho
Deborah R
I think the latest 3 I’ve made are bacon-wrapped jalapenos, honey baked chicken (frequently requested by my granddaughter), and your flour tortillas (a staple), but many of your recipes are my go to and when I’m looking for a recipe I often check your site to see if you have a version of what I’m looking for.
Lizzy Williams
YES! Jammy oat bars, pesto torte, and all the bread.
zoe
roasted tomato sauce, jammy oat bars, pesto torte
Miriam
Pesto torte, jam bars, and pretzels!
Barbara W
Pesto Torte- Pesto Torte- Pesto Torte! I now make four of these tortes every summer. My family and friends literally swoon over it!
Shoshana
Oh, I wish I had kept track! A couple memorable ones off the top of my head: cabbage curtido, curry potato salad.
Wil
I’ve made many of your recipes! Mainly bread or cakes (of any kind!) and farmer boy pancakes.
SDB
I have written down/printed off Lemony Lentil Goodness and Cream Puffs, and have referred repeatedly to Dutch Puff.
Shoshana
Ditto to a red lentil lemon onion mustard seed idea served with rice and spinach
mommychef
Pumpkin cranberry cream cheese muffins
Thai Chicken Curry
George Washington Carver Sweet Potato Soup
(And anybody who ever asks me for a fool proof pastry recipe, I send them to you)
Nicole
soft sourdough bread (it’s a staple here)
chocolate scones
coffee cake
these are just a few but i’ve made a lot more. your recipes are ridiculously delicious.
Katherine
I’ve been reading for years and I do make some of the recipes. Here are my top three:
Granola Bars
Apple Strudel
Kate’s Enchiladas
Lori in CT
I have bookmarked so many of your recipes through the years. I have made 1) mud cake, 2) Kate’s enchiladas, and 3) jammy oat bars multiple times.
Lynn Christine Hull
Definitely Korean beef, it’s in my recipe box now. I also like cherry bounce and the pesto torte. I’d buy a pdf or book too!
Hattie
I salute your baking prowess and have enjoyed many of your recipes in that domain. My top favorites include:
1. Orange Cranberry Scones
2. Raspberry Ricotta Cake
3. Brown Sugar Rhubarb Muffins
All three (and more!) are in my recipe folder on my laptop. I’ve pretty much given up on
hard cover cookbooks.
Elaine
I read and enjoyed your blog for years but never comment – so here goes!
Dutch Puff
Honey Baked Chicken
Pesto Torte
And I would definitely buy a cookbook!
Jessica H
Sweet and sour lentils, smoky chickpeas (to find this recipe I always google “jennifer murch a logical progression,” you would think I’d have it memorized by now if I have the post title memorized), and vegetarian groundnut stew