Favorite Recipes of 2013

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I’m late to posting my 2013 favorites list, but it turns out that pregnant Jess runs a bit behind on everything, so it’s actually quite fitting.  When I went back through the recipes that got the most views in 2013, most of them were recipes I would have picked as my own favorites for the year.  From my beloved spicy green beans to the pancakes that we have made every couple weeks since my dad declared them “the best” pancakes he’s ever had, here are the top 10 Inquiring Chef recipes of 2013:

10. No-Bake Speculoos Pie

Just six ingredients, but the key element of this pie is speculoos (also known as cookie butter, Biscoff…or the most addictive spread ever).

No-Bake Speculoos Pie on a blue and white plate

9. Ginger Scallion Noodles

A packet of ramen noodles gets a serious upgrade with fresh herbs and tasty sauce.  These were a hit last year for Chinese New Year.

Ginger Scallion Noodles in a white bowl

8. Crunchy Szechuan Green Beans

Spicy and a little bit sweet, I can make an entire meal out of these crunchy pan-fried green beans.

spicy green beans and rice on a blue and white plate

7. Raspberry Almond Coffee Cake

This coffee cake is filled with whole raspberries and topped with extra crumb topping.  Because who doesn’t like extra crumb topping?

taking a slice of raspberry coffee cake

6. Pan-Fried Crispy Chickpeas with Lime

Chickpeas become crispy and snack-able with a mix of spices and a squeeze of fresh lime.

fried chickpeas in a white bowl on a grey countertop

Making pie crust is not my forte, so baking lemon tarts in a sugar cookie crust turned out to be a perfect (and tasty) solution.

lemon tarts on a cooling rack

4. Vietnamese Summer Rolls with Hoisin-Peanut Dipping Sauce

I need to bring these back for the new year – so simple, but that dipping sauce is highly addictive.

dipping a summer roll into peanut dipping sauce

3. Chocolate-Dipped Banana Bread Truffles

Banana bread balls dipped in chocolate.  These last all of 5 minutes in our house.

Banana Bread Truffles in a small white ramekin

2. Pasta Salad with Feta, Tomato, Kalamata Olives and Sweet Basil Vinaigrette

This was our go-to salad last summer.  I brought it to pot-lucks, made it at the beach, and packed it in our lunches.

greek salad in a navy blue bowl and topped with basil

1. Light and Fluffy Whole Wheat Pancakes

There was no contest – these pancakes got four times the traffic as the pasta salad that preceded them on the favorites list.  It’s well-deserved – the pancakes really are that good.

a stack of pancakes topped with butter and syrup on a blue and white plate

Thank you so much for reading, commenting, and hanging out here in my virtual kitchen!  May 2014 be full of happy times, great memories, and plenty of good food.

And here are my past favorites lists:

2012 Favorite Recipes

2011 Favorite Recipes

Some of My Favorite Kitchen Tools

More of our Favorite Recipes from 2013

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About Jess Smith

Jess is the recipe creator and photographer at InquiringChef.com. She spent nearly a decade as the Chief Recipe Developer for the award-winning meal planning app Cook Smarts. Her colorful, healthyish recipes have been featured in popular online publications including Parade, Hallmark, and HuffPost.

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13 Comments

  1. Everything looks wonderful…and I feel like I have to try the whole wheat pancakes. We make pancakes a lot since my son loves it and I don’t have a waffle maker. : )

    1. Hi again – had to report back that I tried the whole wheat pancakes today. I just had to given the rave reviews! And they were terrific! The brown sugar adds a lovely deep sweetness so that we didn’t miss the butter (I was tempted to use butter instead of oil but glad I didn’t). My husband, son, and I all enjoyed it. It’s rare to find such a good pure whole-wheat pancake recipe. I used white whole wheat flour, as I usually do…thanks for sharing this. I will be making again for sure and I love another use for leftover buttermilk that I always tend to have in the fridge.

  2. Great round-up Jess! I’m loving the pasta salad, noodles, coffee cake and pancake. Pinned! 🙂 Happy New Year. I’m so glad I found your blog. I’m looking forward to see what you come up with in the kitchen. HUGS!

  3. Better late than never! So glad you posted this round up. Those pancakes do look delicious (as does everything else).