Seasonal Sundays (Week 52) Best of 2023

For this the last week of 2023, let's take a look back at readers' favorite recipes plus — ta da! — Kitchen Parade's brand-new "most useful recipe" plucked from 2023's new recipes. I had a hard time picking just one but in the end, the choice was not only obvious but perfect — and hope that you will agree?! And then to finish out the year, I've gathered a few quick recipes ideas for you: think greens and black-eyed peas for "good fortune" in the New Year. It's been a good year, 2023 ...

~ Skip Straight to the Good Stuff ~

~ PIN This ~

Welcome to Seasonal Sundays ...

THANK YOU for stopping in today ... and last week and next week too. "I appreciate you." I do ... and always love hearing from many of you throughout the week. Don't be a stranger!

Most of all, thank you for sharing this year with me. Your presence, your comments, your notes, your encouragement all fuel a continuing commitment to simple food prepared well following the seasons and ever mindful of household food budgets.

See you next year!

About the Photo By Popular Request, a Little Insight into the Top Image: Before Christmas, my husband and I (and a kazillion others) wandered the magic that is the wonderful Garden Glow at the Missouri Botanical Gardens, one colorful tableau after another. Mostly, there's no capturing the beauty but this sweet gum? Wow.

In Praise Of ...

• ... What the Meadowlark Took by Hank Shaw, one of the very loveliest (and loneliest) pieces of Christmas writing ever ... make this is slow read and then, just maybe, take a slow walk

What's New?!

Wondering about a recipe from the last while? Check Recent Recipes from Kitchen Parade and Recent Vegetable Recipes from A Veggie Venture.

• THE RECIPE Overnight Coffeecake Mix the night before, bake in the morning to serve warm. (PIN This)

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2023 in Review: The One & Only Single-Most Useful Recipe of 2023

Twas a tough pick but in the end, this simple recipe is the obvious choice. It's an easy DIY, it replaces pricey (and oh-so-salty and mostly expensive water) store-bought alternatives, it uses only a few everyday ingredients and is made almost entirely hands-off! See what I mean? So obvious! And here's a surprise, its inspiration was published exactly 10 years earlier!

• THE MOST USEFUL RECIPE of 2023 No-Big-Deal Vegetable Stock for the Slow Cooker Just 4 common vegetables, just 3 hours. (PIN This)
• THE MOST USEFUL RECIPE of 2013 No-Big-Deal Homemade Chicken Stock How to turn making chicken stock from a production into No-Big-Deal.

• THE COLLECTION Best-Ever “Most Useful” Recipes 2002 – Present Just one recipe per year.
• AND ANOTHER All Recipes, Sorted by Year

The Runner-Ups

• THE RECIPE Twenty-Minute Taco Bar Start to finish, start to feast. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Oaxaca Tlayuda (Mexican Flat Tacos) Easy, healthy build-your-own crispy baked tortillas. (PIN This)

• THE RECIPE Easy Easy Magical Jello Bites Guaranteed to make kids' eyes light up! (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Reindeer Rations aka Dog Chow for Kids, Bunny Pellets & Black Cat Bites

2023 in Review: Readers' Favorite Breakfast Recipes

• BEST NEW RECIPE Manna Café Oatcakes (Oatmeal Pancakes) Famous pancakes from a much-missed restaurant. (PIN This)
• FAVORITE OVERALL Green Chile Scrambled Eggs An easy, healthy breakfast.
• ALL KITCHEN PARADE breakfast & brunch recipes, super-organized with quick & healthy breakfasts; make-ahead breakfasts + meal prep breakfasts; breakfast drinks; breakfast smoothies; breakfast eggs; breakfast meats; breakfast pancakes; breakfast french toast; quiche, tarts, bread pudding, stratas & casseroles; breakfast oatmeal; breakfast breads; breakfast fruits.

2023 in Review: Readers' Favorite Appetizer Recipes

• BEST NEW RECIPE Homemade Pub Cheese Cheddar + beer + horseradish = casual bar food at home. (PIN This)
• RUNNER-UP Easy Brussels Sprouts Bites Grab the toothpicks! Surprisingly popular at parties! (PIN This)
• ALL KITCHEN PARADE appetizer recipes, super-organized with "meal" appetizers; nuts; portable snacks; crackers; social shareables; spreads, scoops & dips; first courses; small bites & finger foods; crudités

2023 in Review: Readers' Favorite Dinner Recipes

• BEST NEW RECIPE Charcuterie for Two Practical tips and ideas for convivial meals for special occasions. (PIN This)
• RUNNER UP Hurricane Rice with Shrimp & Sausage A Cajun skillet, on the table in 30 minutes. (PIN This)
• ALL KITCHEN PARADE main dish recipes, super-organized by protein source plus meatless meals; salad suppers; sheetpan suppers; freezer meals and of course, Kitchen Parade's famous Quick Suppers.

2023 in Review: Readers' Favorite Side Dish Recipes

• BEST NEW RECIPE Simple Roasted Mushrooms A surprising side dish, easy meal prep. (PIN This)
• RUNNER-UP Easy-Easy Artichoke & Tomato Salad Make it quick, make it your own. (PIN This)
• ALL KITCHEN PARADE side dish recipes, super-organized by beans; whole grains; grits; pasta; rice; savory chutneys & sauces.

2023 in Review: Readers' Favorite Sweet Recipes

• BEST NEW RECIPE Thanksgiving Cake One cake with fall's favorite flavors: apple, pumpkin, cranberries and warm fall spices. (PIN This)
• RUNNER-UP Fresh Blueberry Cookies A fun summer cookie, bursting with blueberries. (PIN This)
• ALL KITCHEN PARADE super-organized by cookie recipes; dessert recipes; ice cream recipes; recipes for pies & tarts plus many easy sub-categories.

2023 in Review: Readers' Favorite "Extra" Recipes

• BEST NEW "EXTRA" IS FOR THE BIRDS Hummingbird Food Just sugar and water in the right ratio. It's fun! (PIN This)
• RUNNER-UP IS FOR HUMANS Carrot-Jalapeño Quick Pickle Relish Easy to make, handy to use.
• ALL KITCHEN PARADE Little Extras That Make All the Difference

The Kitchen Parade Almanac: Looking Ahead ...
Because Whoah, It's Almost 2024. (WHOAH.)

• December 26th (today!) - Boxing Day
• December 31st (Sunday) - New Year's Eve
• January 1st (Monday) - New Year's Day
• Jan 7th (first Sunday) - Alanna's Take Down Christmas (or Else) Day
• Jan 15th - MLK Day
• February 10th (2024) - Chinese New Year
• February 13th - Fat Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday / Pancake Night
• February 14th (Wednesday) - Valentine's Day
• February 14th - Ash Wednesday / Beginning of Lent
• Fridays During Lent - Friday Fish
• February 19th (Monday) - President's Day
• February 29th (Thursday) - Leap Day 2024
• March 1st - Alanna's Unofficial First Day of Spring
• March 10th - "spring forward" time change
• March 14th - Pi Day
• March 16th - St. Urho's Day
• March 17th - St. Patrick's Day
• March 19th - First Official Day of Spring
• March 28th - Opening Day!
• March 31st - Easter (yikes! soooo early!)

Déjà Vu

Something useful ... or thoughtful ... or interesting ... or fun ... from Seasonal Sundays, this same week in 2022.

NEW YEAR'S WITH KIDS Set the clocks ahead by two or three or even four hours, then break out the bubbly and noisemakers just before what's really ten or nine or even eight o'clock. Then go to bed! PS It works! Best sleep ever ...

SEASONAL INSPIRATION: Lucky Greens & Other Foods for Good Fortune in the New Year

• THE RECIPE Lucky Black-Eyed Pea Salad Ensure good fortune in the New Year.
• ANOTHER TAKE Summer Black-Eyed Pea Salad Looks like, tastes like, bites like – summer in a bowl! But make it any time of year.

• THE RECIPE Lucky Black-Eyed Pea Soup Ensure good fortune in the New Year.
• ANOTHER TAKE New Year's Soup with Black-eyed Peas & Collard Greens Healthy & satisfying vegan soup after holiday indulgence.

• THE RECIPE Braised Collard Greens Slow-cooked on the stove until almost buttery.
• ANOTHER TAKE Simple Swiss Chard How to sauté chard in a skillet, just three ingredients.

• THE RECIPE Slow-Cooked Greens & Smoked Turkey So good, you'll want to eat the pot. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Red Beans & Rice Slow-cooked Creole comfort food. (PIN This)

• THE RECIPE New Year's Soup with Black-eyed Peas & Collard Greens Healthy & satisfying vegan soup after holiday indulgence.
• ANOTHER TAKE Hoppin' John Soup A double dose of good luck for the New Year. Use up leftover ham!

Compliments!

• GREAT IDEA! "Have you ever had your cranberry cookies still frozen? DIVIIIIIIINE ..." ~ my sister
• THE RECIPE Fresh Cranberry Drop Cookies Cookie bites bright with fresh cranberry, sweet orange and toasty pecans.

Looking Back ...

• Show-Stopping Desserts (Week 51) (PIN This)
• A Toast to Cranberries (Week 50) (PIN This)
• Taking It Sloooow (Week 49) (PIN This)
• December Bucket List (Week 48) (PIN This)
• Holiday Salads (Week 47) (PIN This)

Don't Be a Stranger ...

I'd love to hear from you. Comment, send me a quick e-mail (my current address is in the FAQs), dot-dash in Morse code, build a fire for smoke signals, launch a message in a bottle, send a Christmas letter, get the dog to yip, toss me a note wrapped in a rubberband, write a message in the sky, scratch a note in the sand, listen to a seashell, tuck a question into a plastic Easter egg, whatever.

• Any ideas for Seasonal Sundays? Share away!
• Did you make something extra-good this week?
• What's your favorite memory from this Christmas?
• What's on your New Year's resolutions?
• Or do you (like me) choose a Word of the Year? I'm thinking, I'm thinking ... yes, still thinking.
• Anything else? Chime in, chat away.

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Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail, you'll find my current address in the FAQs. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. When you make my recipes, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below or better still, on the specific recipe's page.

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2023