I want to share with you one of the best gifts I’ve ever received – my very own cookbooks made from my collection of favorite recipes. Sounds super fancy, but you don’t need to be in the publishing business, or a famous chef for these. It seems so simple, but they have been so useful, thoughtful, and cherished ever since! All it took was 3 simple ingredients:

a 3-ring binder
plastic sheet protectors
printer paper

Over time I had printed out so many recipes to try, that I had quite an enormous collection of loose print-outs piling up in a drawer. Honestly, it was a huge, hot mess! So, the kiddos created these books for me to store them all. Having them organized not only saves me several wasted minutes of shuffling through a stack of papers that were in no particular order until I finally found the one I was looking for, but has had the added benefit of keeping the recipe page clean and readable.

The binder can be any color or style that you like, maybe with a fun pattern, or the pockets to be able to customize the front. With the cover pockets, I have the option of changing mine up over time, but I love the charm of seeing my kids’ handwriting from years ago, when they were still little.

Being able to make notes on the pages is super helpful. I can edit a recipe with the changes and substitutions that suit our tastes. Each time we make a recipe again, anyone in the house can implement the changes that are noted and it turns out just as great every time!

One of the downsides to this, versus a ready-made, purchased cookbook, is the lack of the shiny, drool- worthy photos of the food that go along with the recipes, so the pages might not look quite as glamourous (especially if they have been used a lot and are well loved).

However, if you have a decent color printer, there are a couple ways to include photos in your book, if you want them. You can take your own photo of the food you that you make, aka the finished product of the recipe, and include it on the page with the recipe before you print it (which makes it extra personalized). You can also find many printable recipes online that include a photo from the site in their printable version these days.

If you really like a recipe that you find on one site, there’s a good chance you will like others that you find on the same site, so it’s good to note which site that the recipe came from so you can easily return to it for future inspiration (and maybe consider taking the time to leave a comment about how the recipe worked out for you to help out the author and other readers).

It is probably obvious to anyone who knows me that I love sweets (and if you stick around I’m sure that will become clear), so the kids sorted the recipes into two books for me: one for desserts… and the rest. They are further organized inside by the name of the food/dish, in alphabetical order.

There are many other ways they could be organized to suit your personal preference, such as:

• by meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner
• types of dishes: sweet things, savory meals, spicy delicacies
• food groups: veggies, proteins, grains

Whatever system makes the most sense to you is cool, and you can also change it around if it is not working for you.

Only our favorites, recipes that work out well, end up in the books. The others just get recycled as needed, usually as scratch paper for the kids to use during our homeschool lessons.

I love everything about these books, and they continue to evolve and grow with awesomeness over time! Just like the kids that took the time to create them for me! ❤

Do you have a favorite collection of recipes? Go to sites for satisfying your cravings? Any other tricks you have for staying organized?