Top 5 Recipes of 2016 from The Food Charlatan

Here they are! The top 5 recipes published on The Food Charlatan in 2016, judging by traffic. You people have good taste! The recipes you visited most were absolutely some of my favorites from this year. 

Eric showed me this awesome meme the other day:

Photo credit

Ha! Get it!! Please tell me I’m not the only Sound of Music fan out there. I used to watch this movie all.the.time as a kid. I would watch it every time I stayed home sick from school, because it was the longest movie we owned and helped pass the time. And also so that I could dream I was wearing Liesl’s dress BECAUSE IT’S AWESOME.

I just looked up the actress who played Liesl (Charmian Carr) and realized that she passed away this year. As did Debbie Reynolds (Singin’ in the Rain) and Carrie Fisher (Star Wars, duh). So much talent!

My Dad was telling me about a list he saw of Notable People Who Died this year. Mostly actors and celebrities. But he somehow happened upon this article about another notable person who died this year, who doesn’t show up on any of the lists: D.A. Henderson, the man who led the war on smallpox and defeated it against all odds. He arguably saved tens of millions of lives. Talk about notable. Vaccines are amazing.

Are you ready for the Top 5 recipes of 2016?? No surprises here, all of these recipes have been crazy popular since the day they were posted. I only listed the top 5 with pictures, but there are links to recipes 6-10 down below as well.

NUMBER 5:

Nutella and Banana Stuffed Crescent Rolls

Okay what’s not to love here. Just roll up some banana and Nutella in crescent rolls from a can, toss in cinnamon sugar and voila! best snack ever. Or dessert. Or breakfast. Hey, I’m no judge. This recipe is sooo easy.

NUMBER 4:

Classic Shepard’s Pie

These should really be called “Mashed Potato Lovers Shepard’s Pie” or maybe “5 Pound Potatoes Shepard’s Pie.” When was the last time you ate Shepard’s Pie and thought to yourself, ‘Gee there’s just too much mashed potatoes here.’ Yeah, NEVER.

NUMBER 3:

Texas Cowboy Cookies

Can you believe I almost didn’t publish this one?? And here it is in my top 5. So funny how things work out sometimes. I love these cookies, and Eric really loved them, but for some reason I wasn’t sure if I should post them. I can’t remember if I didn’t like the photos or what. I’m weird, don’t listen to me, self.

(I’m working on a SKINNY version of this recipe right now, to be published soon, stay tuned. You know, for all you January-dieters. You’re out there, right? I’m the only one shoving in leftover Christmas cookies after breakfast still? It’s all salad and skinny muffins for you, right? Right.)

NUMBER 2:

Skinny Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Speaking of skinny. These cookies have no sugar, no white flour, and only 2 tablespoons of butter in the whole batch! This recipe is from my friend Amy’s awesome book, Healthier Chocolate Treats. (Read my review on the original post.) I’m not much one for healthy baked goods (I usually say go big or go home) but these are super tasty, and perfect for when you can’t kick your chocolate craving but don’t want to kick your diet in the actual face.

NUMBER 1 RECIPE FOR 2016:

Slow Cooker Basil Chicken in Coconut Curry Sauce

SO many of you have tried this one. It is majorly popular, and with good reason. You get a delicious creamy, coconut-y curry, all for very little effort because the slow cooker does all the simmering for you. I love to serve this with hot Homemade Naan or Roti (Buttery Indian Flatbread). It tastes great on rice but many people have successfully paired it with Cauliflower Rice. The recipes is an adaptation from a stovetop curry recipe that I posted years ago, Basil Chicken in Coconut Curry Sauce. I just made it again a few weeks ago!

Honorable Mention: 

Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Brussels Sprouts

This recipe is in the number 4 spot for all time right now on The Food Charlatan. It didn’t make it on the top 5 for the year because it was published at the very end of 2015. But this is such a great recipe, especially for the holidays! Fun fact, over 11,000 people visited this page on the day before Thanksgiving a couple months ago. Make ahead side dishes for the WIN!!

And just for fun (and because I know you love lists :) here are the top trafficked recipes numbers 6-10 from 2016:

6. Crème Brûlée Cheesecake << This is a personal favorite of mine!
7. Literally The Best Mac and Cheese I’ve Ever Had
8. The Best Pancakes I’ve Ever Made
9. Cheesy Bacon and Egg Casserole (Overnight)
10. Garlic Roasted Artichokes with Pesto Dipping Sauce

Also be sure to check out the Top 10 Recipes of All Time for The Food Charlatan, I just updated that page.

Here are the Top 5 Recipes from 2015:

And don’t forget the Top 5 Recipes from 2014:

Here are some even earlier Top Recipe posts from The Food Charlatan (like, from The Past. Get ready for some ugly pictures):

Top 20 Recipes of 2013

My Favorite Recipes from 2013

T0p 20 Recipes of 2012

Here are some Top 2016 Recipe lists from friends:

Top 10 from BellyFull
Top 10 from Baked by Rachel
Top 10 from The Girl Who Ate Everything