Help me here, dear readers. I’m trying to figure out recipe storage. I’ve been half-heartedly keeping my recipes online for a while, but after my laptop went kerplooey, I realized that maybe it’s better to have a binder or a box or something hard-copy that can resist spills, is easy to access, and doesn’t take up a lot of space. I’ve been searching and searching for some kind of 4×6 recipe card that you can download and type your recipe on, but the few I’ve found have really ugly cutesy country type graphics. Or else you have to print the cards out and then write on them and really, if I’m going to do that, I’d prefer to buy recipe cards that are on heavier cardstock than I have.
So what do you do? How do you organize your recipes?
Because my recipes come from all different sources and I tend not to rewrite them, I find a 3-ring binder with page protector sleeves works best for me. I can easily file magazine pages, index cards, Xeroxes, handwritten pages, recipe swaps, etc. in a neat single location. If it’s something small, like a card, I may staple it to a large page so it doesn’t rattle around inside the page protector. I don’t divide mine my entree, dessert, etc. but of course you could.
(I don’t rewrite mine into a single format because I like seeing the original format — I have recipe cards from my bridal shower, an e-mail print out from a now-deceased relative, etc. To me, those elements are part of the recipe I don’t want to lose.)
We do the 3-ring binder and page protectors, too. I photocopy out of recipe books, print off websites, all sorts of things, but most end up 8.5×11 so this works out well.
Yup, gonna have to go with the 3-ring binder, for all the reasons mentioned above. It can be a pain to find things sometimes, but, it is nice to take out just the page you need and put it in the recipe holder. I always have The Joy of Cooking on the recipe stand, so it makes a good backing surface for supporting the odd page-protector covered magazine page.
ditto, ditto, and ditto! Wow… I can’t believe we all do the same thing.
I have both a 3-ring binder and a recipe box with notecards. The notecards are for short, quick recipes when I need inspiration for dinner but don’t have a lot of time. I keep it right on the kitchen counter. The binder is for longer, more involved recipes. Currently, I’m way behind in organizing recipes. I have a large box full of clippings that I need to sort and store.
In addition to the 3-ring binder, I have a lot of 4×6 cards that I keep in an inexpensive photo album. The photo slots are just the right size for them. I print up my recipes on matte white postcards from Avery. If you use a publishing program, just divide a full page spread into 4 parts by using separate text boxes. Don’t use the postcard template; you’ll end up with four cards of the same design!