Organizational Techniques for Recipes?

[big brown horse]

Well, I have my favorite cookbooks that are all written on and then there are the mag. cut outs tucked into those, not to mention the note book paper I jot things on and fold up and put into my cookbooks. So when I open any given cookbook, I get a nice surprise of recipes (that I had forgotten about) dumped right onto the floor. Its like Christmas all year round! (That pretty much sums up my whole life, one big organized surprise! )

 

[HannaLee]

I have typed all my oft-used recipes onto a recipe blog. That was requests for recipes can be sent easily to that, instead of being written by me.

I have them all ready to print off and put in a three ring binder for easy access in my kitchen.

I used to use 3x5 cards and a card file, but eventually got too many to be a useful system.

 

[me&thegals]

Each year, I keep an ongoing word file on my computer with my new favorite recipes. I have a 3-ring binder filled with plastic sleeves. I print out the recipes, tape them onto cardstock and slip them in the sleeves.

My recipes are organized mainly by fruit or veggie so I can find my favorites during certain harvests, ie: apples, pumpkins, eggplant, basil, beans, etc. Then, I also have categories for breads, breakfast foods, main course dishes and desserts. It works for me!

 

[DrakeMaiden]

My recipes are organized mainly by fruit or veggie so I can find my favorites during certain harvests, ie: apples, pumpkins, eggplant, basil, beans, etc. Then, I also have categories for breads, breakfast foods, main course dishes and desserts. It works for me!

Good idea about organizing by harvest.

I started with organizing based upon ethnicity of the dish, and then also based upon meal category (appetizer, breakfast, etc.). The problem, of course, is that some recipes could go into several different categories. Now I was considering that I also need to organize based upon season. I'm not sure if I'm ready for organizing by harvest . . . that is pretty intense!

I have often thought it would be fun to have them all on a laptop that I could use in the kitchen . . . but I do worry about what I would do if I lost power and didn't have a hardcopy . . . and I also would worry about spilling something on the laptop. Knowing me, I would accidentally spill flour down into the keyboard.

BBH -- your system sounds exactly like what is happening to me right now. I open my binder and all the looseleaf recipes fly out at me. LOL

 

[keljonma]

microsoft word documents
microsoft access database
notebooks of family handwritten recipes
3x5 cards
recipe/cook books (about 150, I think, since I've downsized)

 

[Dace]

I love hearing everyones ideas! This winter I need to do a reorg as well. I have so many cookbooks and find stuff on line that I can never remember where a recipe came from.

I started a spiral binder this year. I stays with my cook books and when I happen upon a winning recipe I write it in my binder, and include revisions. I name the recipes after the people who enjoyed them with us when possible, like Jamie's Bomb Mojitos and Karl's Ghetto Mac...that way it helps me remember a fun meal....like the many many Mojitos we drank trying to perfect our recipe and the time my friend Karl said my mac & cheese was just like the kind his grandmother made back in the ghetto as he calls it.

This winter I will go thru my little binder and type them all up to put into page protectors in a three ring binder. I like having the little spiral one on hand in the kitchen though, it is really easy to just sit down and hand write my recipe.

 

[sylvie]

Big loose leaf notebooks with page protectors.
I have recipes that I have converted into vegetarian and keep a copy of both, in different notebooks. Christmas recipes in two giant binders, Halloween, so on.

The problem that I have with recipe systems is that I like to see photos of the finished meal. I am very visual. I hate cookbooks without photos.

My greatest inspirations are from seeing a gorgeous photo of something, thinking it was a certain ingredient only to read the recipe and find it is a scallop or something I don't eat. I go ahead and make the recipe substituting the ingredient I thought I saw and have made some sensational meals that way.
I cut out food pics in magazines and make notes all over them with arrows of what I think it is or should be. Very odd system but it really works well for me. Keeps things exciting.

We have numerous electrical outages each year, notebooks just make good sense.

 

[miss_thenorth]

I have a file on my computer of interesting recipes I find, a separate section for ones tried and true, ----and for recipes I use on a very regular basis, I have printed out and stuck to the insides of my cupboards. If I am using one that is on the computer, I just bring the laptop into the kitchen and follow it there.

 

[DrakeMaiden]

Big loose leaf notebooks with page protectors.
I have recipes that I have converted into vegetarian and keep a copy of both, in different notebooks.

. . .

My greatest inspirations are from seeing a gorgeous photo of something, thinking it was a certain ingredient only to read the recipe and find it is a scallop or something I don't eat. I go ahead and make the recipe substituting the ingredient I thought I saw and have made some sensational meals that way.
I cut out food pics in magazines and make notes all over them with arrows of what I think it is or should be. Very odd system but it really works well for me. Keeps things exciting.

Don't remind me about the big box of "original" recipes and recipes I have not yet tried that is lurking in my other room. Can you believe . . . I started collecting recipes when I was in elementary school? My mom threw a bunch of them away, though, when I left home. Spoil sport!

Sylvie, your notation system makes perfect sense to me!

 

[Wifezilla]

I am surprised Abi hasn't commented on this one...

She has all her stuff up on www.Recipezaar.com. That way if her compute blows up, she still has everything. I post from time to time. I also have scrap books. Scrap books are very handy for clipped recipes.