Top 5 of 2012

Well, we made it! We bested the Mayans (as far as I know..) and here we are once again at the end of another year. Before we look ahead to '13, let's take a look back and see what 2012 brought us.

2012 was a bit of a slower year here in this slice of web. Between losing my #1 taste tester and a having major burnout, it's been a bit of an adjustment to get back into the swing of things. Don't worry. Boyfriend's still around! Well most of him at least--there's about 90 pounds of him missing now. He began the year with the serious commitment to lose weight, and almost a year later, he's lost about a third of himself! With him as inspiration and motivation, I attempted to cut out some of the sweets and junk in my life too, which kept me out of the kitchen, but left me almost 10 pounds lighter than last year. (Well, I was, until I went full-on Cookie Monster on the Christmas cookies..)

The time I was in the kitchen was well spent. I learned to can and make jam, which netted me 2 ribbons at the Ohio State Fair this year-- a 2nd place ribbon for my Honey Chipotle BBQ sauce and a 1st place Blue Ribbon for Cherry Jam! (I also got a 2nd place ribbon for my Chocolate Chip Cookies with Cream Cheese and a 3rd place for my Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies.) I also got to put together a dessert table for a wedding shower and bake for a rehearsal dinner too! When I wasn't learning how to do brand new things, or party baking, I was whipping up some delicious treats to share with you all. As far as I can tell, you guys seemed to enjoy what I shared, because a whole lot more of you showed up this year compared to last year! So without further ado, I present to you--the Top 5 recipes of 2012!

#5 - My personal favorite of the year-- Lemon Pull Apart Bread

 I still dream of this bread and its sweet, carby deliciousness. This bread is the destroyer of diets and fitness dreams. It sings its siren song, just begging you to pull off another piece, and before you know it, you're standing at the kitchen counter devouring half the loaf. Bake this bread with caution.

#4 - Identity Crisis Cookies

What happens when you combine a peanut butter, oatmeal, and chocolate chip cookie together? You get an amazing hybrid that will keep you grabbing for more. 

#3 - Vanilla Almond Cupcakes

Sometimes you just need to get back to the basics to get back into the groove of things. It's like hitting the reset button when you start to feel overwhelmed. A very tasty reset button. That I want to keep pressing over and over again.

#2 - Lemon Pound Cake

2012 was the year of simple flavors. Don't get me wrong--I'm all for questionable flavor combos, but classic flavors are classics for a reason. They're tried and true and rarely go out of style. Lemon is one of my top classic flavors! 

And the #1 most popular recipe of the year -- Chocolate Salted Caramel Thumbprints

This post has a special place in my heart because these cookies were the very first pictures taken with my brand new camera. Is it weird to have an unhealthy attachment to an inanimate object? Cause I do. I also have an unhealthy attachment to these cookies. Chocolate and caramel are meant for each other. 

And I have to give an honorable mention to two posts that weren't from this year, but have been the top 2 most viewed posts of 2012 thanks to a HUGE boost from Pinterest!

Caramel Pretzel Bites and Peppermint Sugar Cookie Bars. These two posts, because of Pinterest, gave my humble little site a nearly 300% increase in visits over last year. So THANK YOU to everyone who shares my posts with your world! It means the world to me. You seriously blow my mind. And a big, humongous thank you to everyone who stopped by this year and to all those who left sweet, wonderful comments here, in my inbox, and on my Facebook page! Here's to an awesome 2013! 

Did your favorites make the list? What would you like to see more of in the coming year?