It’s been a fun 2017 here at The Cook’s Digest. We won a blogging award, had a recipe go viral and expanded our horizons . So here’s our best nine cooks of 2017 …

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I chose these nine recipes and blog posts based on their popularity, how much I enjoyed writing them and also the finished dish (where appropriate). I also consulted my wife before deciding the final list. So in ascending order …

9 – Madeira and Mushroom Steak Sauce

This was one of my wife’s inventions, the Madeira and mushroom sauce is hands down the best steak sauce I’ve had.

8 – Smash Burgers – Umami and Pork and Chorizo

We discovered the inventive smash burger technique this year. Okay so I’m cheating a little here as we created umami smash burgers and pork and chorizo smash burgers, but it’s just impossible to choose between them. Even the cats loved them equally.

7 – Over The Top Smoked Chili

This post went viral in the late summer. The Over The Top Chili recipe had more hits that the homepage, and accounted for 20% of all traffic to the blog this year. And it was only published in August. I cooked this for a going away party for a good friend, everyone there loved it.

6 – Wild Garlic Leaf Pesto Sauce

How an ingredient change can make something so much better, the wild garlic leaf pesto sauce is incredibly versatile. We’ve used it in many dishes throughout the year.

5 – Seared Pork and Chorizo with Sweetcorn Puree

A superb combination of flavours led the seared pork and chorizo with sweetcorn puree to be our favourite overall meal recipe this year.

4 – Smoked Cheese

I still remember the day our local supermarket stopped selling smoked Wensleydale. And also thinking “hey, I’ve got a smoker at home, maybe I can smoke my own cheese.” Turns out that I could, and it tasted so good. I gave some smoked cheese to a friend at work for Christmas, she devoured it.

3 – Bone Marrow Glazed Steak

Also known as reverse twice-seared rib-eye steak, the bone marrow glaze technique is easily the best steak innovation of the year.

For the last two recipes, they hold something special for me as they have been a part of my journey of culinary discovery from almost the very beginning. So in second place …

2 – Smoked Scotch Eggs

One of my first eye-opening moments was the chef Gareth Webster explaining how simple it was to make scotch eggs. The smoked scotch egg recipe is (probably) the end of a fun and exciting journey, unless I find anything new to try.

And the recipe or blog post that ranks #1 for both myself and my wife this year is …

1 – Crusty Artisan Bread

I started out this journey in cooking with bread, and the Crusty Artisan Bread post is the pinnacle of personal achievement in this area (combined with the Inverted Dutch Oven Bread technique).

It was also the second most popular recipe post, after Over The Top Chili.

Thanks for reading, thanks for visiting, a big thanks to everyone who has made these recipes and the feedback you’ve given. As always, if you’d like help with anything, or want to discuss anything on the site, please contact us. And here’s to a great 2018!