Happy 1st Anniversary to My Pantry Shelf!
December 10, 2011
My Pantry Shelf celebrates its first anniversary this week. The year has absolutely flown by (as it probably would have with or without the blog), but 90+ posts later this blog has taken on a life of its own. This project began as an avenue to share my passion for cooking and preserving fresh seasonal ingredients. Eating homemade meals made with fresh ingredients is a core value in our family. Regardless of the time constraints of our busy lives, we make a strong effort to celebrate our family meals, expose our children to a wide array of seasonal foods, and utilize as much of our garden produce as possible. I firmly believe that the modern working family, with a little planning, can still eat homemade nutritious meals made with the bounty of the seasons. This is my little space in world to share my enthusiasm for fresh foods. It is full of ideas for how to prepare dishes to eat right away, as well as inspiration for how preserve the freshest foods to enjoy later in the year.
This site has proven to be more than I could ever have imagined. My life was full with two small kids and a full-time teaching job before I began writing these posts. Surprisingly though, instead of overwhelming an already busy woman, My Pantry Shelf fulfills a deep need that had gone unnurtured in recent years. It gives me a place to be creative and interact with others who share my passion for food. Through this space I have met so many wonderful cooks across the country who also seek to fill their days and their bellies with delicious foods. This space belongs to me and all of you who have come to share it with me.
Thank you to everyone who reads and cooks along with me. It is such a delight to know you are out there and trying my recipes. I truly appreciate those of you who have reported back after making these dishes in your own homes and to those of you who spread the word about this site and help it grow!
As a tribute to the year, here are some highlights…
The most popular posts of the year:
Peppered Peach and Rosemary Jam
Edible Gifts! Chocolate and Caramel Sauces
My family’s favorite recipes:
Biscuit-topped Chicken Pot Pie
Chipotle Black Bean and Butternut Squash Salad
Beets with Pistachios and Mint
Sweet and Spicy Zucchini Pickles
Food52 contest winners and Editor’s Picks:
Sausage and Kale Dinner Tart (winner Best Dirt Cheap Dinner)
Tequila Lime Tart (Editor’s Pick)
Orange Quinoa with Almonds, Olives, and Feta (Editor’s Pick)
My Pantry Shelf 
December 10, 2011 at 6:54 pm
Congratulations Karen on your one year anniversary. It is a wonderful blog and you should be very proud. I have enjoyed making many of your recipes and while I don’t always post, I am thinking of you and your family.
Another quilter,
Sally
December 10, 2011 at 7:06 pm
Congratulations on your 1-year anniversary, Karen! You’ve accomplished so much in just one year!! I hope to see you here for many years to come.
December 10, 2011 at 8:03 pm
Happy Anniversary Karen!
I should have sent you a note sooner, sorry. I really have enjoyed your blog and have made many of your recipes. I also have enjoyed glimpses of your kids. I figured out what cake Cathy got for her birthday then I made it for my brother-in-law; it was a hit. Wish we lived closer to the Wilkinsons clan. See you next time were in Davis.
MJ Dickinson ( MJ & Rick from Ohio)
December 10, 2011 at 9:04 pm
Happy one year anniversary, Karen! I, too, have made many of your recipes but apologize for not posting my comments for each and every recipe I have made. I look forward to the emails that tell me you have sent another recipe. The stories and pictures that go along with each recipe are so delightful to read. Keep up the wonderful work and I look forward to another year of delicious recipes! Mitzi
December 10, 2011 at 10:03 pm
Happy One Year! Yay! And it is really all of us who are the true recipients of the year’s goodness. The photographs are as mouth watering as the recipes! I, as a faithful reader, ardent fan, and recipe tester, declare that the zucchini pickles were/are my favorite, not to mention the lemon curd, and hey, just cause I eat brussel sprout slaw at least 5 times a week…
About 75% of my zucchini pickles came from the school garden, those HUGE ones…and every one kvells over them…there is one measly pint left…maybe for my husband’s 55th in February…
Love My Pantry Shelf…the ONLY food blog I read.
To you!
Amy in Sebtown
December 10, 2011 at 10:36 pm
Congratulations on a most successful year of amazing stories and recipes. Please don’t ever stop!
December 11, 2011 at 6:15 am
Happy First Anniversary! I am loving your recipes – keep them coming! You are an amazing cook!!!
December 11, 2011 at 10:09 am
Congratulations and thank you for sharing so many wonderful stories and recipes. I’m serving the Peach Rosemary jam at a luncheon this week.
Looking forward to 2012 and all Pantry Kitchens temptations.
December 11, 2011 at 1:09 pm
Congratulations Karen! You are amazing managing home, family, garden plus “outside home” job and doing all so well. I enjoy your blog. I especially enjoy the way you introduce each blog giving us a background on how you came to choose each new recipe. Makes for enjoyable reading.
Love to you and the whole family.
Mary K.
December 12, 2011 at 6:45 am
Karen/Carrot – I can’t even begin to tell you how much I have enjoyed your recipes and all the stories that come along with them. Your creations have filled my kitchen with some of the most wonderful aromas and they have also made my family and friends very happy :-) You are very lucky to have found a passion that gives you so much happiness. Cheers to one of your best years ever! May you keep on creating and filling the bellies of those you love with pure yumminess. xoxoxoxo
December 12, 2011 at 8:36 am
Good job, Karen! I love reading your seasonaly appropriate recipes. they keep me inspired in both the kitchen and garden (nicely written too!) Congratulations and cheers to more years to come!
-Liz
December 12, 2011 at 8:21 pm
I love it! I always look forward to your words and recipes. It’s really neat that you do this, Wilkinson. Glad to know ya’!
~Kim
December 12, 2011 at 10:26 pm
Happy Anniversary, Karen! And thanks again for all the YUMMY food ideas (and wonderful writing, too). We just had your persimmon chutney with a pork tenderloin for dinner tonight and BARRELED through the entire jar. It was DElicious. When we finished, our company said, did we really just eat that entire jar of chutney? :-)
Now I finally have something to do with all that fruit.
December 14, 2011 at 7:49 am
Congratulations on your first anniversary, Karen! Thank you for sharing your food journey with us – we benefit greatly! I enjoy your site immensely and all the recipes I’ve made have been a hit (just baked more banana muffins!). Thank you for all your inspiration!
December 17, 2011 at 8:49 pm
Thank you all for your kind words! I am looking forward to sharing many more recipes and stories in the new year!