Creating a family recipe book is a simple and fun project that anyone can do. While you may choose to compile your family recipe book over years, you can easily spend an afternoon putting together most of the recipe book.
Don’t worry if there aren’t any fabulous cooks in your family. A family recipe book can simply consist of any meal you and your family love to cook. If one family member is known for their takeout Chinese, then go ahead and include that for laughs. This family recipe book is really like a scrapbook of food, family, and memories. If you always make the lasagna recipe off the back of the noodle box, then include that recipe. After all, it is a family recipe now!
To Make a Family Recipe Book You Will need:
Digital Camera
Microsoft Publisher
Printer
Recipes
Clip Art
Scissors (optional)
Scrapbook Paper (optional)
Computer
Now, most of the instructions will have to do with Microsoft Publisher, but I will also give some tips on how you can create this entire project without a computer as well.
Now, the first step is to take some great photos for you family with your digital camera. You can use old photos and scan them into the computer as well. If you are making this family recipe book with out a computer, then go ahead and photocopy your original photos at Kinko’s. This way you can cut and crop them to size.
Now, go ahead and open up your Microsoft publisher program on your computer. Choose a page layout that allows for writing as well as a photo. There are quite a few choices, just don’t go for the calendar or flyer layouts.
Go ahead and copy and paste you photos into the lay out. Put your cursor over the photo area and right click, now you can browse trough all of the photos in your computer.
I like to save all of my favorite recipes on my computer anyway, so I simple copy a paste them into the caption boxes. You can type them in as well.
Now, the layouts in Microsoft Publisher will allow you to control picture size, change background colors, and even change the style and color of your font. So, take advantage of this and create some interesting unique layouts. You will be prompted with questions the entire time about these features, so it is very easy to control.
I like to do one photo and one recipe per page.
You can also insert clipart using Microsoft Publisher. Click on the clip art icon and follow the instructions.
Now, once your entire recipe page is laid out go ahead and print it on your computer. You should print one copy of each family recipe page.
Now, take each page to Kinko’s. You can have them photocopy the recipe book pages. And bind them in a plastic binder. This is very affordable way to create a large number of family recipe book pages.
If you are creating this without a computer than cut your photos out to size. Glue them down to your white computer paper with a glue stick. Use scrap-booking paper to create blocks of color. You can hand write in the recipes as well. Take the pasted together page to Kinko’s and let them photo copy and put them together in one book for you.
Tips:
Kinko’s also makes great Calendars. You can print one recipe page for each month of the year and have an entire year of family recipes!
Also remember, you can always keep on creating family recipe pages and inserting them into the back of your plastic bound recipe book.
I also like to include a few lined pages in the back so people can write in more favorite family recipes as they make them.
Try taking a group photo f your entire family for the cover of the family recipe book. This is a great way to include the entire family in the process!
