We have all eaten meals at friends’ homes and asked for a recipe for something they served. Here’s where the frustration begins. The cook sends the recipe via email, with instructions like, “drizzle a little melted butter over the top,” “add a small amount of milk,” or “mix in about 2T of truffle butter.” Truffle butter?
Whether you are sharing a recipe for a friend, submitting it to a foodie website, contributing to an organization’s cookbook, or crafting your own cookbook for publication, don’t frustrate others. These eight tips should help.
1. Write a Rough Copy as You Actually Make the Dish
Ensure two things – that you don’t leave anything out in terms of ingredients or steps and be precise. This will also allow you to add a few tips. Here are a few “to-dos:”
- List your ingredients as you use them in order.
- Think of tips as you make the dish. If it calls for softened butter, and you have forgotten to do that, how long in the microwave to get the right consistency?
- If there are ingredients (e.g., shredded cheese or other spices) that you do not measure, get out those measuring spoons/cups and shake/sprinkle the amount you use into them. People want exact measurements, not a “pinch” or a “handful.”
- Describe each step carefully. Do you beat the eggs before adding other ingredients or do you beat them all together?
Once you have that rough copy, you are ready to easily transfer it into the final form.
2. Watch Your Vocabulary and Measurement Terminology
A lot of recipe titles and ingredients are in foreign languages – fois de gras, L’escargot, roux, weinerschnitzel, for example. If your audience is American, it may not know just what these terms mean or what a specific dish is. There are good translation websites to use so that you can find English terms as substitutes.
For example, Weinerschnitzel is a German meat dish made with veal. Your title can say “Weinerschnitzel” but then can also include, in parentheses, “German veal cutlets.”
In terms of measurements, if your audience is American, avoid metric measurements. 250ml, for example, is one cup, 8 ounces, or ½ pint.
3. Always Include a Short Introduction
These can be quite short but should engage the audience and motivate them to try the recipe under certain circumstances. Examples:
- Here’s an easy dish you can whip up in 30 minutes when you are crunched for time.
- This has been a holiday favorite in our household for years.
- My kids don’t even know they are eating veggies when I make this dish.
- Impress your guests with this simple but amazing spinach ball hors d’oeuvre.
You have told them the purpose of the dish with suggestions for when it can be used.
4. Use a Template
Especially if you are submitting multiple recipes or crafting an original cookbook, you should have a common template. These are all over the Internet – Just Google “recipe templates.” If you prefer, devise your own. The point is, you want to make sure that your template provides for all of the necessary ingredients, steps, and tips.
5. Add Images
Adding an image or two of the final product can engage your readers and motivate them to try your recipe. Put your creation on a great serving plate/platter, create a great setting (e.g., table with other decorations) and show it off. Your smartphone can yield great photos.
6. Serving Suggestions Add a Nice Touch
It’s great to have an enticing recipe. But what will go well with this main dish? This is a tip you can add at the end of your recipe. If this is a recipe for southern fried catfish, for example, what are fitting sides? Baked beans? Mac and cheese? Fried cabbage, potato salad, coleslaw? Including these will help your reader envision an entire meal.
7. Watch Your Spelling
Once you have the final copy of your recipe and all that goes with it, use a spell-check program. But that is not enough. Spell-check will not catch numerical errors. Review your recipe for every item, step, and measurement.
8. “Call a Friend”
Once you have completed the final copy of your recipe, ask a friend to actually use it to create the dish. You will know if you have everything “in place” so that the recipe is a success for others.
NOTE: If you are publishing your recipe online, add a feature for others to comment on their experience and make suggestions.
These Eight…
Writing your own recipes for whatever purpose will require some thought and time. What you want is for others to be able to duplicate them so that they look and taste like yours. Using these eight suggestions should accomplish just that.
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