700 recipes? 10 go-to whaaa? I know. Just, hold on. I’ll explain.
But first, hi again! 👋
It’s been a week, and there went Christmas. And I spy 2016 around the corner!
How how how how how? It’s like time is happening so super fast these days. BLINK and done.
Things have been pretty standard around here this December – me trying to juggle five too many things (it’s a lifestyle) (no, it’s a problem) and Bjork being 100% even-headed and cool about life. Opposites attract? Or something? I’ve kept things pretty quiet-ish on the blog during this last week or two, at least by my normal GOTTA POST THREE X PER WEEK standards, but I think this week of quiet was especially necessary – spending time with family rather than WordPress, Instagram, and the gang was a much-needed drink for the soul. And apparently now that’s it’s almost 2016, I say things like “drink for the soul.” See how much we have to look forward to in the New Year?
Alright, so what’s this post all about anyways? I recently had a conversation with some friends about the Chicken Wild Rice soup recipe that I have on the blog. I mentioned that this recipe was one on my short list of “Recipes I Actually Make IRL” aaannd cue many requests for more information about what recipes are actually on that list. You know, the ones that I actually make regularly in my real life.
I figured if my RL friends want to know, you might want to know, too. I mean, you’re my friends too, and if I were a reader, I would definitely want to know – like, what does this girl actually eat FOR REAL in real, regular person life?
Answer: these ten recipes.
Now, just be clear: obviously I eat more than just these ten recipes because I’m always, always, ALWAYS making new things. It’s the blessing and the curse of the job (you’re right -> “job”). I eat every recipe that finds its way onto this blog at least once if not 500x, and obviously I love it just as much as I say I love it, and it almost makes me a little sad to NOT include some big-time favorites on this list like this chicken and this pasta and this sandwich. This isn’t really an all-encompassing list of favorites, okay?
No – this list just highlights the recipes that seem to find their way back into my life again and again and again by virtue of good taste, ease, flexibility, and familiarity.
So in case you’ve ever wondered what we really eat, what I really make for friends when they come over, what foods make their way into our lunchboxes, or which recipes I cannot live without, I’m about to tell you. Out of the more than 700 recipe posts that now live on this blog, here are my 10 go-to recipes!
#1: Magic Green Sauce
You knew it was coming. You had to know. It’s just too obvious.
In my humble opinion, the 5 Minute Magic Green Sauce can single-handedly justify my existence as a blogger in 2015. We put this stuff on everything – from pizza to chips to sandwiches to toast to roasted vegetables to salads to tacos to burritos to eggs and I’ll stop there, but please know that I COULD KEEP GOING. If I’ve gone two weeks without making this sauce, it’s probably because I’ve died.
This is a STAPLE RECIPE in our lives.
#2: Crockpot Chicken Wild Rice Soup
Not to be confused with the 8 million other versions of chicken wild rice soup that I’ve posted on the blog, this is the easy version. The set-it-and-forget-it it one that I make when it’s the dead of winter and we need to breathe new life into our cold, frozen bones. It’s extremely thick and creamy, especially as leftovers, which I actually really like because I can kind of make it stretttccchhhhh over many meals by adding in a little extra water or milk to the leftovers. It’s so basic, so easy (I know the recipe by heart), and so good.
Exciting news: Bjork recently made this recipe. And Bjork doesn’t cook. You can and you must, friends. Bust out that crusty white bread and hop to.
#3: Easy Crockpot Carnitas
Throwback!
This is an old recipe that always comes in handy when we’re hosting a large group OR when I need to bring someone a meal after having a baby or being sick or moving OR when I cannot hold back my love for carnitas any longer.
You get everything set in the morning and leave for work. You walk in the door at 5pm and you have an amazing, restaurant-worthy meal in your house that you can serve to your friends and your face.
I know sometimes people skip this last step, which I understand because I am admittedly the VP if not straight up prez of the Lazy Club, but I feel the need to say that YOU CANNOT SKIP THIS STEP if you want the most delicious version of carnitas. Just before serving, pop that meat under the broiler to get it all nice and brown. It gives you a second to pull out some tortillas and lime wedges and maybe some 5 Minute Magic Green Sauce (again) and BOOM – just like that, your golden-brown, juicy-but-crispy carnitas are ready.
#4: Thai Curry Of All Shapes and Sizes
My love of curry takes many forms on the blog. I can’t even link to them all, but between the Bangkok curry noodles and red curry lentils and the emergency trips for Thai takeout when I can’t even stop with my dreams of Massaman curry, there is a lot of curry action happening over here.
One of my favorite and most used recipes of this year has been the homemade (and not overwhelming!) yellow curry paste. I thought this would be a one-time thing for me, like a check it off your bucket list that you made curry paste from scratch kind of thing, but I loved it so much that I have made the curry paste at least 4x since January. And since each batch of the homemade curry paste yields 3-4 batches of curry which yields 6-8 servings of curry… yeah. #freaks
#5: Creamy Potato Kale Soup
It’s old, the picture is a little weird, and no one thinks they’re going to like it.
Fine, I get it.
But if we’re actually going to talk about what recipes I make in real life, I’m telling you: THIS SOUP makes the cut many times over. It’s so good and so stupidly easy. It’s creamy-buttery-tasting without a lot of butter, completely velvety, and simple – the kind of simple where I almost always have all the necessary ingredients on hand – and I made a spin-off version with cauliflower if you’re uncomfortable with the green situation.
Mwah!
#6: Green Goddess Quinoa Summer Salad
Confession: I mostly make this when we order pizza so that I don’t feel quite so guilty about eating pizza for the 5th night in a row. Wait, what? Us? No. Never.
This should really be called “Pizza Night Salad.”
It’s become so much of a regular on our pizza nights (which are very, very regular) that I almost would have a hard time enjoying a slice of pizza without it. It takes about 5 minutes of hands-on time and utilizes that which I have in my fridge at all times: the Magic Green Sauce.
I dunno, would you consider that fitspo?
#7: Maple Glazed Pumpkin Muffins
I make them every fall. Multiple times. Without fail.
I also made them on TV, including that one part where I awkwardly described them as “craggly” (?) both in a good context and a negative context twice in the span of 60 seconds.
How’s that for convincing?
Pro Tip: Double the glaze. Just do it.
#8: Green Smoothie
I make one every day.
Okay, fine, lies.
But I TRY to make one every day. My go to is a scoop of mixed tropical-ish frozen fruit, a handful of spinach, water or coconut milk or almond milk, and a little bit of fresh ginger and agave. There are several versions of green smoothies on the blog but this one is the most recent and probably the most accurate to what I’m currently slurping through a prissy paper straw every morning. 💋
Winning!
#9: Whole Wheat Pancakes
We’re taking it wayyyy back to a time when I don’t even have a good vertical picture to bring you, but these pancakes need to be mentioned.
This is my go-to for Saturday breakfast!
They turn out perfectly every time. Fluffy, not overly wheat-y, and perfect for soaking up a lil’ butter and syrup. There isn’t even anything else I need to say about that.
#10: The Best Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies
This easily rivals the 5 Minute Magic Green Sauce as my most-made recipe of all time.
It also is very possible that this recipe would live at the tippy-top of a FAVORITES list. They are soft, they are thick, and they can be made in 20 minutes. I most definitely have every aspect of this recipe memorized.
It is what we bring to friends’ houses, it is what we use as the base of all other cookie desserts, it is what we make when watching movies on a Saturday night.
Is it a part of the family by now? Hard to say for sure (BUT YES).
And there they are! The 10 Go-To recipes in our real, regular life.
Because I’m a former teacher and I like to let people know these things (and because I know there are at least two of you readers out there who can appreciate these sorts of “announcements”), I just want to let you know that I have a handful of new, unusual, fun posts coming up this week. They are not recipe posts 😱 and I think you’re gonna like them. 🙌 Then Monday, January 4th we are busting out the new recipes for 2016, starting with a handful that are healthy enough to make you feel good and delicious enough to make you want to actually eat them. I’m out of my mind excited.
Until then… what are YOUR go-to recipes? Please inspire me on to greatness in my regular life, you food-lovers!
Decided to try your magic green sauce 🙂 Great post!
Kisses from http://poshnessary.com ❤
awesome! enjoy! 🙂
Omg!!! The green sauce my most absolute favorite! My husband is sick of me talking and raving about it to everyone….my daughter agrees with me….awesome….scrumtious….on everything!! Thank you!
PS….must use the pistachios….expensive but worth it!
I’m so glad you included a chocolate chip cookie recipe. Makes my heart happy! xo
Me too! 🙂 Thanks Lise!
This post just spoke to my soul.
These recipes look amazing!
Glad to hear that Olivia!
The Thai curry is to die for – lovelovelove that recipe!
Thanks Elise! Makes me so happy to hear that you liked it!
Thank you so much for this list! Sometimes when I follow blogs I get lost in all of the deliciousness there is to make (700?!!), and this gives me 13 (that chicken, pasta, and samie too!) wow recipes to start with. Actually, to be perfectly honest, I’ve already made those chocolate chip cookies about 5 times since the original post went up 🙂
hahah YES – so glad!
I love “behind the scenes” posts like this. Before I started blogging, I used to think that bloggers ate like they posted all the time. These recipes all look delicious. No wonder they’re your go tos!
I know, right? I do eat everything I post, but just not all the time. 🙂
One of my favorite go-to recipes is Cilantro Lime Rice Infused w/Garlic. It’s on my blog and I make it ALL the time. I need to really try your 5 minute green sauce!
I’m curious what crock pot you have? Mine cooks so hot I could never leave it on and come back at 5pm. I really don’t even like to leave the house with it on. It cooks so hot that it boils things on low. I really want to make those carnitas.
YUMMM that sounds amazing! And I just have a really basic, old Crock Pot (like the Crock Pot brand). It can handle loooong days of cooking, especially when it’s for slow cooked meat like that!
I’m so happy to read this right now, you have no idea! Starting a job in January where I will be commuting at least an hour each way, which means pizza nights could become veeeryyy common if I don’t do some hardcore food prep at the weekends. That’s why I’ve been thinking about recipes that a) I love b) prep well and c) freeze well. This is a great starting-off point, thank you for sharing! My list will definitely include some form of fried rice with vegetables, a variation of a Vietnamese pho, burritos (so easy to make ahead, and amazing for lunch!) and definitely some pasta. Because, well, pasta.
Glad we could help out, Johanna!
Thanks for sharing your favorites! Thai curries are always a go-to for me – easy, inexpensive, healthy, and you can throw in extra meat or veggies ou have on hand. I’m also curious to try the Creamy Potato Kale Soup sometime this winter.
Your veggie pad thai, I made it once and it is now my favorite go-to. I always seem to have what I need for it, and need to find someone that sells fish sauce in bulk because we go through it so fast now. Plus it only takes about 30 minutes from start to finish. I’m not a big meat lover but my husband is, but the pad thai manages to keep him satisfied even though it is meat free. Its a treasure.
Glad to hear that, Allie! 🙂
I make your soft chocolate chip cookies all the time! Probably a little too frequently.
Impossible to make them too frequently. 😉 Glad you like them!
I haven’t tried all these recipes yet but they certainly sound good!
Thanks Lindsay!
Hi! My FAVORITE go to recipe of yours is Chicken Tamale Pie! My friends and I are all convinced that your pie can fix everything 🙂 Definitely a staple in our house and several others!
Love hearing that! Thanks, Becky!
After reading how to make the best chocolate chip cookies I am eager to give them a go. Thanks for all the conversions to metric.
Your Pizza Night Salad has become one of my go-to’s, too! I bring it to almost any event that requires bringing a dish. Everyone in my husband’s side of the family knows that I’m going to show up with quinoa and tomatoes.
It definitely a crowd-pleaser! 🙂
The Bangkok noodles were one of my favorite recipes of the year! Like from the whole internet. I really want to make your kale and cauliflower soups but I don’t have a blender 🙁
All the more reason to get one! 🙂 Glad you enjoyed the noodles, Mani!
I totally appreciate this kind of post. So fun to see what your go to’s are!
Kari
http://www.sweetteasweetie.com
I love this list. So fun to know what you make even when the camera is off. Those carnitas DEFINITELY belong on the list, because they’re the only carnitas I’ll make! Amazing. I’ve even made a double batch (like 2 crockpots going at once) for a party and it was universally adored.
Now I’m going to have to make everything else on this list!
Definitely! 🙂 Enjoy, Lindsey!
Ooooh I can’t wait to see what you have up your sleeve for this week! NEED to try that Magic Green Sauce like, yesterday. My go-tos are definitely oatmeal and a chickpea salad with all the works thrown in – veggies, olives, avocado. Yum!!
Yum! Add magic green sauce to your chickpea salad and it will be over the top! 🙂
OK, OK! I’m going to suck it up and replace my broken food processor so I can make 5 Minute Magic Green Sauce, because what’s not to like about something that contains both avocados and pistachios? My go-to recipes are all sweets, including a soft chocolate chip chocolate cookie, and cinnamon rolls (I’m apparently on a personal mission to try out every cinnamon roll recipe I find on Pinterest!). Thanks for sharing your 10 Go-Tos, Lindsay.
Love this! I have actually wondered what you eat on a regular basis.Weird/creepy? No? Phew. I’ve been meaning to try your wild rice and chicken soup for ages! So glad you brought it up again. My go-to recipes right now include a green smoothie as well 🙂 Almost your recipe, but with a banana. Looking forward to your different, non-recipe posts! And I totally appreciate your announcements 🙂
I love this post! This is my favorite type of post because I this is just what I want to know: what is delicious, what is it I can’t miss, what should I be making all the time? So thank you for answering my burning questions! I will be making it all!
Awesome, Cara! Enjoy! 🙂
A much appreciated post! Your crunchy peanut Thai salad is still on my weekly rotation in the summer and fall. We love it!
Thanks, Camille!
This post just made me so happy. I’m a mom of a two year old and a two month old and I don’t have the time or energy to wade through recipes and then find out it wasn’t that great! Not that any of your recipes would ever not be great but it’s so nice to just have a handful of easy go-to favorites!! Thanks for this!
Glad to help, Morgan! 🙂
Yum…yum and more yum. Can’t wait to get cooking!!!