Happy New Year!  I wish for all of us a very prosperous and happy 2023. May it be filled with lots of the people and things that we love, and here in the English Kitchen that means delicious recipes and good food to eat!  (Focus being on DELICIOUS!)

I hope the coming months will be filled with lots of tasty traditional recipes intermingled with some new, some old, some healthy, and everything in between.

More and more I want my focus to be on smaller sized recipes, geared towards the smaller family, singletons, and empty nesters.  But you larger families never fear, there will be plenty stirred into the mix for you as well, and as always, I am happy to give you the measurements for a larger sized recipe if you ask!

Everybody is doing this so I thought I would just jump on the bandwagon and share what were the most popular recipes on the blog over these past twelve months!  I am sure you will be acquainted with many of them, but there may be a few that you have missed out on.

In any case, I can promise you this.  All are delicious! 

Coming in at #20:   GINGERBREAD MUFFINS.  

No surprise here. Moist and gingery with a bit of crunch from the demerara sugar sprinkle on top. A great basic gingerbread muffin that you can adapt by making a few additions if you like such as dried or candied fruit, etc.

Number 19: OLD TIME BREAD PUDDING 

This is also not a surprise. This is an old traditional recipe for a solid bread pudding that cuts like a cake and is stuffed with plenty of spice and loads of fruit. Delicious warm, but equally as delicious cold. You will see this sold by a single serving slab in many of the bake shops in the UK.  Perfect to enjoy with a mid morning or afternoon cuppa.

Number 18:  PAN FRIED COD  

I was really happy to see this one and not at all surprised. This is one of my favorite ways to prepare one of my favorite types of fish.  This simple recipe boasts wonderful flavors and a really simple cooking method. Using very few ingredients, you can be enjoying perfectly cooked and delicious fish in less than fifteen minutes.

Number 17:  GRATIN OF CHICKEN  

Who doesn't struggle with using up all of the cooked chicken leftover from a roast chicken or a rotisserie bird. Struggle no more as I have the perfect solution and it is perfectly delicious! This creamy chicken gratin recipe is also perfect for those nights when you are starving, and you want to feed your family something warm and comforting. There is nothing like a creamy chicken gratin to tick all the boxes when it comes to creating a delicious and yet simple supper dish.

Number 16:  TRADITIONAL SEED CAKE  

I am really excited about this one as it is one of my absolute all-time favorite cakes to enjoy with a hot cuppa.  It was also said to be the favorite cake of William Wordsworth's sister Dorothy Wordsworth! A good seed cake recipe would have been included in any Victorian era cookbook!  They are very traditional.

Number 15:  MARY BERRY'S MINCEMEAT BUNS  

And there is no more perfect time of the year to bake them than now, with some of us having leftover mincemeat in the larder that we be wanting to use up!  These may be baked in a muffin tin, but they are as far away from muffins as they can be. Instead they are dense fruited cakes, meant to be enjoyed with hot drinks.  Not a dessert, but an indulgent teatime treat! 

Number 14: NIGEL'S POTATOES 

I absolutely adore this simple potato dish which comes from Nigel Slater. this one is such a simple dish. It's basically just layered raw potato, fried onions and chicken stock. You don't even need to peel the potatoes. And you can adapt it up or down to serve as many or as few people as you like. I can't think of anything that this tasty side dish wouldn't sit well next to!

Number 13:  BLUEBERRY BUTTER SWIM BISCUITS 

 If you are a fan of North American style Biscuits you are going to just love this version of Butter Swim Biscuits. Butter swim biscuits are soft and fluffy biscuits that bake in a pan loaded with butter. There is no butter in the biscuits themselves, but with plenty of butter in the baking tin, you don't need it. These bake up light and fluffy with a lovely buttery crust, and crispy outside edge.   This version is particularly nice as it is stuffed with sweet blueberries and glazed with a sweet glaze.

Number 12:  BANBURY CAKES  

A close cousin to Eccles cakes these delicious pastries are not cakes at all but a round shaped flaky and buttery puff pastry turnover filled with a filling of dried fruits, butter, spices and brown sugar.  They are melt in the mouth delicious. Another very traditional recipe from the UK.

Number 11:  MARY'S PERFECT SHORTBREAD  

Another recipe adapted from Mary Berry. You just know it is the perfect shortbread biscuit/cookie. Crisp and buttery. Not too sweet.  Perfect with a hot cup of tea or a bowl of ice cream. If you are looking for a great shortbread cookie, look no further. You just struck gold! 

Number 10:  CARAMEL POPCORN TWISTS  

If you love caramel corn but are not fond of the husks on the popcorn getting stuck in your teeth, this delicious and easy recipe is the perfect solution. It uses a bag of hull-less popcorn, or popcorn twists as they are also called here in Canada, the popular brand being put out by Old Dutch. I know there is also a brand of these in America, but am not sure what it is called.  In any case I call this easy to make snack DELICIOUS with a capital 'D!"

Number 9: GREEN BEAN & POTATO CASSEROLE 

Cooked cubed potatoes and green beans in a delicious cheese sauce, topped with a buttery crumb and baked until golden brown and bubbling. This is an excellent side dish for any occasion or weeknight supper! Quite simply delicious!

Number 8: HOW TO COOK CHICKEN IN THE MICROWAVE

This is my tried-and-true way of preparing perfectly cooked chicken breasts in the microwave oven. I often buy whole packs of chicken breasts when they are on offer at the shops and poach or cook them, packing the meat into two cup containers, and freezing them. That way I always have a quantity of cooked chicken ready to use in a tasty dish at any given time. One of the easiest ways to cook this chicken is in the microwave. If you know how to cook chicken in the microwave you will never be short of cooked shredded chicken. It is very simple to do and very quick. The chicken always comes out moist and delicious. Perfect for shredding or dicing.

These are THE perfect cheese scone. I have made cheese scones before in the past and they were good, but these are excellent. Then again, what would you expect from Mary Berry! She is an expert in all things baked and otherwise when it comes to cooking. I trust her judgement explicitly!

 

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