How does everyone store their recipes?

A

amanda_pennsylvania

Well-known member
I've been doing the very non-geeky thing of cutting and pasting into a Word document...not organized at all. I'd like to set up some other method, so I was wondering what everyone else here did.

 
I copy and paste them onto Wordpad, then save and file under the appropriate folders and subfolders.

 
Master Cook is great

There was some discussion of this on thread 3061. I have Master Cook and it has a great feature for imorting from websites. I set up my own cookbooks, and it works very well.

 
I have tried it all & so far Living Cookbook is my fave....

I have Master Cook, iCookPro but I really do find Living Cookbook easy to use (the way you can copy something and put it on the back tab and select and put it in each place is GREAT) plus it has some other great features like pantry, searches, printing cookbook, etc.

I am in the last leg of getting everythign in there to put together a family and friends cookbook for everyone for Christmas!

 
I second MasterCook

I got it originally many years ago. The one I use most is Version 2. It currently contains close to 1000 recipes.
I also have a later version that also has Cooking Light recipes as part of it's database. The feature I use in this version most is the direct email.

I have given my children the software, and periodically, we burn a new CD with the latest version of my cookbook to give them. That, along with the copies that dh has put on a number of our other computers, constitutes my backup.

As I try new recipes, I try to enter the keepers into MC.

 
I have NYC, you sign up online. It's the only software where the programmer emails you directly

asking for your input...they have a yahoo group to share ideas, recipes, etc. All the updates are free once you buy the first CD. Soon he is going to have pictures available to attach to your recipes, also he's going to make it so we can publish or share our cookbooks.

I used to have Mastercook but they kept updating and I eventually couldn't use them on my computer.

I love NYC for it's user support. It's so nice being able to communicate with the programmer. You can create as many cookbooks as you want. You can easily move recipes from book to book.

Also the owners of the program send out an email each week with recipes...they also make about 300 individual small recipe books available to download; I think they even have aprons, but not sure on that.

 
Marsha can you post a link or something to this? Might as well try another one.....

I am a techie geek. I am sick that I forgot to bid on the XPS laptop on MyWishList today - even with my employee discount I can't touch the price. Didn't need it - just wanted another cool new toy.

 
I use MasterCook also...

I have an older version but it became impossible to print from it, so I bought MasterCook 7, which I am sure has been replaced with a newer version. I like the newer version because as rhoward2va, it has a great importer, and a great emailer. It makes sending recipe out easy as can be. I have started backing up my cookbooks onto a flash drive, and then store it on other computers for safe keeping.

 
I posted this at Gail's years ago...

marg/cdn: Finally found my previous post. I should note that we started with a 4" binder....
Posted: May 3, 2003 10:44 AM

I posted this last year. It was a review of a very helpful system put together on the sly, by my husband.

Part of a response... A Christmas present from my husband last year, was a HUGE binder filled with indices and tabbed sections of recipes that he photocopied for me, (including the recipes)those tried and those marked to try, categorized by food type. He also photocopied all my F&W, Saveur, Saveurs, Epicure and BA indices back to the mid 70s (depending on when the magazines came to market) so that I could access things that might have stuck in my memory. When we feel like something particular, we go to the binder and fnd it under that category. It then gets scored on 3 scales: degree of difficulty, prep time and just how much we liked it. If it does not make a 7 out of 10 on the like scale, it gets chucked. It is only part of an answer to how you get to them all, but it does make it easy to access them when you do have the inclination to try something new. the index is kept up to date but the binder is so full now, that the index is now in its own separate binder. He also indexed the already-tried recipes that I had marked in various of my favourite books as he was nervous that I might some day be unable to remember where these favourites could be found. Now just how much does he like eating?!! Thoughtful gift wasn't it? And I didn't even wonder what he was doing at the photocopier every night after midnight. (Well, who would have guessed?)
So as part of the, I suspect, unanticipated gift, he must continue to categorize recipes and make sure that the index is updated. I keep everything in my computer according to categories but he is responsible for hard copies.

And just recently, I have become brave enough to just throw out recipes that do no hit 8 our of 10 on the second round.

And he has found that the dessert category has become so voluminous that another binder was necessary.

 
Too funny, when I first saw "DH" on these forums and figured it was either "darling husband? or

"damn husband". This dude is definately the first!

I pretty much use Meryl's method of files on a flash drive. Much less to take to work. I have a small printer and just print them as I need to and usually at the end of a job, those pages could be soup starter! Ick!
Nan

 
Missy, I forgot to tell you...it has nearly unlimited categories that you create yourself....

I have a 'tried and true' category;...also there is a rating system for every recipe, so you can look at your rated recipes...you can also TAG recipes if you want to remember something you put in there today and you think you might want to make it in 2 wks but you might forget what it is...you have to search tagged in each cookbook...

here's where communication with the programmer comes in...if you'd like to have a search for the TAGGED in the search box you can ask him to consider it and often he will.

then upgrades are free

 
Yes, I do keep them on a CD as well so I can easily edit later. (and I do, often) But if just want

to relax somewhere with pot of tea in the sun, the book is easy. And it has all the ratings on it.

And yes, the H is for husband, not originated by me, but the D, in my case, will remain a mystery.

Where are you off to next Nan? (off topic)

 
I have MasterCook 8 and the web import is sooooo awesome

It allows you to import even the pictures, which is awesome. At someone else's suggestion, I have two cookbooks, one that is tried and true and one called "not so tried and true".

The menu/shopping list is my second favorite feature. You select your recipes for a menu and it gives you a shopping list. No more hunting through the recipes and hoping you didn't miss anything.

There is also a pantry feature that lets you list what is in your pantry that helps you do your regular shopping list. I've been too lazy to do that, but I know others that use it religiously.

 
Some questions for mastercook users

I have a really old version, I think v2, I was going to upgrade a year or so ago, and I was told they discontinued it and don't make it anymore. So after I saw your comments, I did a search and see I can buy v. 9 on Amazon for $20. So I guess they're still making it and the sales person didn't know any better and just wanted to get rid of me? I hate it when sales people would rather lie than help you.

Anyway, I am in the process of building a very large German language cookbook with photos of each recipe. I initially started it in Word and it is becoming too large.

Will the new Mastercook allow import of photos in a recipe?

If so, are there size limitations on a cookbook with photos?

How are the printing options? Does it look like a cookbook when it prints?

Any other input on v9 Master Cook functions?

 
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