How to Create a Family Cookbook

Creating a family cookbook this holiday season is not only a great way to find new and delicious recipes, but it is a great way to preserve family history and traditions. Everyone has their favourite family recipes, stories, photos, memories and techniques that they would be willing to share to help create this wonderful family keepsake. Maybe you could recreate some of these amazing recipes for your Christmas menu this year! Read on to learn how to create a family cookbook that can be given as a gift to those you love.

Family Memories

If you are you looking for a fun way to gather and preserve family memories and history, then this is for you! With so many families getting together during different events throughout the years, this is a wonderful time to put these memories together in one place for you and for future generations to learn about their family and remember special moments. 

Did I write that recipe down? Which drawer did I put that recipe in? This aging recipe card is so bent and damaged, I can hardly read it! Sound familiar? Keeping organised with everything all in one place helps take out the guesswork as well!

Though a little work is involved, putting together a collection of all those special family recipes that everyone has such fond memories of can be so very rewarding. Perhaps there are recipes that didn’t work out as planned that everyone still remembers. Is there a funny saying or story that goes with a family favourite Christmas dish? These would make a wonderful story to cherish!

Though, when making these memories, there are a few things that you need to consider.

• Are you creating this book just for you?
• Would you be passing it onto children, siblings, parents, and other members of your extended family?
• Are you going to get family members to hand write their recipes, so that you can keep a copy of their handwriting?
• How much time do you have to work on this?
• Do you want to have it completed by a certain date?

With the answers to these, you can then work out:

• How many copies you will need
• Printing requirements – can you do it yourself, are you going to create an ebook and have email it to everyone?
• Is it just going to be recipes or are you going to include cherished memories?
• Will you include family traditions to stop them from vanishing?

Create a Family Cookbook

Family gatherings almost always revolve around food, and the smells and tastes of those traditional dishes can be packed with memories. What a wonderful way to capture your family history?

When you create a family cookbook that contains all these memories, you are keeping memories alive while also making a family treasure that can be gifted through the generations. You can gift a copy as a birthday present, Christmas present, wedding present, handout at family reunions or for your children as they grow and leave the home.

To make this book easy to use, make sure to think all the details through before beginning, picking materials that are going to last a long time, and are easy to use.

There is no better time than now to gather the recipes and stories to start creating your very own family cookbook.

Recording and Sharing

As you are collecting your recipes, keep a list of everyone who expresses interest in getting a copy of the finished cookbook. They also may have suggestions on the best way to style or create the family cookbook. You can create a list at the back of the book of all the helpers and input.

The style and quality of books that are to be published, will affect how you plan on finishing your project. Also, the size of the finished book will be determined by the amount of recipes and stories you receive as well.

If you only end up with a dozen or so recipes and stories, you could just print the pages yourself on a good printer or have a booklet made up at the local copy/print shop.

If you have a sizeable collection of material, along with a large number of interested parties who want a copy, you may need to look into finding a short-run book publisher who specifically deals in private books. These professional publishers may offer editing services to help you get your manuscript ready to print.

If you want to create a book that can be added to over time, the best way is to print out the pages and use a binder with clear sleeves to store them.

Monetary Budget

If you are going to create a family recipe cookbook that you are going to send to a printer to print, or print yourself and pass out, you do need to think about the financial aspect.

• What are you willing to spend? Time and financial.
• Are others who want a copy willing to chip in?
• Does anyone else have skills that you don’t that can help create this book?

Obviously, printing a book yourself is going to be considerably cheaper than going through a printing company. This book could also be made so that you can add more pages if you find more treasures throughout the years.

Though, this does have a downside.

• What type of printer do you own?
• What ink does it take? A colour book is going to cost more in printing than a black and white one.
• What paper are you going to use? Thicker paper or cardstock will hold up better over time than using normal paper.
• Scanned recipes and photos can be added to the book. Do you have a scanner to do this?

Scroll down to grab a copy of my Family Cookbook Printables that can be printed out multiple times and filled in with a pen.

Otherwise, a printing company can be quick, though expensive. They will be able to handle large amounts of colour photographs and they usually all have a binding type service as well.

This option is great for those who have a healthy budget, less time and are comfortable using online services as you will have to upload the recipes, photos and stories to have them printed.

Gathering the Recipes

The first step in creating a cookbook is to get a hold of all the recipes that you want to include. This could be recipes

• That everyone remembers
• That are always at every family gathering
• Long lost favourites
• Family twists on traditional dishes
• Don’t forget the simple recipes such as vinaigrettes, sauces, and jams

These recipes can be gathered by talking to those family members you are in touch with. Ask everyone to ask everyone else about adding to your project. 

You can simplify things by supplying blank recipe sheets, though that request seem very “business-like” and may intimidate some people. Handing out your email address, or make a new one specifically for this, for these recipes to be sent to, can help you keep track of everything.

For those that are tech savvy, you could also create a google form to collect all the information you need.

Don’t just ask for family favourite recipes, ask for recipes that are directly connected with the family history in some way. Recipes that have great stories about family members, occasions, and events. Make sure to keep track of who supplied the recipe, so you can thank them and give them credit in your book.

Family History

Though this is a cookbook, what makes it a special family heirloom is the addition of personal memories, stories, and photos. When you ask your relatives, see if they can add anything that they remember about a particular dish, the person who made it or a time when it was served.

Photos, even if it’s a typical family photo at a dinner table where you can barely make out the dish will still be worth adding to this keepsake. The focus is on the family as well, not just the food.

In the Family Cookbook Printables that you can grab at the bottom of this post, there is a page about the cook. Here a photo of the cook can be added and some memories about this amazing person. Include details such as their kitchen, what they enjoyed about baking, their favourite dishes to make, any tips they used etc.

To Test or Not?

This step may not be feasible for your situation, but should be considered. People’s memories aren’t always the greatest, and some of the recipes you receive may not be complete or have clear instructions. If this is the case, you may need to give them a test run to see if they will produce an edible dish.

Another reason you may want to test the recipes, is your cousin may not remember “Grandma’s Famous Baked Beans,” the same way you do and provide a different recipe than you expected.

While testing, you can also translate the measurements of the ingredients into the same format eg. cups, teaspoons, or grams.

Testing recipes also allows you to take photos of the ingredients and the final product. Though photos are not necessary in a family cookbook, they do add a wonderful element to it.

Dividing into Sections

Many cookbooks are broken up by meal or type of dish. Choose between a few options or many options, depending on the recipes that you are putting into your book.

Some suggestions are:

• Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
• Main Meals, Vegetables, Side Dishes
• Snacks, Biscuits, Muffins, Cupcakes
• Desserts
• Beverages, Smoothies
• Breads, Sourdough
• Soups, Dips, Appetisers

You many need to have the rest of the book prepared before making your final decisions as to how you are going to divide the book.

Putting it Together

To create a family cookbook can be a bit of a challenge if you are not familiar with document formatting. Software programs can make this a pretty easy task for those who want and are able to use them.

There are many online sites that have templates that can be used. Another option is to create the book in a good word processing program by typing up the recipes and adding the photos and memories yourself, using one of their pre-made templates. Then collate and print yourself or send the final product to a printer.

When putting your recipe book together, remember:

• To include a table of contents or an index to help find a recipe when looking for a particular one. 
• Page numbers will help when using the contents and/or index pages
• Have a a break from creating your book before proofreading.
• Be consistent with image placement
• Limit the fonts that are used and make sure that they are easy to read
• Choose a fairly neutral colour palette that complements the photos instead of competing with them
• Send a copy to a friend or family member and have them look over it with fresh eyes.
• Don’t fret too much. This book is all about heritage, stories and food that are unique to your family. 

With my Family Cookbook Printables, you will find a variety of templates can be printed out multiple times and filled in with a pen.

Family Cookbook Printables

With these printable family cookbook pages, you can create a lovely family heirloom that can be passed down for generations.

To create this cookbook, you will need:

• 3 Ring Binder with Clear Cover
• Plastic Page Protectors
• Printer
• Printer Paper or Card
• Writing Tools
• The Family Cookbook Printable Pack

In this printable pack, you will find:

• Recipe tabs
• Spine labels
• A variety of different covers to choose from
• Two different contents pages to choose from
• A ‘Story behind the Recipe’ page
• An ‘About the Cook’ page
• Three different recipe outline pages
• 35 different category pages
• Pages come in colour and greyscale

The category pages include: Air fryer, Appetisers, Appetizers, Beef, Beverages, Bread, Breakfast, Chocolate, Cakes, Dessert, Dinner, Healthy, Holiday, Instant Pot, Kid Friendly, Lunch, Main Course, Meat, Muffins, Pork, Poultry, Salads, Seafood, Side Dishes, Slices, Slow Cooker, Snacks, Soups, Sourdough, Starters, Thermomix, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian and a blank one.

Creating the Printable Cookbook

Choose the page you are using for your cover and print it out.

Gather all your recipes that you will be placing in the recipe binder.

Next, sort out the recipes into categories, and print out the recipe tabs and the category pages that you are going to use.

Next, cut out each of the recipe tabs that you will be using and fold them in half. Then, attach them to the category page. 

I highly recommend laminating the cover and category pages and the tabs as it provides more protection and stability. Plus, it will help your category pages stand out against your regular recipe pages. 

Next, write out the recipes onto the printable pages or place the pages you have into the plastic protectors and place all the information into the binder.

To grab your copy of these printables, sign up below:

I have made some pages editable for those who want to use them.

Sign up below to grab a copy of just the editable pages. (You will need the other pages to complete your binder)