Blog Review 2022

Same procedure as every year? Same procedure as every year. Again I am going to summarize this year’s blogging experience with the eight questions from Feedmeuobeforeyougogo. So here goes nothing. Featured picture by Daniel Cuervo.

#1 Which one was your most successful blog post in 2022?

Again the brownie cookies are the most popular recipe of 2022. However, I am going to focus on the runner-up because why not. The runner up is the  round up with more than 20 Christmas cookies, which were clicked on by more than 44k people within a few days, it was crazy! For me this taught me two things. A) that apparently the German Christmas cookie baking starts earlier than expected. The article went online on November 16th, apparently there are many Germans that like to serve Christmas cookies for the first of advent already. I always thought this was for Christmas, but no, it seems to be much earlier. Also, since Halloween is not a common thing, Christmas basically starts in November. B) sometimes it is so much easier than expected. Writing a roundup is so much less work than preparing a new recipe. You have to structure your roundup properly, but boy, you don’t need to bake and/or cook, you don’t need to shoot pictures, you don’t have to write down ingredients, measurements and steps/instructions. It is so simple in comparison, yet this post was so popular. Below picture shows my cookie plate of 2022, it was the most liked post on Instagram in 2022, which I found very fitting.

#2 Which three blog posts from this year meant the most to you?

No. 1 is the decadent Nutella blueberry cake (see picture below), which I created for the five-year anniversary of having no permanent damage after my bike accident. There was a blog event and many details about the accident. Please use a helmet when you bike, brain bleeding is no fun.

No. 2  is a so-called coffee date, in which I described our trip to Lille and their culinary specialties. If somebody had told me that Lille has that much to offer, I wouldn’t have believed it, it is much nicer than expected.

No. 3 is this peppermit cookie recipe from my grandma (the cookies you see on the left top you see on the above picture). I got this recipe from her handwritten booklet, which I inherited after she passed away and which basically never has any instructions. I am so proud that I managed to recreate the recipe with the first try and that they actually taste eyaxtly how I remember. Grandma, I would have loved to bake you some of these cookies, using baking ammonia and all that.

#3 Which three bloggers inspired you the most?

Zorra from the German blog Kochtopf is definitely on the top, she has so many wonderful events for bloggers, for example, she does this culinary advent calendar, for which I made a yule log or buche de Noel. She also does regular baking events and the monthly changing blog events among others. When I started organizing events I realized how much work, love and effort you have to put into them, kudos to Zorra for having done this for 18 years already and still being so passionate about it!

The scond one is not one blogger per se, but several Youtube channels, which I find inspiring, especially if this is for Latin American recipes. I don’t know why, but Latinos tend to favor Youtube over blogs, probably because most of the time they play it by ear and do not use exact measurements. It is up to you then to decide and figure out how to translate the recipe to the ingredients available in your region and with which measurements. That’s how I made the mostachón de fresas, a meringue cake from Mexico with whipping cream and strawberries. I also watched videos to make this decadent cake from Brazil with their famous truffle Brigadeiro. However, there is not one channel I particularly favor.

Number 3 has nothing to do with food blogging, but with my chronic sickness endometriosis. Lea Kreissl is a German blogger who invites women with endometriosis to tell their story on the blog. I find these stories inspiring and they make me very grateful as I have not have that much pain as many describe.

#4 Which recipe you published in 2022 have you baked the most and why?

Arepas con queso, so the Colombian corn flatbread with cheese filling is definitely a staple in our family. This has to do with the fact that my Colombian husband enjoys them immensely and I won’t say no either. We practically eat them every Sunday for breakfast. They are usually served with some scrambled eggs and a fresh juice.

The runner up is American pies. Believe it or not, but it is close to impossible to find a proper pie form in Germany. At some point I simply gave up and ordered some on Amazon. I love pies, especially fruit pies, you can make such as work of art with the top pie crust. The blog post “How to make an American pie” went online and it has more than 13 pie recipes to discover.

#5 Which baking or blogging problem did you encounter in 2022 and did you manage to solve it?

I am still amazed why my blog post how to make proper sponge cake with lots of tricks and tips is so popular. Apparently there is a need for a lot of help and insights how to do basic recipes. Another popular post his how to make flowers out of buttercream. I have been asked whether I could post some tips how to make a straight cake and how to frost it. Or how to make such nice swirls on the cake or cupcakes. I will see what I can do in 2023.

#6 What was your biggest discovery this year, which recipe, technique, food stuff, flavor, etc. opened a completely new world to you?

Every time I see this question, I feel it is so dramatically phrased. Yes, I discovered something new, but I wouldn’t necessarily say that this is a completely new world. It just made things easier. The vegan equivalent of egg whotes is the left over water from beans or chickpeas. Apparently now you can buy just that in Germany. So this was convenient whenever I wanted to make royal icing. Aquafaba, the technical term for this, replaces egg whites nicely, so I didn’t have to freeze any egg yolks. Of course I have another post here how to freeze eggy yolks and egg whites on the blog.

#7 What was the best or funniest search term that somebody used to find your blog?

I would suggest “is a dog allowed to eat the whole birthday cake.” Yes, we do have a dog, an Australian Shepherd named Hazel. Yes, she did get a dog birthday cake for her first birthday. Yes, she was allowed to eat the entire cake, it was rather small (7cm in diameter) and no, she did not get any additional food on her birthday. I strongly believe that dogs should have a special day just as humans. If we can indulge in our favorite treats, why not dogs? She was served a cake with strawberries and whipping cream and cake layers without sugar.

#8 What do you wish for your blog in 2023?

Like every year I wish people would feel less shy to tell me about their problems and issues. Just recently somebody told me that she felt intimidated and didn’t want to ask me. However, I honestly believe a blog thrives if readers can ask questions. How else can I improve recipes if I don’t know what you had issues with? Whatever you choose, Instagram, Facebook, commenting on a blog post or leave an email on info at jennyisbaking dot com, please let me know if you have questions or wonder how something works, that’s what this blog is for!