Top recipes of 2014

I am just floored by the unbelievable exposure my little website has received globally. It’s humbling and a true honor. So many of these recipes have been featured and raved upon by famous chefs, cooks, movie stars, radio personnel, magazines, publications and so forth. But more importantly, you guys.. YOU GUYS raved over these recipes. To me that’s what means the most. To know that someone that doesn’t even know me personally trusts me enough to not only make one of my recipes but also rave about it to their friends, their family and their coworkers.

This past year our TKW family has grown exponentially all thanks to you… my followers, my faithful family. You believed in me, you encouraged me and you promoted us. I’ve made it my mission to not just be another recipe blog out there but rather something so much more. I wanted that open style concept… where we all just talk. Sure food is the center of it all but it’s not just that. It’s about every day life. We talk about graduation, parties, kids, pets, jobs and our lives in general. I share with you my daily life with Mr. Fantabulous and in a way, what it’s like to walk a day in my shoes. I want you to see me for me.. that girl with a huge heart, a warm & welcome smile, open arms and a virtual kitchen table where everyone is welcome.

So to you all, thank you! I love you guys! ♥

Now let’s get down to the nitty gritty, the food!

This past year I made in part of my self-improvement if you will to expand not only my taste buds but also to provide you all with bigger variety of recipes. As much as it pains me to say this, recipes that go beyond bacon (falls over from the pain) and chocolate. I know, crazy right?! LOL But I wanted to push myself. Growing up I was the PICKIEST eater EVER! There was only a handful of things that I would eat. As I got older and on my own I began to explore the world of food. Plus through the teachings my parents provided I learned to respect the ingredients. Overtime I grew to love onions – well wait, I won’t eat one raw but it’s a must in certain recipes. I began to understand how flavors marry together when cooked and while something its own may be icky (like raw onions) but say on a pulled chicken pizza with bbq sauce, caramelized onions are the best thing ever!

This year you all pretty much covered all the basic food groups (and a few more) which I love! You made some of my recipes the number one searched recipe result on all of the various search engines. Some recipes receiving over 8 million hits in a single day (WOW!). This year I went out of my comfort zone cooking-wise and bought an electric pressure cooker. Folks, I’m telling you what, this is the BEST piece of kitchen equipment I have bought in decades! Growing up pressure cookers were scary. They’d hiss and spit and my mother put the fear of God in me if I went near hers. However this year I decided to conquer that fear and get one. Not having any clue how to use it or more so what to make in it I went out and bought a book. This book not only had great recipes but it educated me (which is a HUGE bonus for me being the nerd that I am!)