2020 was very much the year of the kitchen. Here we take a look back at some of the most popular recipes posted to foodandwine.ie this year that you all couldn't get enough of...
If anything good came out of 2020, it was the things that came out of our ovens.
When we look back at 2020, our stomachs will fondly remember the mountains of sourdough, the kilos of banana bread and the vats of DIY cocktails that we all indulged in. It’s been a year when our kitchens were no longer something that just came with the house and instead, our saviour. Between learning how to bake and reaping the relaxation benefits that come with it to supporting local restaurants through takeaway or DIY kits, food was at the heart of this year.
And as the year comes to a close, we thought there would be no better time than to take a trip down memory lane and discover the most popular recipes posted to foodandwine.ie this year. The FOOD&WINE archive has tens of thousands of recipes—and we publish new ones almost every day—but this year, your clicks converged.
Below, in no particular order, you’ll find the ten most popular recipes on our site in 2020—the dishes you searched for and cooked over and over.
1. Sourdough Bread
We mean, is anyone surprised? We've always seen ourselves as the kind of people who enjoy things like pottery or making nut milk, yet so often we're too busy or too stressed to do any of it in earnest. However, somewhere between the gentle push to work from home and the "stay at home" orders, we've come into more time in the house with a more urgent need than ever to make it feel safe and cosy. These hard times have made knitters, painters, and stress-bakers out of all of us. But it's baking sourdough bread, in particular, that seems to have surged as a regular household activity. Earlier this year, we reached out to Patrick Ryan for a lesson in the art of baking sourdough bread. Get the recipe, here. 
2. Margarita
It's a simple thing — limes, liquor, and salt. Yet, the margarita has the power to turn an otherwise ordinary evening into an occasion. In our current climate, where staying home is not only encouraged but government-enforced, we could all do with turning yet another dull evening at home into something fun. The thing with margaritas is there are about as many varieties as there are reasons to drink one. Do you want it frozen or on the rocks? Salt or sugar rim? Fruit-flavoured or classic? But being the purists we are, we argue that there's only one true way to drink one and that is sticking by this classic margarita recipe. Get the recipe, here.
3. Chocolate Chip Cookies
Cookies come in all shapes and sizes, of course, but we’re not talking about the crunchy, crumbly
biscuits that break apart when you bite. Rather the soft, saucer-sized, American-style chocolate chip versions you see stacked in bakery shop windows. The kind that once you smell walking down the street, you’re powerless to resist. Get the recipe, here.
4. Easy Midweek Pesto Pasta
If you didn't eat pasta at least once a week in 2020, were you even eating? We're kidding. But this quick and easy pasta was a go-to for many of us this year—and many of you. It can be served as a main dish or side dish, and you can enjoy it warm or cold (ideal for WFH lunches!). Full instructions on how to make your own basil pesto are included, or you can make it even easier and use store-bought. We have a feeling this one will be a firm favourite for much of 2021. Get the recipe, here.
5. Dalgona Coffee
Once reserved for those under the age of 30 with access to a TikTok account, Dalgona coffee became a viral trend in 2020. If you’ve got instant coffee, sugar, and water on hand, you can make this. It’ll go faster if you have a hand mixer – but a humble regular whisk, some good muscle and a whole lot of patience will get you there too. Consider this your new arm-day workout. Get the recipe, here.
6. Chorizo smashburger with blue cheese slaw
Smash burgers are the food trend taking Dublin city by storm. Thin, smashed flat beef patties often presented between squishy buns are popping up on food menus across the capital. But if the city centre is outside your 5km radius, don't panic. Get in on the smash burger trend by making these delicious and easy to prepare sliders at home. Get the recipe, here.
7. Vegan spiced black bean, kale and squash laksa
This Laksa curry is super flavorful, anti-inflammatory and truly delightful. The paste can be made at home and used whenever you want a quick bowl of soup or simple stir fry. Using spices you most likely already have in the cupboard to form the base of the paste, it is then roasted in a little oil to release the flavours. The paste, coconut milk and noodles are brought to a boil and simmered until the noodles are tender and the soup thickens. Fold in some toasted sesame seeds, mint and fresh coriander and serve. Fresh turmeric root adds the bright colour to this laksa paste but you can use ground turmeric if you cannot find the fresh root. This dish is warming and it won’t leave you hungry, thanks to a generous topping of flat rice noodles, butternut squash, cooked beans and kale. Get the recipe, here.
8. Cinnamon Rolls
Soon as everyone mastered the art of sourdough, it was then the turn of another delicious carbohydrate - cinnamon rolls. Perhaps you heard that everyone was making cinnamon rolls this year. Well, according to our data, this is the recipe they were making. Get the recipe, here.
9. Cosmopolitian
Let’s face it: at some stage of lockdown or another, you went all the way back to season one, episode
one and binge watch Sex and the City – from start to finish. While 94 episodes and two feature films may sound a lot, with a cosmopolitan in hand, you’ll be surprised how quickly time will fly. Get the recipe, here.
10. Gluten-free Moroccan orange and almond cake
The coronavirus pandemic unleashed inner bakers in all of us meaning flour quickly became as much of a sought after luxury as toilet paper. Flour was sold out of supermarkets across the country since the pandemic began, sending newly-found bakers into a tailspin. If you absolutely must bake a dessert but there’s no flour in your pantry, you have a few options: use a boxed cake mix for the base of your recipe, make a no-bake dessert or follow in the footsteps of our readers this year and make this gluten-free Moroccan orange and almond cake. Get the recipe, here.
READ MORE: It's official! Chocolate orange was the biggest food trend of 2020
