Can you believe another year has come and gone, just like that? Time for my annual lookback, where I review your favorite recipes and my favorite recipes. Ready for it? Here goes!
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Readers' Favorite Recipes of 2016
The following recipes are YOUR favorites from the year — that is, the most viewed recipes of mine from 2016. In years past, you guys have been focused on all things chocolate, especially cakes and cupcakes. This time around, you guys sorta switched things up! Expanding your palettes — I like it.
1. Quick Whole Wheat Cinnamon Rolls
These are quick cinnamon rolls, minus the fuss of yeast and infused with hearty, nutty flavor from whole wheat. Because the recipe uses baking powder, the rolls come together in an hour and taste like buttery scones. It's a great way to start the day (but you guys obviously knew that).
2. Passionfruit and Blueberry Cream Tart
Yay! I'm so glad you guys loved this recipe; it was one of my favorites from the year too! I took one of my all time favorite recipes—Tartine Bakery's lemon cream (as seen in this ancient post of mine with amateur hour photos)—and infused it with a healthy amount of zesty and tart passionfruit. The result was out of this world incredible! Definitely one of the best recipes in Hummingbird High, ever.
3. Red Wine Gin Sour
Sooo I'm not actually the world's biggest fan of cocktails — you never know what you'll get, and most professionally made cocktails are either too sweet or too alcoholic. This cocktail, however, was perfect. Tart, light, tangy, refreshing, beautiful. And you guys thought so too! I don't blame you. Look how gorgeous that ombre is! I should probably make more cocktails for next year, huh?
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My Favorite Recipes of 2016
Similar to previous years, it was really, really hard to narrow it down to just three recipes. Talk about choosing between your children! Here are the three that made the shortlist, but really, this is just a small selection from a great year's worth.
1. Leche Flan
In which I got super uppity and defensive about Filipino food and encouraged y'all to go out and try more of it, starting with one of my favorite desserts EVER (Filipino or not): leche flan! And pro-tip — if any of you guys are ever out in DC, this place sounds amazing. Can we all please go? Then we can all march in the Women's March, yes?
2. Candy Heart Cupcakes
These is my absolute favorite chocolate cupcake recipe: a moist, light crumb with a fun topped with fluffy old-fashioned icing that tastes like marshmallow. But alongside the recipe, I share a bittersweet memory about secret crushes, irrational fears, and the importance of being brave and putting yourself out there. Take that shot. PS — sorry for all the run-on sentences in that post.
3. Princess Bakery Funfetti Cake
Quite possibly my most favorite birthday cake ever. Molly's famous homemade funfetti cake, but with Princess Bakery extract, strawberry cream cheese frosting, and cotton candy. I hesitate to call it a unicorn cake, but it's kind of what it is, isn't it?
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Highlights
1. Five Years of Blogging!
On November, I celebrated five years of blogging! It's hard for me to imagine that I've been doing this for half a freakin' decade. I am excited/motivated/lucky/nostalgic/thankful/tired.
2. #humhipieamonth
One of my New Year's resolutions was to work on my pie skills and bake a pie a month. While pie baking is still not my favorite pastime, I think I managed to improve my skills some? What do you guys think?
3. Instagram
This isn't really a highlight, but I do like the #bestnine Instagram memes that come out at the end of the year. These were my most liked Instagram posts! You guys have great taste. As for Instagram itself though, I pretty much fell out of love with the whole thing after their new algorithm came out. Oh well.
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Other 2016 Highlights
I left San Francisco and moved to New York!
This was sorta kinda a big year for travel? I spent a decent amount of time split between San Francisco, New York, and Portland, and there was a handful of blog trips. My favorites were Copenhagen with Adrianna and Yossy, Eastern Washington and Portland for Feast with Molly!
You know what it was an actual big year for? Real talk. On blog burnout, the Saveur Blog Awards, and the election. Oh boy oh boy.
Let's end on a happy note. I'm trying to share more scenes from my home and everyday adventures in New York City (mostly related to food). Check out the hashtags #hummingbirdinthecity and #humhieatsny!
What a year it was! Thanks for following along and be sure to check out the highlights from the previous years: 2015, 2014, 2013, and 2012. Happy New Year!!!