Recipe Card and Collection Sheet

Who this is for

One recipe, written out properly, with an index for the rest. The card takes the ingredients and amounts, a numbered method, where the recipe came from and what you did differently; the index at the foot keeps track of the others.

Anyone copying out a family recipe before it is lost, cooks building a folder of the things they actually make, and people who want a card that can be wiped down rather than a phone propped against the kettle.

What this helps you track

• The ingredients and the amounts, in the units you use
• The method in numbered steps, in your own order
• Where the recipe came from and who it belongs to
• What you changed, and what to do differently next time
• A short index of the other recipes in the collection

How to use it

1. Write the recipe name, how many it makes and where it came from at the top; the time and the oven setting are the ones you use, not ours.
2. List the ingredients in the order they are used, with the amount beside each and any note about the ingredient itself.
3. Number the method and keep one action per step — a step that says three things is where a recipe goes wrong at speed.
4. Write what you changed underneath, while you remember: less of one thing, longer in the oven, a swap that worked.
5. Fill in the index at the foot as the collection grows, so a folder of cards can be searched without leafing through it.
6. Print a card per recipe, or fill the browser version in and download it as a PDF to print on card.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Are there cooking times or temperatures on it?

None. Those belong to the recipe you are copying and the oven you own, and a blank template is the wrong place for either. There are fields for you to write down the ones you use.

How many ingredients and steps does it hold?

Enough for an ordinary recipe. For something longer, print a second card and carry on, or write the method in a tighter hand — the browser version lets you add rows freely.

What is the index at the foot for?

Keeping track of a folder of cards. Write each recipe, where it came from and whether it worked, so you can find the one you liked without going through the whole box.

Can I use it for a handwritten family recipe?

That is what most people use it for. Copy it out as it was written, and put whose recipe it was in the source field — that line is often the part worth keeping most.

Does it cost the recipe out?

No. A recipe costing sheet does that job properly, with quantities and unit prices. This card is for cooking from.