Drumroll, Please: Well+Good’s 10 Most Popular Recipes of 2021 Are Here

Here at Well+Good, we are always thinking about food. We film our own original recipes with our YouTube seriesAlt-Baking Bootcamp and Cook With Us, call up top chefs on the reg asking them to share their cooking secrets, and communicate with healthy cooks all over the world in our Cook With Us Facebook group. On top of that, we’re constantly scouring social media and reading the latest cookbooks for recipes we just have to try (and then tell everyone about). Yep, it’s safe to say that we’re recipe obsessed.

Of the many (many) recipes we’ve published this year, there are a few that have become so popular, it’s safe to say they went viral. While Well+Good features recipes for every meal of the day, it was breakfast and dessert that came out on top in 2021, with the exception of the most popular recipe of all, a dinner dish that basically broke Tiktok.

Rounded up here are the 10 most popular recipes, all organized and tied up in a little bow—our present to you. Make and enjoy them with loved ones or for your own personal joy. We have a feeling you’ll be making them well into 2022—and beyond.

Well+Good’s 10 most popular recipes of 2021:

1. Baked feta pasta

The most popular dish of the year is a bonafide celebrity. If you have Tiktok, there’s a very good chance you’ve already made it: baked feta pasta. It’s easy to see why this one is so popular. Not only is it the epitome of comfort food, it’s a cinch to make.

Get the recipe: baked feta pasta

2. 3-ingredient banana bread cookies

In 2020, we all made banana bread. In 2021, these banana bread cookies took over. All you need to make them are quick oats, bananas, and chocolate chips. The recipe is simple enough that you can add your own twist by incorporating other ingredients too, like cranberries or raisins.

Get the recipe: 3-ingredient banana bread cookies

3. No-knead Instant Pot bread

Using your Instant Pot to make chicken, soup, or beans is par the course, but bread? That’s next-level. This recipe is full of helpful tips for baking the perfect loaf. And in classic Instant Pot fashion, the bread is ready in half the time it would be otherwise.

Get the recipe: no-knead Instant Pot bread

4. Anxiety-reducing kefir smoothie

This recipe came courtesy of psychiatrist Drew Ramsey, MD, and it’s one he makes himself when feelings of anxiety start to creep in. This is because the ingredients help keep blood sugar levels steady—key for managing unbalanced emotions. It’s also full of gut-healthy probiotics, another important part of managing anxiety.

Get the recipe: anxiety-reducing kefir smoothie

5. Sweet potato cookies

If you’ve kept sweet potatoes regulated to dinner, now’s the perfect time to try them for dessert. These sweet potato cookies only require a handful of basic ingredients. The best part? The potassium in the tuber helps support a good night’s sleep by helping the body relax.

Get the recipe: sweet potato cookies

6. Avocado sourdough bread

Different types of bread have their own special nutritional benefits, but sourdough is the best one for the gut because it’s full of probiotics. This recipe takes the nutritional benefit of sourdough bread a step further by adding avocado to the mix. With the fruit’s healthy fats and fiber, each slice is a lot more filling and nutrient-rich than it would be otherwise.

Get the recipe: avocado sourdough bread

7. Blueberry smoothie

What makes this smoothie so special? It’s brimming with longevity-promoting ingredients. None of them are anything you’ll have to spend a ton of money on or hunt down in a specialty store either. It’s simply oat milk, blueberries, frozen spinach, and cinnamon—that’s it!

Get the recipe: blueberry smoothie 

8. High-protein baked oats

This dish may look and taste like dessert, but it’s nutrient-rich enough to serve as a well-rounded breakfast that will help you power through the morning. Fiber, protein, and healthy fats…it has it all with cinnamon sprinkled on top. You’ll have this breakfast on repeat all winter long.

Get this recipe: high-protein baked oats

9. Chocolate peanut-butter smoothie

This smoothie tastes like Reese’s peanut butter cups and the best part is that it’s good for your brain—seriously! Cacao has magnesium, iron, and antioxidants, all of which benefit the brain while the peanut butter is a good source of healthy fats, which are also important for cognitive health. (In both cases, you want to be sure what you’re using isn’t loaded with sugar.) The recipe also calls for Brazil nuts, another great source of healthy fats.

Get the recipe: chocolate peanut-butter smoothie

10. Low-sugar, gluten-free lemon meringue pie

Fluffy yet decadent, this lemon meringue pie is dessert perfection. In the video above, you’ll see exactly how to nail each component: the gluten-free pie crust, lemon filling, and homemade whipped cream.

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