In its purest form, cooking in general can be a therapeutic action: methodically measuring out ingredients for the recipe; having a proven recipe plan to follow, successfully combining different components and techniques; and enjoying the outcome of one’s efforts.

Sometimes the sheer concentration of making a recipe is all that one needs to find therapeutic order in the chaotic world we live in. For some, cooking can be a quick rehabilitation, if you will, performed daily, or as frequently as desired.

Recipe book making can be therapeutic, too: collecting the recipes; entering into the cookbook software; proofreading the recipes; printing the pages; having them all bound together.

Here are five ways recipe book making can be therapeutic:

1. A recipe book making project can be healing. It might force an estranged family member to call the other, thus helping heal family wounds. (That’s therapeutic!)

2. A recipe book making project can be constructive. For someone who is recuperating from an illness, creating a recipe book is a wonderful use of time. In this regard it is therapeutic for the recovering individual, as well as for those who may eventually enjoy the fruits of the recipe book.

3. A recipe book making project can be a remedy. It might correct some misconceptions about recipes, relatives, and the family history. The recipe book might solve some mysteries! (That’s therapeutic!)

4. A recipe book making project can be satisfyingly productive. A sense of pride and accomplishment for the recipe book maker is evident, in that an actual physical item is produced at the end of the undertaking. (My cookbook software makes sure it all looks professional, too).

5. A recipe book making project can be restorative. For someone who needs uplifting, a recipe book making project can be invigorating when it causes the maker to experience a therapeutic change of scenery, a change of mind, or a change of heart.

For me, recipe book making is a grounding experience. Just as cooking is an essential function of every day, recipe book making has a way of giving me perspective on stressful events that may be out of my control. It allows me to forget everything but the task at hand for a few moments. (Now, that’s therapeutic!)

Happy Cookbooking,

Matilda