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On this last morning of 2013, I'm counting you all in my blessings. Thank you for the laughs, the encouragement, the tears, the fun and the FOOD all year long! Your comments and emails mean more to me than you will ever know. I grin every single time you take a moment out of your day to let me know you made one of our recipes! I wish you all a wonderful New Year, full of great memories, wonderful food and fun times spent with the people you love.

These are the recipes that were viewed the most frequently here on Barefeet In The Kitchen this past year. (I'll be sharing my own personal favorite recipes from 2013 later this week.) In the meantime, counting down from #13 to #1, here are the Top 13 Recipes from 2013:

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Some of the best food I've ever eaten has been delivered by friends and strangers in a time of sickness or exhaustion. A meal brought to your door on a night when you have no energy to cook says that someone is thinking of you. My friends Ashley and Ryan from Center Cut Cook received the news a few days ago that Ryan has cancer. Many miles separate us and I can't deliver a meal to their door; so I'm participating in a virtual potluck for them today.

I hope that there are friends near them to deliver a meal and hug them both as Ryan recovers from surgery and starts treatment this coming year. While they are facing those treatments over the coming year, our blogger friends are getting together to help raise a little money to help Ashley and Ryan. You can click here to make a donation (every dollar helps).

Are you overwhelmed at the thought of delivering a meal to another family? I used to be the same way. As a newlywed, a friend called and asked me if I would take a meal to another family. I agreed to do that and then panicked. I called my mom and arranged for her to prepare the meal I was supposed to deliver!

What I wish I'd known then is that the meal doesn't need to be complicated. A simple pot of soup or a dish of pasta can be appreciated beyond words. Wondering what kind of meal to give? Today I'm sharing some of our favorite meals to deliver, from soups and stews to crock-pot meals, pastas, and casseroles. (I'm including tips for transporting each one as well!)  Hopefully this post will inspire others to step outside their comfort zone and take a meal to someone near them in a time of need.

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Merry Christmas! I'm taking a blogging vacation from now until the first week of January. I'm going to curl up on the couch, read as many books as I can, make our favorite recipes without taking a single picture, find some snow to play in, and watch lots of movies while snuggled into warm blankets. Family will be visiting and there will be plenty of board games played at night. I plan to enjoy every single moment of my favorite two weeks of the year!

Want a peek into our holiday? Follow me on Instagram for a daily glimpse into our fun! I'll be sharing recipes on Facebook throughout the break and you can message me there or reach me  via email with any questions you might have.

If you're looking for recipe inspiration, I'm sharing some of my meal plan for the next two weeks. These are a few of our favorite recipes and I can hardly wait to enjoy them again! Click on any of the photos or the links to see the original posts.

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Chocolate cake with chocolate icing is one of my favorite desserts. This is a well documented fact, because this is the seventh chocolate cake recipe on the blog. I officially promise to refrain from posting another chocolate cake for at least the next few months, okay? They are hard to resist though! When a reader emails you (Thanks, Julie!) with her grandmother's Best Ever Sour Cream Cake recipe, it's hard not to hit the kitchen immediately.

This cake is every bit as good as promised! Rich chocolate cake, extra moist from the scoop of sour cream, is then topped with a rich and creamy chocolate icing glaze. Despite the length of the ingredient list, this is a simple recipe. If you're a fan of the classic Texas Sheet Cake, you'll want to try this version; it is slightly more moist with an icing closer to a pudding than a frosting. This cake was an enormous hit with everyone who tasted it.

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I'd like to introduce you to my new favorite cocktail. The Moscow Mule has a strong lime twist with a mild ginger beer background. The drink is made with a very simple combination of lime, vodka and ginger beer. This is the perfect drink when you want something refreshing and not overly sweet.

Have you tried ginger beer? I had never heard of it before now. Ginger beer is non alcoholic and it has a stronger ginger flavor than ginger ale. It is a fermented drink, making it less carbonated and less sweet than ginger ale as well. I absolutely love it.

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Dried cherries, dark chocolate and Chex® cereal combine to make one of my favorite new snacks this holiday season. Does your family love Muddy Buddies® as much as mine does? Years ago, my best friend introduced me to the addictive snack and it has made a regular appearance in our kitchen countless times since then. I typically make a half batch or smaller, simply because I can't be trusted to stay out of it myself. It disappears ridiculously fast!

When Chex® asked me to create a new party mix recipe, I could hardly wait to play with that idea. This fun twist on our family's recipe was inspired by a late night craving for Black Forest Cake. As my boys were snacking on this, one of them declared this version, "27 Thumbs Up!" Considering that 2 thumbs up is a huge success, I'm calling this a new family favorite.

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There is just something about tomatoes and Italian spices simmering that never fails to make me smile. Luckily for me, everyone in my family shares this love of Italian flavors. One of my favorite meats to include in a soup is sausage. If you choose a spicy or hot variety, the sausage alone will bring a great deal of flavor to the soup. Along with some tomatoes, beans and baby spinach, this was a really great combination of flavors that every member of the family enjoyed. My middle son ate three bowls of this soup and told me twice that it was a two thumbs up meal.

This is a flavorful, quick and simple soup that can be on the table, start to finish in about half an hour. This soup has been a  favorite in my family for a couple years now and it has become one of my favorite meals for busy nights. The recipe requires just five or so minutes of hands on time. It comes together so easily and turns out perfectly every single time!

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Rich and creamy mint chocolate fudge loaded with bites of marshmallow is a combination that proved altogether too tempting for me! I've completely fallen in love with Five Minute Fudge. The fudge turns out smooth and creamy without all of the traditional time spent stirring the pot on the stove!

My plan was to make a few batches early in the month for gifting, but I wound up sending it off to work with my husband. I couldn't stay out of it! It's a good thing it isn't candy-making season year round, right? Just the tiniest piece satisfied me... for about an hour. Then I'd find myself back in the kitchen slicing off another teeny sliver. This is dangerously rich, sweet and tempting!

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From the crunch of the sugar crust on the bottom, to the juicy cranberries, to the flaky cake layer on top; this is cranberry dessert heaven. This recipe was sent to me by a reader, Maureen. She saw our Cranberry Christmas Cake on Facebook and thought we might like this pie. She was right. My whole family LOVED this pie and I even ate it again for breakfast. It proved to be irresistible!

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Have you ever had a food experience that you know you'll never forget?  I was lucky enough to get to work with an amazing chef, talking flavors, tradition, and posole on my recent trip to New Mexico. Posole is a special dish, traditionally served between October and December. A simple stew made from pork and hominy; it's a celebratory dish typically served for weddings, holidays and other special occasions.

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Rich, creamy over-the-top peanut buttery fudge is so easy to make, you might laugh. My brother tasted this at my house last week and called the next night for the recipe. I gave it to him and he couldn't believe this was all there is to it. This is one of the best peanut butter fudge recipes I've ever tasted, and it is beyond simple to make.
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Salty pretzels, buttery toffee and rich chocolate are layered into this easy to make candy. The combination is irresistible. I'll be sending the rest of this toffee to my husband's office tomorrow, because I can not stay out of it!

This will keep nicely in the refrigerator for a few weeks, provided you can resist eating it. Toffee is one of my favorite food gifts to make for the holidays. You know what else is great about this toffee? It requires NO candy thermometer. The only special equipment you need is a brown paper bag.

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Almost a year ago, I ran across a recipe for Reuben Soup. I mentioned it to my husband at the time and he did not let me forget it. His all-time favorite sandwich is the classic reuben; rye bread piled high with corned beef, sauerkraut and melting Swiss cheese. This soup takes all of those flavors and combines them in a steaming hot bowl of soup, perfect for these chilly nights.

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Cream Cheese Mints bring back a flood of childhood memories for me. I remember sneaking to the dessert table more than a few times during my cousin's wedding reception and discovering these amazing little mints. After that, I ate myself sick on them almost every time they were in reach. When I first learned how easy they are to make, I couldn't believe they were so simple; just three ingredients and you can dress them up however you like.


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Rich, creamy hot cocoa can be made from scratch with barely two minutes work. You might be asking yourself why anyone would want to use the crock-pot to make hot chocolate. As it turns out, it's kind of nice not to hover over the stove stirring a pot!

I combined everything in the slow cooker when we started pulling out our Christmas decorations this weekend. By the time the tree was decorated, we had hot chocolate ready and waiting for us. If you prefer a stove-top recipe, this Simple Homemade Hot Cocoa is an awesome winter treat as well.

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This is a melt in your mouth, smooth and creamy fudge; rich with dark chocolate and almonds. I fell head over heels for the combination of almonds and chocolate this past summer when I couldn't stop making Double Chocolate Almond Ice Cream. The almond flavor is subtle and  it takes a moment to realize what makes the chocolate flavor special. If you haven't tried it yet, I highly recommend swapping almond for vanilla next time you make your favorite chocolate cake. It is a fantastic way to change up your favorites.

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