creating blog community -- and party pinwheels

How do you increase community connections on your blog? This is a key question for successful bloggers. We try to create a feeling of camaraderie here on our blogs and recently I have felt very much befriended and involved with others on the web. One strategy that has helped me was joining blog events like this one, the Secret Recipe Club. My assignment this month was Jam Hands, written by Ali. She uses some incredible methods for improving the community on her blog--simple ideas that are effective, too. (Oh, and she makes some mighty tasty party pinwheels.)


I became a Jam Hands reader just one month ago when I was assigned Ali's blog for July's Secret Recipe Club. In that short time, I have learned a lot from her about building a blog community. For example, she writes a weekly post called Ali's Notepad featuring other bloggers' recipes and posts, which includes a photo montage and her own descriptions of the links. And she has provided a little "featured button" on her sidebar so that if you are one of the links you can add the button to your page. (I don't think there's a huge take-up; I only saw one of the most recent set of mentioned blogs had taken up her offer. But it's the availability that counts.) Each of these posts starts with the cheery intro, "Woo it's Friday! Time for me to feature your awesome posts" and contains about ten links.

Additionally, Ali produces a post called The Weekend Dish (here's an example), in which she recaps the week's posts and site news. But, more importantly for the discussion at hand, she mentions and links to the top five referring sites of the week and thanks them. She also writes a little profile about a "featured commentor", including a picture, a brief bio, and links to a few of the other bloggers' best posts. She thanks this person for their comments on her blog and adds, "Would you like to be my featured commenter of the week? All you have to do is leave a comment sometime during the week and it could be you!"

Wait, there's more. Ali has recently launched a Jam Hands community forum. And she posted a few weeks ago asking if anyone had reblogged any of her recipes because she wanted to link to them.

I really appreciate Ali's outgoing and friendly style. Strategies such as she is using create a really nice cooperative feeling on a blog.

What methods do you use to create connections on your blog?

Party Pinwheels
adapted from Jam Hands
makes 24 party appetisers

225 g (1 package) cream cheese
1 t dried oregano
1 t dried basil
1 t dried parsley
1/2 t black pepper
2 green onions (spring onions, or scallions)
1/2 red pepper, finely chopped
1/2 c grated cheddar cheese
4 whole wheat tortillas

Soften the cream cheese in the microwave on low power.
Mix all the ingredients (except tortillas) with the cream cheese.
Spread a quarter of the mixture over the full area of each tortilla. Roll up and wrap tightly in foil.
Use a sharp knife to slice into 2 cm lengths.

See more recipes from the bloggers of The Secret Recipe Club by visiting the links below!

Double Chocolate Chip Ice Cream	Barbecue Chicken Salad Sandwiches	Bacon deviled eggs	Individual Apple Berry Crumbles
Peach Pie	Zucchini Fritters	Sweet Applets	Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Topped Brownies
Veggie Sausage Frittata	Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins	Peanut Butter Fudge with Nuts & Caramel Topping	Blueberry Muffins
Creamy Scramble with Fresh Veggies	Pineapple Pumpkin Oatmeal Bars	Drunken Caramel Sauce	Slow Cooker Steel-Cut Oatmeal
Homemade Hand Pies	Raw Double Chocolate Brownie Bites	Cucumber Salad	Tuscan Minestrone Soup
Slow Cooked Barbecue Ribs	Zucchini Mini Frittatas	Strawberry Goat Cheese Salad with Pomegranate Vina	Bacon Wrapped Peanut Butter Stuffed Okra
BLT-A Quinoa Salad	Peanut Butter Frosted Nutella Brownies	Arugula Salad with Raspberry Dressing	Southwestern Quinoa Casserole
A Very Southern Blueberry Pie	Chai Tea Creme Brulee	Chocolate Avocado Cake	Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Grape Sauce
Potato Candy with Chocolate Ganache	Asiago Encrusted Tilapia	Sundried Tomato Pasta Bake	Salt and Pepper Oven Fries
Pistachio Cardamom Whoopie Pies	Aromatic peanut sauce over pasta	Roasted Banana Ice Cream	Chicken Tetrazzini Casserole
Chewy Coconut-Lime Sugar Cookies	Pizza Quick Bread	Chicken Curry with Whole Spices	Banana and Butternut Buttermilk Cake
Sauteed Broccoli and Red Bell Pepper	Holy Guacamole	Strawberry Banana Bread	Almond Cake Balls with Toasted Coconut
Chocolate and Strawberry Layer Cake	Citrus Pound Cake	Butterscotch Banana Bread	Creamy Lemon Squares
Orange Berry Cake	French Potato Salad	watermelon ginger limeaid cocktail	Roasted Potatoes with Old Bay
Cheesecake Bars	Chipotle Chicken with Cilantro Sauce	Lavender Lemonade Martini	Plumcot Galette
Oven-Fried Cod and Crispy Smashed Potatoes	Banana Muffins	Cherry Sangria	Spinach Herb Twists
Grilled Cheese Sandwiches with Jarlsberg Cheese an	Spinach salad with warm bacon dressing	Mango Orange Blossom Popsicles	Crock Pot Meatballs
Quick Strawberry Shortcakes	Deviled eggs with garlic-stuffed olives	Baked French Toast with Pralines	Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes
Banana Oatmeal Cookies	Spicy Dill Refrigerator Pickles	Roasted Chickpeas	Apple & Brie Grilled Cheese
Rosy Rhubarb Syrup	Green Bean Salad Recipe with Cucumber, Cubanelle P	Baked Portobello Mushroom Fries	Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes
Peach Jam	Dutch Almond Bars	Grilled Squash with Spinach and Cheese Quinoa	Korean-Style Beef Stroganoff
Strawberry, Vanilla Yogurt and Limeade Popsicles	Alfredo Sauce	Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream	Pasta Gorgonzola with Asparagus and Peas
Coconut Macaroon Tart with a Shortbread Crust	Homemade Nutella Apple Coconut Chocolate Pop Tarts	Mid-Week Chicken Breasts	Chicken Lettuce Wraps with Avocado Bacon Dressing
Coconut Body Whip	Caramelized Onion Dip	Grilled Balsamic Chicken with Lemon and Rosemary	Chicken Piccata
Party Pinwheels	Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream	minted pineapple lime agua fresca	Natural Red Velvet Cupcakes
Crispy Chicken Sandwich Topped with a Fried Egg, P	Spicy Black Beans	Blueberry Cheesecake Bars	Gnocchi & A Quickie Pasta Sauce
Chicken Sausage Pasta Bake	Chocolate Chip Cookie 'n Oreo Brownie Bars	Double Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins	Rhubarb Crumble Bars
Croquembouche	Turkey Macaroni Skillet	Vanilla Buttermilk Cake w/ Buttercream and Coconut	Asparagus Prosciutto Mushroom Saute
Cheesy Potato Bake	Smokey Salsa	Watermelon Gazpacho with Feta	Zucchini White Bean Lasagna
Cinnamon Apple Chunk Scuffins Recipe	Peach Frangipane Tart	Bruschetta Tart	Almond Butter Sweet Potato Chips
Bloody Mary of the Sea Verrine	Confetti Corn Salad	Spinach Ricotta Roll	Oatmeal Apple Pie Bars
Summer Gazpacho with a Nutty Twist	Sweet & Salty Brownie	Missi Roti	Lemony Lemon Bars
Rhubarb Barbecue Sauce	Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies	Beer Bread	Quintuple Chocolate Brownies
Homemade Flour Tortillas	Southwestern Turkey Burgers with Red Onion Marmala	Grapefruit Cake	Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frostin
Minty Brownies	Breakfast Tacos	Lemon and blueberry bread with white chocolate dri	Manchego Jalepeño Cornbread
Moroccan Spiced Chicken	Banana Split Parfaits	Apricot & Plum Cobbler	Summer Tostadas
Ochazuke with Caramelized Shallots and Fried Egg	BBQ Chicken Pita Pizza	Summer Stir Fry with Sweet Potato and Tempeh	Baked Garlic Shrimp