I was thinking of making a scrapbook of recipes but I was wondering how everyone else organized their recipes. Good old recipe cards or rifling through your library of books? I have a mixture of homemade (invented on my own), online (taken from various websites) and magazine/book recipes that I want to compile into a handy place. I'm not sure how I would categorize everything though...by main ingredient and then alphabetical order? Or is there an online program I can use?
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I have scanned my recipe books , some of which are 20 yrs old and almost torn. I have oragnized these now pretty well. Since my recipes were in no particular order, after making them digital I managed to organize them.
I organize with courses ie: appetizer, soup, main-chicken, main-beef, main-pork, dessert, drinks, then they are just in alphabetically order.
I have really been into organizing food as I am gluten and lactose intolerant. Sometimes I don't feel well at all, so it's easier to plan my meals ahead( I try a week at a time) when the food is all organized. Most of my recipes have been changed to be g and l - free. I use almond milk for all of my recipes, g-f rice and all-purpose flour as well. If my husband or someone else is making meals when I'm sick, this way is much easier for them. I have 2 recipe boxes. I have organized them , first of all under separate headings alphabetically:
The first box is a small one - B(Bread) D(Drinks) E(Eggs) P(Pasta) R(Rice) S(Soup)
The second box is a big one - B(Beef) C(Chicken) D(Desserts) F(Fish) P(Pork) S(Salads)V(Vegetables) - Then behind each card, I've divided either the diff. ways to cook or the types of meat,veg. or desserts.
Some examples are: Under Beef I have numbered a card right after the B - 1) Liver2)Steak & Marinades3)Stew4)Roasts5)Hamburg - a:meatballs b:tacos, tortillas, burritos c:meatloaf d:casseroles & Shepherd's pie e:chili
Under Desserts I have numbered a card right after the D - 1)Cakes - a)carrot, b:chocolate c)strawberry d:cheesecake e:angel food cake, etc. 2)Cookies - a:pt. btr. b:choc. chip c:shortbread, etc. 3)Pies - a:pecan b:apple c:cream pies d:blueberry, etc. 4)Fruit Cobblers, Sauces - a)cobbler crusts b)fondue c)cherry marshmallow dessert d)apple, pineapple, cherry cobblers 5)Parfaits, Puddings, Pavlova - a:trifle b:jello c:choc. pudding & parfait 6)Tarts, buns & Cupcakes - a:butter tarts b:fruit tarts c:cupcakes d: cinnamon buns, etc.7)Squares/Bars/layered Dessert - a:choc. clusters b:fudge c:eclair dessert d:caramel corn/pt. brittle, etc.8)Miscellaneous - Sherbet/Sorbet, banana splits, snack bars, etc. Hope this helps someone.
I just simply bookmarked all my favorite recipes because i usually find a certain recipe on the net. Less effort... :p
Dor1949 that's a great idea, the photo album/recipe book. I wouldn't necessarily get rid of your recipe books though, they're great for rifling through when you're stuck on food ideas. Sometimes you stumble upon a gem you never noticed before but suits the occasion perfectly.
I bought a huge binder at Grand and Toy (about 7" thick, I think. I bought subject dividers and broke it down to appetizers through desserts and baking. I type recipes I like, adding ones from internet and store them there. However, I also have a smaller binder with recipes from family and friends which I cherish and they are in photo sleeves with the name of who gave me the recipe. I have tons of great cookbooks, my favourite being the Southern Living Christmas books. If I get around to it, I'm going to go through all the others and pick the recipes I use from each and perhaps get rid of them....but how to choose, they have such memories too, who gave them etc....
Great ideas all-round everyone! I think I will at first organize everything in a binder and then when I have the time and money I may start a scrapbook of recipes complete with perhaps pictures of the finish product.
I have actually found that if I cut out a recipe to try, I tend to forget about it later on. I think I'll start cutting them out and sticking them to the fridge with a magnet beside the food shopping list so I won't forget.
I started with the small index card box.
I now graduated to the file folders. When I tore out a recipe - a page from a magazine I then had to fold it to fit in the box. No sooner, did my little recipe card box = jammed.
Was easier not to fold the pages and just place in a folder.
I use the recipe box like Zella with the headings used by SamKing. I think my box is 3 X 5. I also have sections for Crockpot, Cookies/Muffins, Pasta. I also have a card in each section which lists any recipes I like from my many cookbooks - the recipe name, the cookbook name and page #. Saves having to search through my cookbooks to find that certain recipe. My recipe box stays out on my counter and my books are in the cupboard. I only keep recipes in the box that I use time and again. For my "to try" recipes, I have a sectioned file folder and anything I cut out or print off is filed in there. I usually go through it spring and fall and ask myself if I'm really going to try this recipe, and if not out it goes. I try to make one new recipe every couple of weeks. When cooking I have a magnet clip which I attach the recipe card to and put it on the stove hood so it's not sitting on the counter to get dirty.
Hope this makes sence to you. Zella
Ah, so you've organized them like cue cards then? Sounds good...do you laminate them as well?
I have a file box that fits a 4 by 6 card. that has a raised spot on the top to write on. For example I write the word meat on it and then break the meats down to each type such as beef, pork etc. I find this works well for me as i have a general index and then the breakdown to the special sections.
Hope this makes sence to you. Zella
:clapping:
WoW !! ED !!
Your artistry is fab !
I think you could set up a little craft business there. Very fine work.
Thanks for sharing your ideas:)
Wow that looks absolutely wonderful. I was thinking of going for the simple binder and plastic sleeve method that Hali55 mentioned but your box looks amazing.
-appetizers
-salads
-beef
-pork
-fish
-veal
-chicken and or turkey
-desserts
-brunch ideas
-italian
-veggie and sides
etc.
Everytime I cut out a recipe or print - I store it in that folder. Not in any alpha order.
So I just find the folder & then quickly glance through for the recipe.
When I am finished it goes back into the folder.
I used to have just one big folder. That was horrible as it was not organized and had to sift and search through a lot of paper to find what I was looking for.
One day, I just sat down and classified them. So when I want to make something or get ideas - it is rather quick.
I do mine the same as you. Years ago I took a decorative painting course and made a box. I put hanging folder files in it, put tabs on them as above and works beautifully ... plus (IMHO) it looks beautiful! :laugh: Every time I take out a recipe I am reminded of how much I enjoyed painting.
Organize recipes?? Wow, that is a novel idea ;) If I print a recipe from the internet, or copy it from a friends book or from a TV show unfortunately those pieces of paper end up between the pages of one of my own cook books or simply stuffed between two books on my recipe book shelf. :hairpull: Very messy I confess. I just know that if I started to organize them as per many of these suggestions, I would eventually end up back to where I started...stuffing odd pieces of papers between books :rolleyes:
I have simple file folders. Each one is labeled.
-appetizers
-salads
-beef
-pork
-fish
-veal
-chicken and or turkey
-desserts
-brunch ideas
-italian
-veggie and sides
etc.
Everytime I cut out a recipe or print - I store it in that folder. Not in any alpha order.
So I just find the folder & then quickly glance through for the recipe.
When I am finished it goes back into the folder.
I used to have just one big folder. That was horrible as it was not organized and had to sift and search through a lot of paper to find what I was looking for.
One day, I just sat down and classified them. So when I want to make something or get ideas - it is rather quick.
All my odds and ends recipes (magazine clippings, handwritten recipes from family members, web printouts etc.) are in plastic sleeves in a 3-ring binder. Inexpensive and available at Staples or Grand & Toy. The plastic sleeves protect the recipes from spills, and with the binder I can just pop out the recipe I'm using rather than leaving the whole binder on the counter while I'm cooking. It's also easy to rearrange and add new recipes.
The recipes are 'loosely' organized according to my own system - random assortment that I use frequently are at the very front, and then all others grouped according to appetizer, mains, desserts. You could easily add indexed dividers for a more organized system though!
For cookbooks, I keep them on the same shelf as the binder and use the Lee Valley bookdarts to mark my favourites (easy to find at a glance).
Hi,
Three simple ways to organize recipes
1) Bookmarks: tempting recipes I come across online are tagged using recipe specific tags
2) "To-try" recipes are sorted in an ordinary, multi-fragmented folder
3) Successful, "to-keep" recipes are written down in a special notebook
:)
I have cards and some hand written ones, and of course lots of books, I really have to get organized, so I got onto this site to see what other people do. [url]http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en-us&q=how%20to%20organize%20your%20recipes&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8[/url]
Depending on how organized you want to be and what you want to spend (time and money( always remember the print shops that are around.
If you have favourites or things all over the place, getting them into your computer or scanned and size them so you can just take them to the print shop can get you everything customized. I know there are programs you get on the web (free and otherwise) to lay it out. Then you can take them and have them printed, laminated, and put in card or page form. YOu could have them bound with a spiral or just hole punched for whatever size binder you like. It's so easy to make your own books now this way.
With a binder you could move things around as you saw fit and it would lie flat when cooking. You could also print something twice if you wanted it under say 'favourites' and 'desserts' without adding a lot of cost.
My guess from small books I've had done for various reasons would be you could have something like a 40 page bound book (letter sized, 80 if you cut it in half size) for about $10. it can be cheaper if you think of popular paper sizes (like 11 X 17) and have it set up so there are say 8 or 10 recipes per side and then after they are printed (and laminated) they are cut to make 8 or 10 pages and bound. Hope that makes sense.
I would prefer something that was laminated so when I get a drop or a splash of batter or something similar on a recipe card I can wipe them down and put them away without another thought.
MIne are in a pile in a drawer and I would love a good idea on how to do this thanks for asking this question I am sure someone has a great idea.