This year my Frugal Hausfrau site is celebrating 15 years! Let me tell you a little bit about my site, but be sure to check the countdown of my favorites along with reader favorites, below. )

In 2010, motivated by wanting to help my daughter, I delved into the internet and started this site. I had put together a book of family recipes, but she complained they were too pricey. I thought, what if I could take recipes and break them down with hints about shopping for the ingredients? Win-win, right? Great food w/o breaking the budget.

Starting a site was a bold move for someone who had a $79.00 camera (cheap even then) and had never loaded a photo onto a computer! 15 years later, here I am, through thick and thin, sweat, and tears, but so many, many joyful moments!

Thank you all for coming along on this ride with me; whether it’s your first visit or you visit often, this site would be nothing without you (or without the support of other food bloggers – you know who you are!!) You all make my day, every day!

To start, here is the recipe that has won the most Visitors’ hearts! Old Fashioned Scalloped Potatoes.

Old Fashioned Scalloped Potatoes

I’m picking a favorite “main” and a side or dessert, AND posting a top visitor/reader favorite for each year. (It’s a tough call with over 1,500 posts on my site.) If you have a personal favorite, do tell! I’d love to hear. Just click the photo to bring you to a recipe.

2025

These shrimp and grits lived rent-free in my mind for years until I posted them. The potstickers are a long-time family favorite – a project, but so worth it. The chipped beef spread is good hot or cold, or can be made into a “ball” for a party. Good call on that one, Readers!

2024

I’m wild about the shaved beef Bahn Mi Sandwich with the crazy good black vinaigrette. I can’t wait to make the easy “torta,” which is a hot sandwich (ham and cheese layered in an easy blender “dough”) for everyone I know. Reader’s favorite this year? An old recipe: Restaurant Style Refried Beans from a can.

2023

Who would guess that a meatless, nearly cheeseless “granny” pizza would win my heart? It has an intense, very appealing flavor. Kansas City Cheesy Corn (appetizer) is over the top. Visitor favorite: Ruth’s Chris Potatoes au Gratin – these made the top 10 for eight years running. (Proving what I already knew: my Readers have great taste!)

2022

My Mom used to make those burgers in the 70s, and who (unless you don’t eat red meat) wouldn’t love to feast on those burnt ends, made with tender, caramelized chuck roast. A Reader favorite: “Doctoring Canned Beans”.

2021

I have to make this Thai-inspired Coconut Curry Chicken Soup every winter, and then usually make it again coz it’s that good. The Basque “Burnt” Cheesecake was a trend I still stand behind, and a big Reader fave: French Onion Soup Burgers.

2020

I’ve been in love with the Baja Chicken Tacos since my first taste. You might wonder about the Chipotle condiment – it’s my “signature” sauce, and I use it on steak, meatloaf, and burgers, and whatever else I can think to put it on. Easy Cheesy Broccoli Skillet was a big hit with all of you Visitors.

2019

The Braised Pork Roast is absolutely pure comfort food, and I toss it on the table for a casual dinner get-together. Bulgarian Cheese Pots were “stolen” from Diners Drive Ins and Dives: feta cheese, sausage, and peppers – so good I made them twice in one day. My Favorite Asian Dipping Sauce was a reader fave, shown here with my Unstuffed Egg Roll Skillet.

2018

Vietnamese Beef and Potatoes are inspired by a favorite restaurant, and the Meringue Brownie Cake – it’s fabulous and very dramatic. Don’t worry about the meringue – it’s chocolate, and you won’t even know it’s in there. Instant Pot Pork Chop One Pot Meal continues to be a reader fave – and a favorite of my folks!

2017

Enchiladas con Carne are restaurant-worthy – the secret is in the sauce! I never knew the glory of Banoffee pie (banana and caramel) until I made it. I think the British have been gatekeeping. And the hotel eggs are a long reader fave – they have spent years in my top 10.

2016

Grillades and Grits are like a kicked-up version of Swiss steak and spoon-tender. Banana Sheet Cake is from a co-worker (she owned the office potlucks with this!) Scottish Oatmeal Pancakes are always a visitor favorite.

2015

Tanya’s Hashbrown Omelettes are outstanding! And this White Chocolate Raspberry Bread Pudding is what dreams are made of. Always a Reader Favorite on my site, New Mexican Pozole (funny story: Mexico’s Official Tourism Board linked to it for years!)

2014

My Denver Green Chili has to be my “signature” dish. And trust me on this Smoked Salmon Cheesecake; don’t let the name throw you. It’s an appetizer, savory, not a dessert. Serve warm or chilled, spread on crackers. The most popular recipe? Deviled Ham.

2013

Mexican Shredded Pork or Beef is really more “Southwestern” and is an old family favorite. Opal Thai Restaurant’s Pork Larb is a Diner’s Drive-In and Dives recipe; I just watched and figured it out. Reader pick is the Runza (Bierocks) – It was one of the first Bierock recipes on the internet and is still popular.

2012

My Mom got the recipe for Basque Chicken off of the Galloping Gourmet in the 60s, and it became a family favorite. The Aji Salsa is an absolute personal fave! Sometimes I have to use habanero, but I love it either way. The Reader pic that year was my Chicken Pho – Pho Ga.

2011

French Onion Soup from Cook’s Illustrated is pretty much hands-off but takes a good amount of time. It’s the best I’ve ever made. My Grandma’s Apple Cake is a Midwestern Classic. It was a favorite Hot Lunch & Church Lady Basement Funeral recipe when I was a child. This very simple Shepherd’s Pie was a hit in 2011.

2010

There were only a handful of recipes on my site in 2010. My Favorite is Oven Braised Pork Roast, followed by Creamed Chipped Beef and Artichoke Hearts (a restaurant copycat). The most popular was Salmon Hash, adapted from Tyler Florence.

Thank you all for taking this trip down memory lane with me! And again, thank you for visiting and making this site what it is. I hope you find some new inspiration here, and I’d be tickled to hear what your favorite recipe on my site is!

Happy New Year, and here’s to a fabulous 2026; as I post this, we’ll be ringing in the New Year very shortly!

Mollie