Organizing Bulging Boxes of Recipes
Everyone has pet peeves. One thing that really bugs me is not being able to find what I’m looking for, when I need it. It’s frustrating! For example, I was planning on making my sister’s amazing Turtle Tart and could not, for the life of me, find the recipe in my bulging boxes of recipes. I ended up calling her. We had a nice conversation but I wasted her time and my own by not being organized.
While the Internet has made searching for recipes easy, the old standbys and family favorites are worth preserving in an organized fashion so when you’re ready to cook, the recipe is at your fingertips. It’s taken me years to develop a system that works for me. It’s really a combination of “recipe-keeping” tactics.
Spiral Binders
I purchased a darling, red-plaid, three-ring binder to organize scrapbook style. The plastic sheets and archival quality tape protect cards written in my mom and grandma’s handwriting. I’ve included email and downloaded recipes in this book.
Cookbooks
I have cookbooks on shelves and a drawer designated for cooking how-tos. In the books, I use my Grandma Kit Kat’s system of crossing out recipes not worth preparing again or “V.G.” for very good! If the book includes an index, I highlight the recipe and page number for easy reference. (A quick note takes a few seconds while searching later takes a lot longer!) Then there are those special cookbooks like the one my Aunt Janny put together with fabulous family recipes. These books go in the drawer so they don’t get tattered.
Recipe Box
Yes, it’s old fashioned but it works! Organize the recipes in categories for easy retrieval. Eliminate the recipes that no longer appeal to avoid bulging boxes.
Computer
On the kitchen computer there’s a file on the hard drive devoted to recipes I’ve found online. In addition, a word-processed page keeps lists of links to websites and recipes handy.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
Galatians 5:22-23
© 2013 Becky Danielson. All rights reserved.