Orderly Recipes

My attempt at keeping My Recipes manageable and (somewhat) orderly:

1. Bookmarks: all those tempting recipes I come across online while blogging are tagged using recipe specific tags. Here are a couple:

cookmarked.com
delicious.com
evernote.com

Whatever you use, the point is to keep it simple, easy to use, and helpful when you need that exact recipe in that precise moment. It’s such a pain to know you have a recipe somewhere, but aren’t sure where you saved it.



Then I keep a couple of different binders.

2. “To-try” - recipes are sorted in an ordinary, multi-fragmented folder

My folder grows constantly but helps enormously to keep magazine rip-outs, newspaper clippings, prints-outs, copies and recipe cards organized. You can spice it up with colorful labels and dividers. For newspaper clippings you can go the pockets in a binder route, or get one of those cardboard folders with dividers in them. You can sort by source or ingredient or whatever.

3. Successful, “Keepers” recipes are written down in a special notebook. Its a great idea to add your own personal thoughts or tips on the dish, including what goes well with it; as well as what family members thought; how the recipe was passed on to you, etc...

Handwritten recipes develop their own personalities, may it be the aged paper from previous centuries, a beautiful handwriting or the stains and greasy marks, that tell a story of victory success. Some of my most precious recipe notes were written by two of my grandmas or my mom , and more often than not...leave me a bit puzzled, because important information like actual title or “minor details” such as the exact measurement or baking time are missing… but it’s tangible, you can hold it in your hands and feel it.

4. Cookbooks - So as not to "lose" certain recipes in all those cook books I collect, I use post-it notes. When using stickies to mark possible recipes in a cookbook, make a note on the bit that sticks out. Not a big one, just something like a main ingredient, recipe title, or “for a crowd” to narrow things down and make searching faster when you want something from the book.



What organizing method gave you found works for you?

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