Domesticate ME!’s Top 10 Recipes of 2016

December 30, 2016 | Uncategorized

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Whelp. We made it, peeps. 2016 is (almost) officially done.

It’s been a crazy year—arguably shitty for the world but still filled with pockets of awesomeness for yours truly. It feels surreal that at this time last year I had just turned in my manuscript and was gearing up for The Dude Diet’s fancy photoshoot in LA. (I still kinda regret not wearing that power suit my first day on set.) Ahhhh, how far we’ve come.

We can talk more about ze book and the rest of 2016’s highs and lows when I empty the nets next week, but in the meantime, I thought I’d take a moment to reflect on all the deliciousness that went down on Domesticate ME! over the past 12 months. Below, you’ll find the top ten most popular recipes on the site this year as chosen by YOU (and reported to me by my bff Google Analytics). I have to say, I’m pretty proud of the creations on this list, and I’m hoping you’ll feel inspired to remake your favorites and take some newbies out for a test drive, stat. There’s no time like the present…

Domesticate ME!’s Top 10 Recipes of 2016:

1. Zucchini Noodles with Portobello Bolognese. You Gwyneths guys are so predictable. Of course this year’s most highly trafficked recipe is a low-carb, grain-free, sugar-free, spiralized, vegan recipe. I’m okay with it snagging the top spot though, since it truly is a delightful taste treat and worthy of such a high honor. (Remember when plain old vanilla chia pudding was DM’s top recipe in 2014? That was just embarrassing.)

2. Egg Roll Bowls. These veggie-heavy bowls, which are a slight riff on a recipe in Gina’s latest cookbook, legit taste like the mouthwatering mystery filling inside an egg roll but are made with exclusively good-for-you ingredients. Magic!!

3. Barbecue Chicken Quinoa Bake. If you think I didn’t have a Logan-esque excitement meltdown when I realized that a quinoa bake made the top three, you are clearly new here. Quinoa bakes are finally catching on, people!!! (You heard it here first.) This one tastes sort of like barbecue chicken pizza in trendy casserole form, and I’m beyond psyched that it has graced so many of your computer screens/tables!

4. The Dude Diet Cheeseburger Quinoa Bake. HOT SHIT!! Back-to-back quinoa bakes on this year’s list??!! Yes, yes, yassss. (I feel sort of panicky right now, but only because I have an anxiety disorder and my brain registers any form of extreme emotion as panic.) Honestly, this bake—which happens to be my favorite recipe from The Dude Diet—may have gotten a leg up since it was included in the book’s launch post, but whateva. It is my greatest quinoa creation to date (that should not be taken lightly), and I beg you to make it ASAFP if you haven’t already.

p.s. New side hustle 2017: quinoabakelady.com. #followyourdreams

5. Lemon-Coconut Energy Bites. These bites taste like lemon-coconut cake, but they won’t make you fat. (Hallelujah!) I pretty much always have a batch in my freezer, and it thrills me that you might also have some in yours.

6. Chicken Meatball Fajita Skillet. The fact that two Dude Diet recipes made 2016’s hot list warms the cockles of my wonderland body-loving heart. Because yours truly is getting a jump start on her New Year’s resolutions, I shall refrain from sharing the many ball jokes that are practically begging to be typed here and simply tell you to make this skillet immediately. Please and thank you.

7. Chicken with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Feta. God knows one can never have too many one-skillet meals in their repertoire, and this one is an excellent go-to. The recipe comes together in about 20 minutes (I swear) with mostly pantry ingredients, yet it still looks and tastes pretty damn impressive. Kudos to Andie, who inspired this weeknight winner.

8. Spicy Jicama Tortilla Soup with Shrimp. Spiralized jicama “noodles” replace tortilla chips in this lightened up version of the classic Mexican soup. The shrimp are delightful, but you could always sub chicken if you like, or keep things vegan by stirring in a cup or so of your favorite beans.

9. Zucchini Noodle Salad with Spicy Almond Dressing. People are apparently very into spiralizing things this year, and I dig it. This salad is a creamy, spicy, crunch-fest, and it’s the most exciting way to crush multiple servings of veggies in a single sitting. Get down on it.

10. Golden Bell Pepper Soup. One of my go-to sassy desk lunches, this unbelievably creamy (yet cream-less) soup is bursting with both flavor and nutrients. It’s also a great cold-buster given that it’s packed with an absurd amount of Vitamin C. Keep that in mind as we enter the polar vortex months, friends.