Not long ago I spoke with a customer who was adamant about keeping her recipe box intact instead of creating a family cookbook with cookbook software. Here is an excerpt from our conversation:

“I have two recipe boxes, actually,” she said “Both contain recipes I never touch, but I know where they are when I want them.”

I asked if she would consider converting the contents of her recipe box into a cookbook containing the same recipes and that she could keep handy on the kitchen counter.

“No, my recipe box has recipes that I’ve gotten from friends and acquaintances over the years. We used to have potlucks, and everyone would bring the recipe for the dish they brought.”

But wouldn’t it be easier to find the recipes you like if they were neatly categorized in a tabletop cookbook instead of in a recipe box?

“I already have everything in my recipe box set up by category….beef, chicken, Mexican, breakfast, salads, vegetables, that sort of thing.”

What about culling recipes out of the recipe box?

“Oh, I go through my recipe box occasionally for ideas, maybe looking for recipe, but never to clear it out. I found some Weight Watchers recipes from 1974, 1982, 1984 in there that I’ve never really looked at. I don’t know where they came from, but if I need something like that, I know where to find it.”

Do you keep the phone number and address of the person on the recipe card in your recipe box so you can keep in touch?

“Not really, although that is a good idea. I have kept in touch with people I really liked and kept our friendship going by writing them and making telephone calls, depending on where in the world they are.”

So you keep recipes in your recipe box that you’ve never tried or even intend to try?

“Well, yes. I did throw away a recipe for aspic that I would never use. I keep my Spaghetti Surprise recipe, even though everyone in the family hates it. That would be an interesting cookbook idea, a cookbook of a family’s most hated recipes…giggle.”

But haven’t your tastes changed over time since you first started keeping recipes in a recipe box?

“Probably, but I also have two gallon-sized Ziploc bags full of recipe clippings I want to try someday. And, another big cardboard box full of those soft cover cookbooks you can get free by sending postage.  These are always fun to look at, although I’ve never made any of the recipes.”

So is there any way I can convince you that a cookbook created from recipes in your recipe box would be useful?

“I really don’t like the computer well enough to put recipes from my recipe box on it. Anyway, if the recipes from my recipe box were converted, I would still keep the originals. They are more personal. The person’s handwriting makes her face and the event pop into my memory. Basically, I don’t know how I would find my favorite spinach salad recipe if I couldn’t find the hole in the paper first.”

So, I gave up trying to convince this lady and turn her into a Matilda’s Fantastic Cookbook Software user. Luckily, we just happen to have quite a lovely collection of recipe boxes.

Happy cookbooking,

Matilda

Making a recipe book? Check out all the recipe software and cookbook binding supplies we have at CookbookPeople.com.

If you enjoyed this article, you might check out:
• Organizing Your Recipe Collection with Good Intentions
• Cookbook Recipes & the Grocery Shopping Checklist Notepad
• New Recipe Card Box Selection is the Cat’s Meow

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