is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
cookbooks?

wrote:
> is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
> discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
> kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
> have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
> cookbooks?
>
Judging by a recent survey, only 8% of us

--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

Chatty Cathy wrote:
> wrote:
>> is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
>> discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
>> kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
>> have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
>> cookbooks?
>>
> Judging by a recent survey, only 8% of us
>
Oops only 8 of us....

--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

Chatty Cathy wrote:
> Chatty Cathy wrote:
>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
>>> discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
>>> kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
>>> have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
>>> cookbooks?
>>>
>> Judging by a recent survey, only 8% of us
>>
> Oops only 8 of us....
>
Im too much of a bibliomanic to even consider a computer over a book.

Though after discussing it here with several other collectors of cook
books, i don't feel im such a maniac about it after all. My poor,
little collection of maybe 500 cook books (including paper backs and
pamphlets) is nothing compared to the thousands some people have.
---
JL

Joseph Littleshoes wrote:

>> Chatty Cathy wrote:

>> Oops only 8 of us....
>>
> Im too much of a bibliomanic to even consider a computer over a book.
>
> Though after discussing it here with several other collectors of cook
> books, i don't feel im such a maniac about it after all. My poor,
> little collection of maybe 500 cook books (including paper backs and
> pamphlets) is nothing compared to the thousands some people have.

JL, I am not one of the 8 (sorry if my grammar was misleading

I have considered it, but... I also have a lot of cookbooks, photocopies
etc. of recipes which would just take me *forever* to capture onto the
recipe software I have, so there's really not much point. I do save
recipes from r.f.c. and other related on-line sources onto my PC, but I
still print these recipes out and take them into the kitchen when
needed. Besides, I have come to the conclusion that I am just too
"messy" to have a PC in there anyway.
--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

On Sat, 16 Sep 2006 23:33:04 +0200, Chatty Cathy
> wrote:

>Joseph Littleshoes wrote:
>
>>> Chatty Cathy wrote:
>
>>> Oops only 8 of us....
>>>
>> Im too much of a bibliomanic to even consider a computer over a book.
>>
>> Though after discussing it here with several other collectors of cook
>> books, i don't feel im such a maniac about it after all. My poor,
>> little collection of maybe 500 cook books (including paper backs and
>> pamphlets) is nothing compared to the thousands some people have.
>
>JL, I am not one of the 8 (sorry if my grammar was misleading
>
>I have considered it, but... I also have a lot of cookbooks, photocopies
>etc. of recipes which would just take me *forever* to capture onto the
>recipe software I have, so there's really not much point. I do save
>recipes from r.f.c. and other related on-line sources onto my PC, but I
>still print these recipes out and take them into the kitchen when
>needed. Besides, I have come to the conclusion that I am just too
>"messy" to have a PC in there anyway.

I am one of those that collects cookbooks.... And a computer will
never replace a cookbook ...at least for me. My cookbooks are my
friends....old friends...exciting, comfortable, enticing...you name
it. And I have over 1000 of them, I think. Haven't counted lately,
so not sure.

My collection is paltry compared to some I have heard about... I have
heard of folks on eGullet that have over 3-4 thousand.....

I am slowly unpacking all my cookbooks, mainly cause I am stopping
here and there to read one or look through another. I forgot some of
the ones I had...so it is like discovering them all over again....
I am not one to just use them for recipes. I am one of those that
takes them to read like I would read a novel, and that is one of the
main reasons that a computer will never take their place.

Christine

Chatty Cathy wrote:
> needed. Besides, I have come to the conclusion that I am just too
> "messy" to have a PC in there anyway.

nowadays you can get Dell laptops for $3-400. So i am not too bothered
about dirtying it up. in any case that is highly unlikely as i just
need to look at the screen, not type anything. after i am done cooking
the laptop goes back on my office desk ( aka kitchen table )...

"Chatty Cathy" > wrote in message
...
> Chatty Cathy wrote:
>> wrote:
>>> is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
>>> discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
>>> kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
>>> have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
>>> cookbooks?
>>>
>> Judging by a recent survey, only 8% of us
>>
> Oops only 8 of us....
>
> --
> Cheers
> Chatty Cathy
--------

Cathy? I think you meant .8 (point 8). LOL
--
Cyndi (again)

Cyndi wrote:

>>>
>> Oops only 8 of us....
>>
>> --
>> Cheers
>> Chatty Cathy
> --------
>
> Cathy? I think you meant .8 (point 8). LOL

No. I meant 8. We did a "Kitchen computer" survey a few weeks back. Out
of 33 votes only 8 said that they had a computer in the kitchen. But if
you wanna be mathematically correct that works out to 24%. LOL

--
Cheers
Chatty Cathy

said...

> is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
> discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
> kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
> have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
> cookbooks?


Welcome to the club... save the cookbooks for power outtages.

Andy

wrote:
> is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
> discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
> kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
> have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
> cookbooks?

I frequently spill on my cookbooks while cooking. This does not really
hurt them, adds "character" to my favorite recipe pages, and the spill
is easy to clean up. I'd have heart failure if I spilled something wet
on/into my laptop and ruined it. Cookbooks are a lot cheaper to
replace. And I have a certain sentimental atachment to them.

Melissa

wrote:
> wrote:
> > is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
> > discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
> > kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
> > have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
> > cookbooks?
>
> I frequently spill on my cookbooks while cooking. This does not really
> hurt them, adds "character" to my favorite recipe pages, and the spill
> is easy to clean up. I'd have heart failure if I spilled something wet
> on/into my laptop and ruined it. Cookbooks are a lot cheaper to
> replace. And I have a certain sentimental atachment to them.

My brother put his old computer in the kitchen. No need to the latest
and greatest to run MasterCook. The "desktop" is hidden away from
spills and such, with only the keyboard in any clear and present
danger. Keyboards can be replaced for a pittance, and you can buy
spill-resistant tops for them as well. Otherwise, he has his old
cookbooks in the kitchen as well.

My computer is only a few steps from the kitchen, so I don't plan on
moving or adding one to the kitchen. I'll be keeping (and adding to) my
cookbook collection even though I use the computer more and more.

Dean G.

Dean G. wrote on 18 Sep 2006 in rec.food.cooking

> My computer is only a few steps from the kitchen, so I don't plan on
> moving or adding one to the kitchen. I'll be keeping (and adding to) my
> cookbook collection even though I use the computer more and more.
>
> Dean G.
>

I put recipes in recipe software. I also put references to recipes in
Cookbooks. Like the Actual book, page number and any notes I might have
added. I hate looking and searching in vain for a recipe in the wrong
cookbook. After I try a recipe from a book, if I like it, I'll add it to
NYC as just the title, with cookbook, page number and any changes or
notes I have about it. If I make it more than twice I'll add the whole
recipe with notes to software. That way my cookbooks stay cleaner and I
find stuff easier. I also add recipes from books I might want to try, but
in another software cookbook. NYC and Mastercook allow many cookbooks
with many recipes per book. So I have software cookbooks like test,
reference, bread, holidays, favorites, desserts, sidedishes, poultry,
lamb, slowcooker...etc. Being what is generally called scatterbrained,
the search feature of the software allows way easier access to recipes I
want to eithwer try or cook; with notes on the recipe that I wouldn't
dare deface my paper cookbooks with.

--


Curiosity killed the cat, but for a while I was a suspect

-Alan

Mr Libido Incognito wrote:
> Dean G. wrote on 18 Sep 2006 in rec.food.cooking
>
> > My computer is only a few steps from the kitchen, so I don't plan on
> > moving or adding one to the kitchen. I'll be keeping (and adding to) my
> > cookbook collection even though I use the computer more and more.
> >
> > Dean G.
> >
>
> I put recipes in recipe software. I also put references to recipes in
> Cookbooks. Like the Actual book, page number and any notes I might have
> added. I hate looking and searching in vain for a recipe in the wrong
> cookbook. After I try a recipe from a book, if I like it, I'll add it to
> NYC as just the title, with cookbook, page number and any changes or
> notes I have about it. If I make it more than twice I'll add the whole
> recipe with notes to software. That way my cookbooks stay cleaner and I
> find stuff easier. I also add recipes from books I might want to try, but
> in another software cookbook. NYC and Mastercook allow many cookbooks
> with many recipes per book. So I have software cookbooks like test,
> reference, bread, holidays, favorites, desserts, sidedishes, poultry,
> lamb, slowcooker...etc. Being what is generally called scatterbrained,
> the search feature of the software allows way easier access to recipes I
> want to eithwer try or cook; with notes on the recipe that I wouldn't
> dare deface my paper cookbooks with.



Sounds like a good system, although I don't hold the books in the
reverence that some people do. Many a great commentary started as a
scribble in the margin of a great book. Besides, my methodology often
results in a "scratch-and-sniff" quality overlooked by the publisher.

I'll get my coat.

Dean G.

>
> --
>
>
> Curiosity killed the cat, but for a while I was a suspect
>
> -Alan

"Dean G." > wrote in message
oups.com...
>
> wrote:
>> wrote:
>> > is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
>> > discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
>> > kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
>> > have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
>> > cookbooks?
>>
>> I frequently spill on my cookbooks while cooking. This does not really
>> hurt them, adds "character" to my favorite recipe pages, and the spill
>> is easy to clean up. I'd have heart failure if I spilled something wet
>> on/into my laptop and ruined it. Cookbooks are a lot cheaper to
>> replace. And I have a certain sentimental atachment to them.
>
> My brother put his old computer in the kitchen. No need to the latest
> and greatest to run MasterCook. The "desktop" is hidden away from
> spills and such, with only the keyboard in any clear and present
> danger. Keyboards can be replaced for a pittance, and you can buy
> spill-resistant tops for them as well. Otherwise, he has his old
> cookbooks in the kitchen as well.
>
> My computer is only a few steps from the kitchen, so I don't plan on
> moving or adding one to the kitchen. I'll be keeping (and adding to) my
> cookbook collection even though I use the computer more and more.
>
> Dean G.
=============

I keep (kept - as I'm still unpacking) my cookbooks in the dining room and
breakfast nook. If I actually allowed one into the kitchen (I have a fear
of damaging them) it was covered with a small piece of plexyglass for
protection.
--
Cyndi (again)

The best cookbook is the one(s) that you actually use to cook from, and the
ones I use are not online.

As far as a computer, I guess a lot depends on the configuration of your
kitchen. I prefer researching recipes at my desk in my office.

Having said that, it would be nice to have my MasterCook files handy in the
kitchen, but I don't care to devote space to a PC, even a laptop.

--
Wayne Boatwright
__________________________________________________

Is it ok to use my AM radio after NOON?

On 17 Sep 2006 05:53:21 +0200, Wayne Boatwright
<wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> rummaged among random neurons and
opined:

>The best cookbook is the one(s) that you actually use to cook from, and the
>ones I use are not online.
>
>As far as a computer, I guess a lot depends on the configuration of your
>kitchen. I prefer researching recipes at my desk in my office.
>
>Having said that, it would be nice to have my MasterCook files handy in the
>kitchen, but I don't care to devote space to a PC, even a laptop.

I have "Now You're Cooking" software on my PC in my home office. When
I want to use a recipe, I just print it out and throw it away when I'm
done. Keeps the clutter down in the kitchen by not having my laptop in
there.

Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
AAC(F)BV66.0748.CA

"Most vigitaryans I iver see looked enough like their food to be
classed as cannybals."

Finley Peter Dunne (1900)

To reply, replace "spaminator" with "cox"

Terry Pulliam Burd wrote on 17 Sep 2006 in rec.food.cooking

> I have "Now You're Cooking" software on my PC in my home office. When
> I want to use a recipe, I just print it out and throw it away when I'm
> done. Keeps the clutter down in the kitchen by not having my laptop in
> there.
>
> Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
> AAC(F)BV66.0748.CA
>
> "Most vigitaryans I iver see looked enough like their food to be
> classed as cannybals."
>
> Finley Peter Dunne (1900)
>
> To reply, replace "spaminator" with "cox"
>
>

Same here except I don't have a home office.

--


Curiosity killed the cat, but for a while I was a suspect

-Alan

Oh pshaw, on Sun 17 Sep 2006 03:44:21p, Terry Pulliam Burd meant to say...

> On 17 Sep 2006 05:53:21 +0200, Wayne Boatwright
> <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> rummaged among random neurons and
> opined:
>
>>The best cookbook is the one(s) that you actually use to cook from, and
>>the ones I use are not online.
>>
>>As far as a computer, I guess a lot depends on the configuration of your
>>kitchen. I prefer researching recipes at my desk in my office.
>>
>>Having said that, it would be nice to have my MasterCook files handy in
>>the kitchen, but I don't care to devote space to a PC, even a laptop.
>
> I have "Now You're Cooking" software on my PC in my home office. When
> I want to use a recipe, I just print it out and throw it away when I'm
> done. Keeps the clutter down in the kitchen by not having my laptop in
> there.

Actually, that's what I do, too, Terry.


--
Wayne Boatwright
__________________________________________________

Is it ok to use my AM radio after NOON?

Te best cookbook is...the one that fits your cooking and eating style,
i.e. one that you will use and refer to often.

Mine used to be Fanny Farmer ca 1965 ed. and the old Joy of Cooking.
More recently I rarely use a cookbook, but when I do, it's often one of
the first two in the Colorado Jr. Women's League series: Colorado Cache
and Taste of Colorado. Both have some terrific recipes for entertaining.

I also often refer to rfc archives via Google, and the rfc cookbook.

I agree with (was it Christine?) who said she reads her cookbooks for
entertainment like novels.

gloria p

On Sun, 17 Sep 2006 23:33:22 GMT, Puester >
wrote:

>I agree with (was it Christine?) who said she reads her cookbooks for
>entertainment like novels.

Yes, that was me.

And that is exactly why it is taking me so darn long to unpack all my
cookbooks. I keep coming across an old favorite..or one I had
forgotten that I had...and of course I have to sit down and read
through it.

Christine

Puester wrote:
> Te best cookbook is...the one that fits your cooking and eating style,
> i.e. one that you will use and refer to often.
>
> Mine used to be Fanny Farmer ca 1965 ed. and the old Joy of Cooking.
> More recently I rarely use a cookbook, but when I do, it's often one of
> the first two in the Colorado Jr. Women's League series: Colorado Cache
> and Taste of Colorado. Both have some terrific recipes for entertaining.
>
> I also often refer to rfc archives via Google, and the rfc cookbook.
>
> I agree with (was it Christine?) who said she reads her cookbooks for
> entertainment like novels.
>
> gloria p

I feel like a dummy, but what is rfc?

bliss

timbrel wrote on 18 Sep 2006 in rec.food.cooking

>
> Puester wrote:
> > Te best cookbook is...the one that fits your cooking and eating
> > style, i.e. one that you will use and refer to often.
> >
> > Mine used to be Fanny Farmer ca 1965 ed. and the old Joy of Cooking.
> > More recently I rarely use a cookbook, but when I do, it's often one
> > of the first two in the Colorado Jr. Women's League series:
> > Colorado Cache and Taste of Colorado. Both have some terrific
> > recipes for entertaining.
> >
> > I also often refer to rfc archives via Google, and the rfc cookbook.
> >
> > I agree with (was it Christine?) who said she reads her cookbooks
> > for entertainment like novels.
> >
> > gloria p
>
> I feel like a dummy, but what is rfc?
>
> bliss
>
>

RFC? Well Rec.food.cooking of course. The newsgroup in which you posted
the query. Feel better now? Don't you hate brain farts...I do.

--


Curiosity killed the cat, but for a while I was a suspect

-Alan

Oh pshaw, on Mon 18 Sep 2006 06:46:38a, timbrel meant to say...

>
> Puester wrote:
>> Te best cookbook is...the one that fits your cooking and eating style,
>> i.e. one that you will use and refer to often.
>>
>> Mine used to be Fanny Farmer ca 1965 ed. and the old Joy of Cooking.
>> More recently I rarely use a cookbook, but when I do, it's often one of
>> the first two in the Colorado Jr. Women's League series: Colorado Cache
>> and Taste of Colorado. Both have some terrific recipes for
entertaining.
>>
>> I also often refer to rfc archives via Google, and the rfc cookbook.
>>
>> I agree with (was it Christine?) who said she reads her cookbooks for
>> entertainment like novels.
>>
>> gloria p
>
> I feel like a dummy, but what is rfc?
>
> bliss

This newsgroup, rec.food.cooking. Most of us here refer to it by "rfc".

--
Wayne Boatwright @¿@¬
_____________________

"Terry Pulliam Burd" > wrote in message
...
> On 17 Sep 2006 05:53:21 +0200, Wayne Boatwright
> <wayneboatwright_at_gmail.com> rummaged among random neurons and
> opined:
>
> >The best cookbook is the one(s) that you actually use to cook from, and
the
> >ones I use are not online.
> >
> >As far as a computer, I guess a lot depends on the configuration of your
> >kitchen. I prefer researching recipes at my desk in my office.
> >
> >Having said that, it would be nice to have my MasterCook files handy in
the
> >kitchen, but I don't care to devote space to a PC, even a laptop.
>
> I have "Now You're Cooking" software on my PC in my home office. When
> I want to use a recipe, I just print it out and throw it away when I'm
> done. Keeps the clutter down in the kitchen by not having my laptop in
> there.
>
> Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
> AAC(F)BV66.0748.CA
>
> "Most vigitaryans I iver see looked enough like their food to be
> classed as cannybals."
>
> Finley Peter Dunne (1900)
>
> To reply, replace "spaminator" with "cox"

=====
That's a good point; never thought of that plus, as far as using recipe
software; tossing it away and keeping down the clutter; recipe clutter is my
problem.

On 16 Sep 2006 12:12:53 -0700, wrote:

>is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
>discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
>kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
>have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
>cookbooks?

Not on your life. There's nothing that's quite the same as a real
book in my hands. I love the web, and I think it's massively useful,
but I will never willingly give up having actual books to read and
savor, especially with lots of great food pictures.

serene
--
"I can't decide if I feel more like four ten-year-olds or ten four-year-olds." Laurie Anderson , on turning 40.

http://serenejournal.livejournal.com

One time on Usenet, said:

> is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
> discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
> kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
> have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
> cookbooks?

No, they have recipes that aren't in my computer, and I don't have
time to type them all up. I do like having recipes in my HD, though.
I tend to print them out with my grocery list, then if they don't get
too messed up while I'm cooking, I give them to family/friends...

--
"Little Malice" is Jani in WA
~ mom, Trollop, novice cook ~

"Litttle Malice" > wrote in message
...
> One time on Usenet, said:
>
>> is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
>> discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
>> kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
>> have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
>> cookbooks?
>
> No, they have recipes that aren't in my computer, and I don't have
> time to type them all up. I do like having recipes in my HD, though.
> I tend to print them out with my grocery list, then if they don't get
> too messed up while I'm cooking, I give them to family/friends...
>
> --
> "Little Malice" is Jani in WA
> ~ mom, Trollop, novice cook ~
===============

Same here Jani.

I once had planned to scan the indexes of my most used cookbooks so if I
could more speedily find a specific recipe but never did do it. One of
these days I'll have to consider that idea again.
--
Cyndi (again)

Oh pshaw, on Sat 23 Sep 2006 06:12:26a, Cyndi meant to say...

>
>
>
> "Litttle Malice" > wrote in message
> ...
>> One time on Usenet, said:
>>
>>> is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
>>> discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
>>> kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
>>> have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
>>> cookbooks?
>>
>> No, they have recipes that aren't in my computer, and I don't have
>> time to type them all up. I do like having recipes in my HD, though.
>> I tend to print them out with my grocery list, then if they don't get
>> too messed up while I'm cooking, I give them to family/friends...
>>
>> --
>> "Little Malice" is Jani in WA ~ mom, Trollop, novice cook ~
> ===============
>
> Same here Jani.
>
> I once had planned to scan the indexes of my most used cookbooks so if I
> could more speedily find a specific recipe but never did do it. One of
> these days I'll have to consider that idea again.

Wow, I actually did that several years ago. Scanned into a software
package that allowed me to electronically highlight selected entries. I
put them in a small ring binder that I keep in the kitchen.

--
Wayne Boatwright
__________________________________________________

Useless Invention: Double-sided playing cards.

In article >,
"Cyndi" > wrote:

> "Litttle Malice" > wrote in message
> ...
> > One time on Usenet, said:
> >
> >> is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
> >> discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
> >> kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
> >> have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
> >> cookbooks?
> >
> > No, they have recipes that aren't in my computer, and I don't have
> > time to type them all up. I do like having recipes in my HD, though.
> > I tend to print them out with my grocery list, then if they don't get
> > too messed up while I'm cooking, I give them to family/friends...
> >
> > --
> > "Little Malice" is Jani in WA
> > ~ mom, Trollop, novice cook ~
> ===============
>
> Same here Jani.
>
> I once had planned to scan the indexes of my most used cookbooks so if I
> could more speedily find a specific recipe but never did do it. One of
> these days I'll have to consider that idea again.

I created separate FileMaker databases for cookbook and "clipping"
recipes that we've tested over the years. The fields include cookbook,
category, name of recipe, page #, comments, and major ingredients. We
also have a field called best of, for those recipes that we consider our
favorites. So if we can't remember where we found a good recipe for (as
an example) lamb tagine, I can use the search function to find it.

The recipes I've downloaded onto the Mac over the years have only rarely
been used. It's easier for me to go to the cookbook collection and
browse. I proudly admit to being a Luddite in this aspect of my life.

Cindy

--
C.J. Fuller

Delete the obvious to email me

wrote:
> is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
> discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
> kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
> have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
> cookbooks?

Not a chance. A good cookbook is a lot more than a collection of
recipes. A good cookbook offers a point of view, information about the
food beyond how to cook it, instructions about techniques, suggestions
for alternatives and variations, and sometimes an accompanying
narrative that places a dish in a broader context. If all you want is
a recipe, fine, go to the web and wade through 15 versions of recipes
with no clues as to why one will work better or worse than another.

As to recipe sources in the kitchen, I suspect my house reflects
reality more than your notion that there is a "best" way to do it. My
cookbooks are in the bookcase closest to the kitchen, except for those
that are on the table next to the reading chair, or in the bathroom.
There is also the "recipe drawer" full of newspaper/magazine clippings
and computer printouts (many of which have handwritten notes added),
and then there's the pc with its 'Food' and "Recipes" subdirectories
under Documents. It's certainly less than completely organized, but it
works beautifully as an invitation to serendipitous pleasure. -aem

On 18 Sep 2006 11:10:17 -0700, "aem" > wrote:

wrote:
anyone else ready to throw away their
>> cookbooks?
>
>Not a chance. A good cookbook is a lot more than a collection of
>recipes. A good cookbook offers a point of view, information about the
>food beyond how to cook it, instructions about techniques, suggestions
>for alternatives and variations, and sometimes an accompanying
>narrative that places a dish in a broader context. If all you want is
>a recipe, fine, go to the web and wade through 15 versions of recipes
>with no clues as to why one will work better or worse than another.

AMEN!!!!!

Christine

Christine Dabney wrote:
> On 18 Sep 2006 11:10:17 -0700, "aem" > wrote:
>
> wrote:
> anyone else ready to throw away their
> >> cookbooks?
> >
> >Not a chance. A good cookbook is a lot more than a collection of
> >recipes. A good cookbook offers a point of view, information about the
> >food beyond how to cook it, instructions about techniques, suggestions
> >for alternatives and variations, and sometimes an accompanying
> >narrative that places a dish in a broader context. If all you want is
> >a recipe, fine, go to the web and wade through 15 versions of recipes
> >with no clues as to why one will work better or worse than another.
>
> AMEN!!!!!
>
> Christine
I use both. When I have time to read my cookbooks and select
interesting things I do that. Particularly the authors I have learned I
can rely on like Marcella Hazan, Joan Nathan, Helen Nash, Julie Sahni,
Anna Thomas. But if I use a recipe I enter the ingredients in my Now
Your Cooking database with a reference to the page. That way when I
want to create menus I can use the database and include the things I've
liked from the books. I download recipes from reliable sources as well.
But the speed of using recipe software has captured me. I'm
entertaining 12 at lunch for each day of Rosh Hashonah. I sit and
select recipes by type and course, combine them into a menu, create a
shopping list and print the ones I need or get out the books that have
them. DONE. I have previous menus to refer to and ratings to say which
recipes I've already used and liked. Can't beat it.
I also use the magazines, Cooking Light, Fine Cooking, Bon Appetit,
Gourmet. All have a place in my approach to cooking and menu planning.
I wish I was independent of recipes, but I'm not. Nevertheless, I
produce a good lunch or dinner from all these sources, if I do say so
myself :-)

On 20 Sep 2006 06:17:53 -0700, "timbrel" > wrote:

>All have a place in my approach to cooking and menu planning.
>I wish I was independent of recipes, but I'm not. Nevertheless, I
>produce a good lunch or dinner from all these sources, if I do say so
>myself :-)

I think one of the things that people are missing here is that those
of us that really love cookbooks don't use them just for the recipes.
Sometimes the recipes are incidental to the rest of the book or are
not very good. But it is the book itself that draws us, with the
stories it presents, or whatever. Sometimes both the stories and the
recipes are extremely good..and we use those recipes in our cooking.

For me, it is never totally about the recipes.

Christine

Christine Dabney wrote:
>
> I think one of the things that people are missing here is that those
> of us that really love cookbooks don't use them just for the recipes.
> Sometimes the recipes are incidental to the rest of the book or are
> not very good. But it is the book itself that draws us, with the
> stories it presents, or whatever. Sometimes both the stories and the
> recipes are extremely good..and we use those recipes in our cooking.
>
> For me, it is never totally about the recipes.
>
> Christine

Actually Christine I do get it and I tried to convey that you and I are
very different in that way. I rarely read the cookbooks, sometimes I'll
pass something in my menu planning and vow to come back to it, but I
rarely do. I know that there are many people who view the books the way
you do, the group doesn't happen to include me. My fun in cooking is
the planning of interesting menus and their execution, not the
background to an ethnic cuisine or the history of a recipe or cook. No
great harm, the ranks of cookbook authors are increasing daily and my
favorite software is now ver. 5.74. I think I started with version 3.

Bliss

> wrote in message
ups.com...
> is a wireless laptop in the kitchen. i just bought a wirless router and
> discovered how much an advantage it is to have tha laptop in the
> kitchen. i can search for recipes and pick the ones that suit what i
> have available in the kitchen... anyone else ready to throw away their
> cookbooks?
>==========

No. NEVER!! I love my cookbooks. Heck, I probably (okay, definitely)
treat them better than I treat my family.

They always make me happy and tell me that I should eat more.... hello! How
could one ever get rid of dear friends? I say that even after moving them
out of state twice, within two years. Nonononononononononononono. I'd love
to have a wireless computer in the kitchen but it would never replace my
cookbooks.

--
Cyndi (again)
Compulsive cookbook addict