The Best of 2017

The Best of 2017 – The 10 MOST POPULAR recipes on Averie Cooks in 2017!! Check to see if your favorites made the cut and what other recipes you just HAVE TO make! Plus MY personal top 20 favorites!!

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and most importantly, THANK YOU FOR YOU LOYAL SUPPORT AND READERSHIP over the years! My blog wouldn’t be where it is without you: my readers, my internet friends, and everyone who checks out my website. Thank you for clicking over and if you’ve ever made one of my recipes (or a hundred recipes for some of you), another round of big thanks and gratitude!

(We are on vacation in Puerto Vallarta right now and I just took this picture from my iPhone a few days ago.)

I haven’t done one of these ‘Best Of’ posts in about 5 years but I figured why not. It’s fun to go back and see what took off. And for the other approximately 150 recipes that I posted in 2017, whomp, sorry you didn’t make the cut.

One extremely important thing to note is this roundup includes only the top 10 recipes that I published in 2017. The brownies below are actually 132nd in popularity overall on my website, but for 2017, they’re the 10th most popular.

Also just because these 10 recipes became the ten most popular (in large part due to either a viral Facebook video or a viral Pinterest pin), that doesn’t mean they are my personal top 10 favorites or even the recipes that readers write to me day in and day out raving about.

At the bottom I’m including 20 personal favorites from 2017. With over 1500 recipes on my website, spanning nearly 9 years, I do remember them all to varying degrees, but some of them just standout as total keepers. I confined my top 20 to 2017 only to make it an apples to apples comparison.

This years Top 10

10. Starbucks Double Chocolate Brownies {Copycat Recipe} – Rich, fudgy, chewy, easy, no mixer recipe that tastes just like Starbucks!! Save money, make your own, and impress everyone you know!!

9. Pina Colada Fruit Salad – This EASY fruit salad is ready in 5 minutes tastes like a TROPICAL vacation!! The fruit is tossed in pineapple juice and pina colada mix! Guaranteed party and potluck WINNER!!

8. P.F. Chang’s Mongolian Beef (Copycat Recipe) – Make the restaurant favorite AT HOME in 20 minutes!! EASY and it has so much FLAVOR! Tastes even BETTER than the restaurant version!!

7. Easy 30-Minute Turkey Chili – Don’t have all day for chili to simmer? No problem! This EASY, hearty, healthy chili is ready in 30 minutes and it’s full of FLAVOR!! Perfect for busy weeknights!!

6. Sheet Pan Sausage and Vegetables – Fast, EASY, one pan recipe that’s full of FLAVOR!! Juicy sausage, lots of veggies, and a dusting of Parmesan cheese to finish it off! Put it into your regular rotation!!

5. Coca-Cola Cake – One cake of Coke in the cake and another can of Coke in the frosting!! EASY no-mixer cake that’s supremely moist! Tastes like a Texas sheet cake spiked with Coke!!

4. 20 Healthy Easy Dinner Recipes – Looking for healthy, easy recipes that taste GREAT and everyone in the family will love? Plenty of options here that you’ll want to put into your regular rotation!!

3. Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Bread – Super soft, tender, moist pumpkin bread with a slightly crunchy cinnamon sugar topping!! The MINI loaves are EASY, brimming will fall flavors, totally IRRESISTIBLE, and accidentally vegan!!

2. Easy Better-Than-Takeout Shrimp Fried Rice – One-skillet, ready in 20 minutes, and you’ll never takeout again!! Homemade tastes WAY BETTER!! Tons more flavor, not greasy, and loaded with tender shrimp!!

1. P.F. Chang’s Chicken Lettuce Wraps {Copycat Recipe} – Skip the restaurant version and make at home in 20 minutes!! EASY, healthier because you’re controlling the ingredients, and they TASTE WAY BETTER!!

As I scanned through the alphabetical list of 2017’s photographs, these are the ones I remember as my own personal favorites from 2017. Not surprising there’s lots of cheese, desserts, and cookies with a small smattering of savory.

My 20 Personal Favorites

Caramel Apple Crumble Foil Packets – EASY, zero cleanup, made on the grill (or oven) in record time, and tastes amazing!! Juicy apples, chewy crumble topping, and luscious salted caramel…SO irresistible!!

How To Make The Best Cheese Board – Learn my TIPS and tricks to create the BEST cheese board!! From brie to prosciutto and everything in between, this board has it ALL! It’ll be a major hit at your next party!!

Easy Chicken Shawarma Salad Bowls – An EASY version of chicken shawarma that’s fast, HEALTHY, and delish!! Fragrant spices, juicy lemony chicken, fresh veggies, and a tangy Greek-yogurt sauce that’s cooling and PERFECT!!

One-Bowl, No-Mixer, No-Chill, Extra-Large Chocolate Chip Cookie For One – An incredibly FAST and EASY recipe that produces ONE extra-large soft and chewy cookie that’s loaded with chocolate!! One bowl to wash, no mixer, and no waiting!!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Chocolate Lasagna – A chocolate chip cookie base topped with cream cheese, chocolate pudding, whipped topping, and mini chocolate chips!! An EASY layered dessert that tastes so AMAZING!!

Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Bread – Super soft, tender, moist pumpkin bread with a slightly crunchy cinnamon sugar topping!! The MINI loaves are EASY, brimming will fall flavors, totally IRRESISTIBLE, and accidentally vegan!!

Cranberry Baked Brie – EASY, 15-minute appetizer that’s filled AND topped with richly spiced orange-scented cranberry sauce!! Perfect for holiday entertaining! Salty, tart-yet-sweet, and IRRESISTIBLE!!

Crustless Cranberry Pie – FAST, super EASY, no-mixer dessert that’s perfect for holiday entertaining!! Somewhere in between pie, cake, and blondies is what you get with this FESTIVE recipe! Take advantage of those fresh cranberries!!

Halloween M&M Chocolate Chip Cookies – Super soft, perfectly chewy, BROWNED BUTTER cookies that are LOADED with M&Ms and chocolate chips!! An EASY one-bowl, no-mixer recipe that’ll put everyone in the Halloween spirit!!

Sheet Pan Honey Lemon Salmon – Make salmon at home in 30 minutes that tastes BETTER than from a restaurant!! EASY, tender, and packed with FLAVOR from the honey and lemon butter!!

P.F. Chang’s Chicken Lettuce Wraps {Copycat Recipe} – Skip the restaurant version and make at home in 20 minutes!! EASY, healthier because you’re controlling the ingredients, and they TASTE WAY BETTER!!

One-Minute Microwave Brownie – When chocolate cravings strike, make this EASY brownie recipe in one bowl, without a mixer, and it’s ready in ONE MINUTE!! Rich, FUDGY, decadent, and accidentally vegan!! (no dairy, no butter, no eggs!)

Soft and Chewy Nutella Chocolate Chip Cookies – Pillowy SOFT thanks to the NUTELLA and loaded with chocolate in every bite!! EASY cookies you have to make!!

PB & J Bars – Super soft peanut butter bars topped with strawberry jelly, peanut butter chips, and a peanut butter drizzle!! Fast, EASY, and they’ll be your new FAVORITE way to eat PB & J!!

Sea Salt Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies – Super soft, perfectly chewy, SALTY-AND-SWEET chocolate chip cookies that are AMAZING!! An EASY, one-bowl, no-mixer recipe!!

Better-Than-Girl-Scout Samoas Cookie Bars – Resembles Samoas but BETTER!! An Oreo crust topped with coconut, chocolate chips, and drenched in salted caramel!! Chewy, rich, decadent, and EASY!!

Easy Spanish-Inspired Cheese Board – Learn my TIPS and tricks to create the PERFECT cheese board!! From prosciutto to manchego and everything in between, this board has ALL the goodies! It’ll be a major hit at your next party!!

Strawberries and Cream Poke Cake – A fast, EASY, foolproof cake that looks tie-dyed from the strawberry streaks!! Super moist yet light and perfect for spring and summer parties!!

Sweet Potato and Chickpea Coconut Curry – An EASY one-skillet curry that’s ready in 30 minutes and is layered with so many fabulous flavors!! HEALTHY comfort food that tastes AMAZING!!