Preserving Those Favorite Recipes

While I was growing up, my mom made the best meals. I remember leaving for college and wondering how I would get all of her great recipes. I ended up spending many days typing the recipes onto 3" x 5" cards on an old Smith Corona typewriter so that I could have Mom's favorite recipes with me to use someday. Copiers were not readily available where I lived in 1983 so typing them was the only option I had. 24 years later I still have those cards. I cook those favorite meals for my own family now. Have you thought about how you will personally save your favorite recipes? Have you thought about if your children might want to take those recipes with them someday when they leave home? The perfect solution is a recipe album. You can make your own album of favorite family recipes or make one to give to your child as he or she leaves home.

The Album

Before starting your recipe album, you will need to decide which size album you will make. I chose to make a 6" x 6" album. I find it is the perfect size. It has enough room to put the recipe and still include a few embellishments. My album also has a plastic cover I can put over it so that it will not get dirty as I cook.

The Sections

As you put your album together, you will want to decide if you want your album divided into sections. You can have the traditional sections such as appetizers, main course, desserts, etc., or you can just put the recipes in alphabetical order. Right now my recipes are in alphabetical order but my album can easily be changed if I ever decide I want to add specific sections.

Gathering Your Recipes

Now you will want to gather your recipes. Maybe you are going to redo your entire recipe collection or maybe you are going to put just your favorites in this album. I have only included my favorites in my album, and I also included our favorite kids craft recipes in my album. There are certain craft recipes like play dough and "yuck" that we use over and over again. My girls may also want these fun craft recipes to use with their children someday.

Creating Your Pages

When you create your pages, they can be as elaborate or as simple as you would like. I like to use sketches to create my pages since it makes scrapping my recipes very simple and fast. I also add a few embellishments but I try not to make them elaborate. On a few pages, I even used the 3" x 5" cards I typed 24 years ago. They are a nice memory. You may even have some old recipe cards that your mother or grandmother wrote out. They would look great on a recipe page and be a cherished memory. On the back of each scrapped recipe, I write something special about that particular dish. I also sign it and write the month and year I scrapped the recipe.

Other Ideas

Some people choose to put their recipes in a tin or a box. Others use an album and choose to include a picture of the person that the recipe came from. You can even include a picture of the cooked dish. There are many ways to make your album. Have fun with it. Make it your own. I am sure whatever you choose, it will become a treasure to future generations!

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