topic Re: How do you store your recipes? in Recipes

How do you store your recipes?

dwingy — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 22:04:09 GMT

I am trying to get my recipes better organized and I need some advice. I have recipes everywhere! I have some saved on various online sites, I have many cookbooks where I have one or two favorite recipes in, I have a three ring binder where I've printed recipes off and put them in. I have them all over the place and I would like to try to pull them together into one area and I need some suggestions. I find when its time to make something, I can't remember where the recipe is. I am interested to hear how you keep your recipes organized.

Re: How do you store your recipes?

ChynnaBlue — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 22:34:32 GMT

I think the difficulty for me is in having paper AND online recipes, because there's no one way to keep them all unless you print everything out and keep them in a binder and I really don't want to have to do that.

I recently decided to keep an Excel/Google Sheets database with my favorite recipes. That way I can include a location column and include either a link to a recipe online or a book name and page. Depending on how much information I want to input, I can search by recipe name or key ingredient. If it's online, I click the link and there it is. If it's in a book, the file tells me which book and what page.

Re: How do you store your recipes?

ECBG — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 22:39:36 GMT

Mine are on paper and I use a 4 inch three ring binder. I also have a folder on the computer where I've down loaded recipes. I like a hard copy when I cook.

Re: How do you store your recipes?

Suzy Q from PA — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 22:40:07 GMT

I had alot of recipes I printed off the internet and coud never find one when I needed it. I bit the bullet and sorted them into desserts, soups, chicken, Mexican,appetizers, etc.. After I had them all sorted, I went thru and discarded ones I knew I would never use or I had doubles. Then I just put them in cheap pocket folders (dollar store) and labeled the front of the folder. Works for me !

Re: How do you store your recipes?

nomless — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 22:49:31 GMT

I use small 6" x 9" ring binders with dividers for categories. I put the recipes in protector sleeves so I don't get gpok on them. I like the small binders because it's easier to handle than the standard size ones.

Re: How do you store your recipes?

IamMrsG — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 22:48:35 GMT

@dwingy While you are workiing on a system, or until you accomplish your goal, I suggest you search for a Recipe Index notebook. In a recipe index, you can record (either by category, i.e., appetizer, dessert, main dish, etc., or by main ingredient) the name of the recipe and where you have filed it, or in which cookbook and on what page you saw it.

Like any other recipe/cookbook ~~hoarder~~ collector, I have the over-stuffed binders and way too many cookbooks; however, my most useful recipe filing system is done on a computer. In a word processing application, I have a folder named "Recipes," and in it, sub-folders by category, just like a cookbook. If you choose to use this system, be sure to keep your files backed up!

Re: How do you store your recipes?

DiAnne — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 23:34:19 GMT

Several years ago I started putting them on my computer and finally decided I hated that. A couple of years ago I bought a bunch of narrow three ring binders and a box of sheet protectors at Costco. I labeled them appetizers, breakfast, chicken, etc. I typed out my very favorite recipes from cookbooks and put them in the binders (some of my old favorites are not they way we eat now). I have the binders in a bookcase and I add recipes that I want to keep to them. The recipes I have not tried I have divided by categories into large clips and they are in a large decorative box I bought at the container store.

Re: How do you store your recipes?

flbettyboop — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 00:00:10 GMT

Someone on this blog mentioned Evernote. I love it and they have a web clipper which you highlight, hit clip icon and it saves to notebooks you make. Hope this makes sense. A litle hard to explain but love it.

Boop

Re: How do you store your recipes?

Noel7 — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 00:25:09 GMT

I have a couple of small recipe binders I hand-write my favorites to keep inside, much like this one:

I also have a rectangular decorated cardboard keepsake box from Michael's that I use for recipes written on steno book pages that I've tried and want to keep but which may not be my very favorite recipe.

I have a lot of cookbooks, and I use Post It tabs to mark the pages of favorites or those I want to try.

Re: How do you store your recipes?

Kachina624 — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 01:00:56 GMT

I use Evernote and also have an under-cabinet mounted long recipe box that holds all my favs on 3 X 5 cards. I have a loose leaf notebook with plastic inserts that holds all my Joanna Lund newsletters (remember her?).

Re: How do you store your recipes?

novamc1 — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 01:25:37 GMT

I began collecting and compiling recipes long before I began to do much home cooking. Have always kept them in three-ring binders and three-prong folders, labeled by subject (desserts, salads, sauces and dressings, beef, poultry, seafood, vegetables, etc.

Recipes that I've either copied by hand on 3x5 cards, typed, or cut from publications are taped onto hole-punched pages. in the binders or folders.

I like to keep all the turkey recipes or ground beef recipes in one place, all the green bean recipes in one place, and so on.

There are easier ways to do this these days on the computer, but I like sitting down with printed paper in front of me when I want to select from a collection of chicken recipes, all in one place. Occasionally, I'll make a note about a related recipe that can be found on a certain page in one of the cookbooks I have.

Re: How do you store your recipes?

gonnab — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 13:03:13 GMT

OMG, I have so many recipes that if I use one recipe a day, I will not live long enough to use each of them - I have hundreds!! And the sad thing is, I keep printing them off. In fact, I couldn't sleep last night and guess what I was doing at 3:00 a.m. ? - yup - printing off some recipes from PinInterest. I know that I could store them on my computer, but I like to have paper copy. My system is this - I print off a recipe and put in a folder. As I use and like it, I slip it in a plastic protector, and file in a 3" binder under the appropriate tabs, (meat, soup, breakfast, etc). If it isn't something I want to make again, the recipe goes in the trash. I usually record notes on the paper, and when I want to make the recipe again, I just remove it from the binder and then refile after I'm done. Works for me!!

Re: How do you store your recipes?

beckyb1012 — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 16:42:33 GMT

I have specific labeled boards on Pinterest such as cookie and one for cookie bars.

The below is my index list for my HUGE three ring binder in my kitchen.

Recipes from novels

Candies, Pudding, Ice Cream

Miscellaneous Sweets

Miscellaneous Savory

Cakes & Frostings

Cheesecake Variations

Pies

Brownies

Brownie/Cookie Bars

Entrees

Re: How do you store your recipes?

milkbone — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 17:31:36 GMT

Learn to take a "screen shot" of any web page and print it out !

Also learn to save web pages to your HD

Good luck !

Re: How do you store your recipes?

AnikaBrodie — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 17:44:42 GMT

I store my recipes in several 3 ring notebooks that are stored on a kitchen shelf. I label them Cookies, Desserts, Baking (filed alphabetically), Cooking (filed alphabetically), Miscellaneous, etc. I used to keep them in an Internet file but now when I need a recipe I can just pull it from the binder and return it when finished. It's more practical and works for me.

I also have a large cookbook collection and use them often. Not all my recipes are in a notebook.

Re: How do you store your recipes?

Snowpuppy — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 18:38:01 GMT

Call me crazy but after pitching some old/unused cookbooks I want to go back to using a recipe box.

I found some old, hand written recipe cards from when I first struck out on my own. Others from when DS was a baby .

So many great memories came flooding back! I'm going to put them in a new recipe box and treasure them. I don't have a ton of cards but many need to be recopied.

Should be a great winter project, too!

Re: How do you store your recipes?

Laura14 — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 19:37:29 GMT

Add me to the binder crowd although I normally use my grandmother's old cookbook. I love it. Simple, to the point, and nothing fancy.

Re: How do you store your recipes?

sfnative — Fri, 29 Jan 2016 19:38:17 GMT

2-4" binders filled with sheet protectors. Each potector has 2 recipes in it: one on the front and one on the back. I find the recipe needed, grab a piece of scotch tape and place it on a cupboard door at eye level.

My laptop also contains about 100 recipes, which are also in one of the binders, but don't want to lose them, so always make a hard copy

Re: How do you store your recipes?

joannecha — Sat, 30 Jan 2016 03:16:26 GMT

Good timing for me, as I was just discussing this very issued with DH today & he is a mega-organizer around our house. He suggests that I do it the way he has some of his photographs stored: put inside a plastic sheet protector in binders. I'm checking out Staples on a trip next week to see what I can come up with. I though about the inexpensive dollar store folders, but I'd need a lot of them for all the categories I'd need & the paper would not be protected. I started putting some of my recipes in an on-line storeage for recipes, but eventually you need to print it out so you've got the paper to contend with. Think I'll ponder it a while yet.

Re: How do you store your recipes?

River Song — Mon, 01 Feb 2016 16:47:12 GMT

Add me to the binder/sheet protector crowd. I have some recipes on my computer but I still prefer a hard copy to look at while I'm cooking and I like to write notes on the recipe.

I need to cook/bake gluten-free and I'm always experimenting with GF flour mixes and have to write notes directly on the recipe, otherwise I never remember how it turned out using a particular GF flour.

I have many cookbooks, ok, I'm a collector/hoarder of cookbooks, lol, and I've been going through them one-by-one and donating the ones I know I'll never use. It's difficult, though, because I love to browse through a cookbook and try something completely new. Although I'm not a vegetarian, I do have friends that have certain food sensitivities and are GF, dairy-free, soy-free and vegetarian...a challenge to find yummy recipes for potluck dinners that everyone will love, to say the least. So I'm reluctant to get rid of too many cookbooks because I'm always discovering a new recipe in a cookbook I've had for ages.