With the year 2011 coming to a rapid end, QSR takes stock of its most popular online stories of the last 12 months. This year's biggest headlines point to reader interest in franchising deals, the QSR 50, and (of course) food trucks. 

"This was an exciting year for our editorial team," says Blair Chancey, editorial director of Food News Media, publisher of QSR and full-service-restaurant news site Restaurant Management.

"Our staff of reporters worked hard to deliver readers the biggest and best stories in the industry. What's most interesting about this list is that at a time while many claim readers are not interested in long-form reporting online, eight of QSR's most popular stories are full-length features that have been adapted for the web."

Below are the top 10 stories of 2011 from QSRmagazine.com:

1. The 2011 QSR 50

2. Wendy's Debuts Four New Store Prototypes

3. 7 Trends of 2011

4. 10 Best Franchise Deals

5. Mobile Concepts Find it's a Bumpy Road

6. The Growth 40

7. 5 Brands You Should Know (But Don't)

8. The Nation's Top 20 Food Trucks

9. The Fall of Pizza

10. The 2011 Drive-Thru Performance Study