| Recipes are part of a family's heritage. Every family | | | | To protect the covers, you can have them |
| has favorite recipes that have been passed from | | | | laminated, or I have also applied clear contact paper |
| generation to generation. Some are handwritten on | | | | to the card stock before cutting it in half. This |
| recipe cards, and others are tucked away in old, | | | | worked great! |
| worn cookbooks that are slowly falling apart. These | | | | You can also create recipe "booklets" by subdividing |
| treasures won't last ever, and they should be | | | | your pages in your word processing program, and |
| preserved for future generations. One way to make | | | | then instead of cutting them in half, lay the pages on |
| sure these recipes live on is to put together your | | | | top of the full sheet of card stock and then fold the |
| own family cookbook. Computers have made it very | | | | pages in half, creating a booklet. You can buy fairly |
| easy for people to accomplish this task--and the | | | | inexpensive staplers that will reach far enough to |
| work isn't all that hard. Your cookbook could be as | | | | staple the center of the booklet. |
| simple as 8 1/2" x 11" pages hole-punched and tied | | | | It's that easy! Your cookbook of favorite family |
| together with yarn. Or you could protect the pages | | | | recipes is only limited to your imagination. I have seen |
| inside of a report cover. I've used report covers with | | | | cookbooks of all shapes and sizes, many with |
| a clear plastic front to show off the artwork on the | | | | hand-drawn pictures in them. The more you |
| title page of the cookbook. If you have access to a | | | | personalize it the better. Make sure to include who |
| color printer, you can make a beautiful full-color title | | | | you got the recipes from and maybe even which |
| page or cover for your cookbook. If you don't have | | | | country they originated from. I even saw one that |
| a color printer, black and white can look very nice | | | | had copies of handwritten letters photocopied onto |
| also. | | | | the back cover of the cookbook--it was very original |
| You can set up your word processing program to | | | | and definitely a nice touch. One cookbook I did for |
| subdivide your pages into two columns, essentially | | | | my family had a dedication page in it that listed all of |
| allowing you to view two 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" pages at a | | | | the people whose recipes were included in the |
| time. (You also need to set your page orientation to | | | | cookbook. It was especially neat because it included |
| "landscape.") When you print out the pages, you can | | | | my family as well as my husband's. |
| cut them in half with a paper cutter and have the | | | | Family cookbooks make great presents for friends |
| pages bound together with a plastic comb binder. | | | | and family members. They can be given for all |
| Office supply stores like Office Depot will do this for | | | | different occasions, including Mother's Day, weddings, |
| you for a very reasonable price. I have done many | | | | graduations, birthdays, and Christmas, just to name a |
| of these cookbooks and usually use colored card | | | | few. Because you can photocopy them as you need |
| stock for the cover. One 8 1/2" x 11" page of card | | | | them, they are also very inexpensive. Your family will |
| stock cut in half creates the front and back covers. | | | | treasure them. |