We are so excited to report that our Matilda’s Fantastic Cookbook Software has inspired one of our customers to publish her second recipe book and sell it on Amazon.com.

That’s right! High school English teacher Kathryn M. Carriere of Houston, Texas, published her second recipe book in July called Spirits for the Mind and Body: 2101 Cocktail and Alcoholic Beverages‎. It is a whopping 548 pages and features the classic Celtic design template from our Matilda software.

Kathryn says she discovered the software after she published her first cookbook, 74 Great-Tasting Chili Recipes‎, which is also available on Amazon.com. That cookbook was one of her biggest challenges, she says, because she wanted to prove something to herself and to others. With the support of a close friend and two colleagues, Kathryn climbed her Mt. Everest. Once the 164-page book was completed, she was energized, enabled, and empowered to do more. 

“However, I realized that I could do better. That led me to Matilda’s software and the second book. I tried the demo of Matilda and it was what I was looking for in terms of helping me organize my cookbooks the way I wanted them. The third book is now completely done (but not published yet), and I am working on a fourth book.”

Using the recipe template in Matilda for her second recipe book, Kathryn was able to categorize her beverage recipes into clear sections to make them easier to find, such as: Beer Mug, Brandy Snifter, Champagne, Cocktail, Collins, Coupette, Highball, Irish Mug, Old-Fashioned, Pousse-Café, Punch Bowl, Red Wine, Shot Glass, Whiskey Sour, and White Wine.

Kathryn’s first book took 3 months to get published, but only 6 weeks for the second book. She used an on-demand publisher (Trafford Publishing), which included marketing to Amazon.com as part of the package. Now she hopes to “continue writing cookbooks as well as writing novels and travel essays on places that I visit.”

We certainly do wish Kathryn well on her next publishing endeavors! You know, we would never have heard of Huckleberry Finn, Robert’s Rules of Order, Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations, Lady Chatterley’s Lover, Ulysses, or Walden, if the authors hadn’t had the courage to self-publish. You roar girl!

Happy Cookbook Authoring,

Matilda

We often get inquiries from customers about what type of paper to purchase for printing a cookbook on a home printer. Sounds like a straightforward question, but it can be a bit complicated because there are many types of paper out there to confuse you.

First, you want to choose a paper (aka “stock”) that fits the kind of printer you have. Some papers will say on the label that they are suitable for either inkjet or laser printers, or both. These papers have a better surface texture (aka “finish”) than plain copy paper, and they will produce nicer cookbook photos in either color or black-and-white.

I generally stay away from laid or linen paper finishes for my cookbooks because they have a texture and may not print as evenly as a wove/smooth surface. (They are great for letterhead and business stationery, though.)  Sometimes I get a coated paper stock because cookbook pages can be prone to spills. (I like the matte finish because there is less glare when reading a recipe.)

Second, think about the impression you want your cookbook to make. A cookbook made with heavier paper for the cover will last longer than a cookbook with its cover and inside pages made of identical paper.  (However, a “self-cover” booklet may also lend itself to several quickie cookbook themes: bridesmaid’s memento, hostess gift, children’s party favor.) The paper’s thickness (aka “weight”) is measured in pounds (#). The higher the number, the thicker and heavier the paper.

For example, “offset/book/text” paper is commonly 50#, 60#, 70#, 80#, 100#.  It is often used for publication interior pages, brochures, and letterhead. It can be coated or uncoated.  On the other hand, bond paper comes in 20# (standard for plain paper copiers),
24# (preferred for stationery), and  28# (usually used for outer envelopes).

If you do want a heavier cover, try “cover” stock in 65#, 80#, 100#, 120#, or 12 pt. These thicker papers can have coated or uncoated finishes.

You’ll also want to think about the paper’s absorbency (aka “opacity”), which dictates if printing will show through on the reverse side of the sheet. Complete opacity is 100%. If you are printing cookbook pages on both sides, opacity is a concern for you.

Then there is a paper’s readability to consider (aka “brightness”), which is the light reflective qualities of a paper. The brightest paper is rated 100, but most papers reflect 60-90% of light.

So there you have it…a tiny lesson in selecting the right paper for your cookbook. In short, some of our customers use 24# bond for the cookbook’s inside pages and a 70# offset for the cover (they say the harder surface makes photos look better). It is really up to you.

Note: Most of the big office warehouses carry many of the papers mentioned above, and they will be happy to help you choose a paper when you’re ready to print your cookbook from your own printer.

Happy Cookbooking,

Matilda

The answer is as simple or as complex as our customers want to hear (we didn’t just fall off the turnip truck, you know.)  How much time it takes to make a family cookbook is dependent upon 5 important areas of discussion, which we ask right back:

1. What’s Your Motivation?
Is there a deadline, such as a holiday, birthday, family reunion, charity sale, or other special event coming that necessitates the family cookbook being completed?  Or, are there perhaps others who are expecting the family cookbook to be completed by a specific date that you don’t want to disappoint?

2. How Many Recipes?
Is there a large collection of recipes to sort through, perhaps even to test before considering them for the family cookbook?  Some time will also be needed to add the recipes into the recipe template (whether by typing them in, or cutting and pasting from other files).

3. High or Low Interest?
Is making a family cookbook a decision that has been made because of a desire to preserve special family memories?  Or, perhaps a promise has been made (to oneself or others) for seeing the project through to success?

4. Who Will Be Involved?
Is the family cookbook going to be a solo project or one shared by a group of individuals?  A general rule of thumb is that the more people involved, the slower the cookbook-making process will be.

5. How Are Your Computer Skills?
Is the person or group comfortable with typing and using computer software?  Matilida’s is as easy as cookbook softwares come (we like to say that if you can use email, you can use our software.)

So, how much time does it take to make a family cookbook?
It depends. One hour. 40 hours. 20 days. 5 weeks. You decide. With Matilda’s Fantastic Cookbook Software, it is really all up to you.

Happy Cookbooking,

Matilda

One sisterhood fundraising cookbook I ran across years ago included a light-hearted look at Jewish life and culture, with many funny stories from members of the temple sisterhood interwoven between the recipes. It was called “Chicken Soup,” (not to be confused with the best-selling Chicken Soup series), and most of the recipes fit into the following categories:

- Appetizers & Beverages
- Soups & Salads
- Breads
- Main Dishes
- Side Dishes
- Accompaniments
- Desserts
- Breakfast & Brunch
- Holiday Favorites
- Special Hints

Another sisterhood Kosher fundraising cookbook featured a clever idea: every member who contributed recipes had her own chapter!  This is a great idea for any cookbook, whether for fundraising or the family. Imagine how wonderful it would be to have a whole chapter devoted to your very own recipes (a mini recipe collection).  The dividers also featured child’s artwork, with photos of contributors interspered (when appropriate). Very inspired.

I hope this little story inspires you to get going on preparing your cookbook for the holidays! They are not too far away.

Best wishes & happy cookbooking,

Matilda

We have standard size beautiful gift bags that accommodate our half page recipe binders and recipes boxes quite nicely. And, we also have large size beautiful gift bags that are perfect for the full-size recipe binders, recipe boxes and other items that need a little more room. All the designs are beautifully finished, and some even coordinate well with the existing binder and recipe box patterns that we carry.

Standard Beautiful Gift Bag Designs
9-3/4″ x 8-3/8” x 3-7/8″
Embellished Gift Bag
Elysian Field

Large Gift Bag Designs
12-1/2″ x 4-1/4” x 10-1/4″
Old Country Rose
Shangri-La (Butterfly)
Tropica

Aside from the practical aspect of using beautiful gift bags instead of gift wrap (no scissors, tape, or paper cuts to contend with), beautiful gift bags are great to keep around for other purposes:

1. Holding extra files and papers (such as recipe clippings)
2. Packing a picnic lunch
3. Carrying your laptop, notebook or netbook
4. Disguising your discount store bag from the nosy neighbor

But you don’t have to take my word for it. (After all, I do have a vested interest in telling you this stuff.) So, here’s a link to our Accessories page so you can take a look for yourself.
Cookbook People Gift Bags

Meanwhile, I do hope you are working on your family cookbook for your Christmas gifts.

Happy cookbooking,

Matilda

I can understand how some people might think creating a family cookbook is too complicated or hard. But it doesn’t have to be. With our easy to use software, you don’t have to do any organizing upfront before you start creating your family cookbook.

You can take one recipe at a time in any order and input them into our fun and easy to use recipe templates. The templates will automatically organize your recipes for you alphabetically into sections you choose. That way you can enter a banana pudding recipe right after a turkey stuffing recipe or salad dressing recipe without worrying about where it will show up in the cookbook. (And you won’t get bored either.)

Also, you can mix and match the design elements for every recipe if you want, and it all turns out looking like you hired a graphic artist to sit by your side while you were creating your family cookbook. (You don’t even have to confess otherwise!)

So, creating a family cookbook needn’t be considered going into labor at all. You can just dive right in rather than procrastinating by inventing more roadblocks to your eventual success and triumph in producing a family cookbook.

Come to think of it, maybe creating a family cookbook with our cookbook software does have some labor involved. I would call it a labor of love.

Happy family cookbooking,

Matilda

You couldn’t do that with a typewriter. Even the magical old IBM Selectric typewriter couldn’t keep up with even the most primitive word processor that technology has brought to us. You really couldn’t be as up close and personal as we are today with a technology-created family recipe cookbook.

For example, through family recipe cookbook software (such as Matilda’s Fantastic Cookbook Software), you can make your own family recipe cookbook up close and personal by adding photos to recipes, including family stories and pictures of family members, keeping track of their addresses and birthdays, and selecting a standard page design (we offer 27 different ones), or even creating your own design using our cookbook software templates.

You can choose to personalize your family recipe cookbook any way you like  (and do these personalizations just once). Then you can share them with family or friends near and far. What a lot of duplicate work is now saved by technology-created family recipe cookbooks!

For me the best part about technology is when it comes to printing the family recipe cookbook for others. Some family members don’t want the section on Baby Food, for example, so I can customize their family recipe cookbook to include only the sections and recipes they really want.

Ain’t technology and technology-created family recipe cookbooks grand?

Happy cookbooking,

Matilda

While traveling I often try to stay at local bed N breakfasts because I generally have a nice time visiting with like-minded travelers, the accommodations are usually very homey, and the food is most likely top-notch.

Last time I visited a bed N breakfast, I asked for a copy of a recipe for a particularly delicious morning pastry. The hostess obliged by hand-copying the recipe for me on a sheet of bed N breakfast stationery.

But wouldn’t it have been nice if I could have bought a copy of the bed N breakfast’s recipe cookbook?

Making a bed N breakfast recipe cookbook should be so easy with Matilda’s Fantastic Cookbook Software. There could even be a section in each bed N breakfast cookbook about famous people who’ve stayed at the bed N breakfast, including a little story and photo of their stopover.

What a wonderful souvenir of a nice visit, not to mention a new revenue stream for the bed N breakfast!

Happy bed N breakfast cookbooking,

Matilda

Above: The Sunset Inn, South Haven, MI

My father had some unusual tastes in food to a kid hanging around wondering what all the fuss was in the kitchen. Burnt toast eaten with sunny side up eggs was one combination I remember. The smell of charred forgotten toast still makes me think of him. Scrapple. Corn pancakes. He also liked raw oysters, and it wasn’t until I was in my mid-30s that I learned to appreciate them.

My father grew up in hard times just after the turn of the 20th century, when men changed their shirt collars instead of their shirts, and bread that you sliced yourself was a few pennies a loaf.

One Father’s Day we made hamburger dogs and sunny side up egg cake for my father’s appreciation celebration.  The hamburgers were shaped like hot dogs. They were not too appetizing looking, but they did taste pretty good. I do remember it was a bit hard to adapt to the idea that hamburger meat shaped like hot dogs and eaten in a hot dog bun were still Father’s Day hamburgers.

The sunny side up egg cake was cute. It was a yellow cake with white frosting when you could get frosting in a box. I decorated it with a sunny side up egg by drawing an oblong outline in black frosting on the flat smooth top surface, and added a yolk of yellow frosting to complete the sunny side up effect.

This was all reminiscent of a time my father and I tried to fry an egg outside with a cast iron skillet using the hot August sun for heat, testing the axiom “it’s so hot you can fry an egg on the sidewalk.”  (It took awhile, but we eventually did get our egg cooked.)

I’m sure you also have some food memories of your father that would fit into your family cookbook. Just write them into the “People” template of Matilda’s Fantastic Cookbook Software, and your family cookbook will come alive with some precious personal memories.

Happy cookbooking,

Matilda

Some of our lovely “Matilda’s” users have asked questions in the past regarding printing their cookbooks at the neighborhood quick print shop or at one of the national chains instead of printing their cookbook at home.

Many of them would like to get printing quotes from several shops around town in order to get the best product at the best price.  We think this is a good idea, and often suggest a standard format for providing this information to the printer/counter person.

First of all, if you are asking several places to give you a “quote,” it is easier to provide identical information on a Request for Quotation form.  You can complete it on your home computer and print out as many copies as print shops you’ll be visiting. The basic Word format of the Request for Quotation can be changed easily and will save you from having to explain over and over again (and the printer will understand more clearly).

Therefore, when visiting copy shops it would be a good idea to have the following items available:

- A printed sample of your cookbook to show. You don’t need a printout of the whole cookbook; just the outside cover pages and a few inside pages will demonstrate nicely. They’ll get the idea from those samples.

- Provide the printer with your Request for Quotation form filled out as completely as possible.

What you are trying to do is make sure the print shop person knows all the specifications you want your cookbook to have, so that they do it right the first time. For more about copy shops, read this article:
Printing Your Cookbook at a Copy Shop

There are other options your copy shop counter person may also suggest, so keep track of these on the bottom of the form.  Some of them may be:

Cover protectors
You can ask to have clear plastic sheets added to the front and back covers. This will make the cookbooks more durable and less likely to get those inevitable butter (aka grease) stains

Paper Stock
Instead of glossy white paper, you can choose other paper to print your cookbook. Consider using plain white, cream or ivory, or even Hot Pink if you like. Just remember that these types of papers are more porous than the glossy paper and can stain easily.

Ink Color
Some printers have the ability to provide different ink colors to highlight the cookbook. If this is something you would like to do, remember that darker inks print best. Limit your ink choices to black, Navy, brown, or dark green. (Photos never look good in yellow or pink, especially food.)

Happy Cookbooking!

Matilda