I have tried so many ways to store recipes and just can't seem to find the "best" one; the one that is both efficient and user-friendly. I'm not sure that way exists! lol Here you can see my old stand-bys. Two cookbooks I've used so long they have fallen apart numerous times and been put back together with duct tape and staples and whatever else I think might work. These are the kind you write your recipes in.
Then there's these. The smallish spiral bound ones you can sometimes find bunches of recipes in. I don't want to copy all the recipes I like out of them or I'll just be rewriting the books! So, I keep them handy.
Then there's this old friend. I've had this book for, oh, I don't know how many years, yet it looks to be in pretty good shape. Wonder why? I never use it!! Well, I guess there's a couple things in it I've used and like. So why keep it? Because there's lots of good cooking references and instructions in it....like how long to cook a roast and at what degrees. Things I'm not automatically endowed with knowing. 
And, then there's these books. They're ones you buy the binder for and get cards for that eventually fill it up. The one that's open is one I get free cards from Publix for. I paid $5.99 for the binder and get the free cards everytime I go. Have I used any? No, but I might "someday". :-)
And, of course, the old 4x6 card box. One time I decided to make my life easier, I would just copy all the recipes I actually use onto the 4x6 cards and keep them in here. That way, I would have all the recipes I actually use handy and in one spot. No "Now where was that recipe for such and such? We really liked that." But, after about a week of copying recipes EVERY, SINGLE night while watching tv, I had had it and quit. And, I hadn't even really made a dent in the ones I wanted to copy! So, here sits the box with maybe half my recipes! And, I actually use these. 
Now, this box is one of two boxes of a set of cards I ordered a couple years ago and collected over about a year's time. When I started I didn't realize that there would eventually be TWO boxes, but oh well. And, I really do use the recipes for the main dishes and cookies. Unfortunately, I can't punch holes in these and add them to the binders because of how the writing is one the cards. So, in the boxes they stay....and on my counter. Argh.
And, what do you do with all the recipes you copy off the internet? You print them on 8.5x11 paper and then what? So, I put mine into this folder with plastic sleeves. It seems to work well, but there's no rhyme or reason to it and it's not very user friendly since I can't add recipes (only to the sleeves). I have to open the whole thing to add pages. 
So, I think I've finally come up with an idea. I'm thinking I'll go buy two of these binders and some dividers and some more sleeves and type all my recipes that I actually use and put them into the typical categories. One binder will be main dishes and sides and the second binder will be breads and breakfast foods. I think I'll also add a section for "untried" recipes. That's the ones I get off the internet that I have't tried yet. Then when I finally try them I can add them where they belong or toss them. And, there won't be any scribbling out or liquid paper in my books. And, I won't be confused as to whether I've tried something or not and trying to remember if we liked it.
Well, that's my idea for now. How do you keep your recipes and do you like it or not? What would you change and can you think of something better? Any advice for where I'm going? LMK I need help!! lol Blessings,
Mylinda :-)
Mylinda :-)
6 comments:
no you;re not the only one with this dilemma. most of my books are in a box somewhere in the garage. but i do have the 4x6 box that i use the most. i love the Foodnetwork website. when you print a recipe from there, it let;s you choose what size to print it. so i usually choose the 4x 6 or 3x5 and trim the cards (paper)to fit my box. hope that helps some and let me know how it works out.
That's too funny that I read this now. I'm in the middle of taking a break from copying ALL of my favorite recipes from my cookbooks into a spiral bound notebook. I'm tired of having all the cookbooks around and thought it would be nice to have them in one central place.
I'm handwriting them because, even though it's a pain, I thought it would be a nice thing some day for my daughter (and maybe granddaughters) to look at our family favorites in my own handwriting. I know I consider it a treasure when I find some recipe written out by a great-aunt or grandmother or someone else in my family tree. It somehow makes it more special to me.
Well, I keep mine on the computer for the most part. But if your computer crashes, or the electricity goes out or some other crazy event. Well, you cook something else.
As you know I have the 4X6 box. I like that and it seems to work well for me. Unfortunately it got dropped and is broken and I can't find another like it. But I'm still looking. Good luck on your quest. Mom
When I reduced the number of cookbooks I had, I just ripped out the best recipes that I wanted to keep and taped them to an 8-1/2 X 11 sheet of paper. Those papers are in a duotang. I do the same thing with computer printed recipes. I tape them to paper in the duotang. I have one book that is more of a reference book, The Joy of Cooking and then two cookbooks that I use a lot. Those are the only cookbooks I use. I got rid of the rest. I also have a wooden file box for recipes and that holds all the ones my grandmother wrote out for me when I got married. It sounds like your binder will work. But, I would seriously consider just tearing out your fav. recipes from the books least used so you can toss the books. And, quit looking for new recipes until you have tried the ones that are waiting to be made. :) That's my 2 cents.
By the way, I posted a recipe on my blog today, but you are forbidden to try it until you make the other ones.
Wait a minute. I know I posted a comment on this last week. But my computer is having problems and it just refuse to do stuff sometimes. Shoot.
Well, I love this post because I just changed my recipe system. I found myself sifting thru piles of my favorite ripped out or printed out recipes. So I made a binder and put them in sleeves and it has been wonderful. I love flipping thru and being able to see all my recipes.
I used dividers and organized them into sections the way I wanted to. Its great.
I love recipes.
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