How to Make a Family Cookbook

What you need to make a family cookbook:

• Binder
• Divider tabs
• Clear sheet protectors (this is optional but I suggest you use them to protect and preserve the cookbook pages)
• Family recipes
• (Optional) Family photos

• Front page photo of great grandparents
• Dedication page
• Table of Contents (list of contributors and their ancestor)
• Recipes from family members (some family members included a short story about the recipe along with a few family photos)
• Photos of ancestors
• Tabs to divide the recipes into sections. You won't know what to label the tabs until you collect all the recipes. Our tabs were labeled:
• Beverages, dips and appetizers
• Soups and salads
• Breads
• Veggies
• Casseroles
• Main dishes
• Desserts
• Candy

Photo: Tab Dividers

We added a Table of Contents after the dedication page and before the recipes. We listed the recipe contributors in alphabetical order and which ancestor they were related to. I blocked out the last names in this photo for privacy reasons.

We sent out a mass e-mail to all our family members and asked them to submit a family recipe. We encouraged them to add a short story about the recipe and some photos. Some family members replied by e-mail, others mailed handwritten recipes. 

The back of our family cookbook has a "Kitchen Prayer" and a "Recipe for Happiness".

It reads:

My Kitchen Prayer 

Bless my pretty kitchen Lord and light it with Thy Love

Help me plan and cook my meals from Thy heavenly home above

Bless our meals with Thy Presence and Warm them with They Grace

Watch over me as I do my work washing  pots and pans and plates

The service I am trying to do is to make my family content

So bless my meager efforts Lord and make them heaven sent

Recipe for Happiness

• 2 heaping cups of patience
• 1 heartful of love
• 2 handfuls of generosity
• 1 dash of laughter
• 1 headful of understanding

Sprinkle generously with kindness. Add plenty of faith. Mix well. Spread over a life-time. Serve everyone you meet. 

My favorite recipe in our family cookbook is mom's peach cobbler. She makes it for all our family parties. It is a recipe that her mother passed down to her....and one that I will be sure to pass down to the next generation. It's super delicious and easy to make.  

Ingredients:

• 2 large cans of peachs
• Refrigerated biscuits, enough to fill an oblong pan
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 teaspoons of cinnamon sugar mix for topping

Directions:

• Preheat the over at 350 degrees.
• Mix the flour and sugar in a bowl.
• Pour the peaches in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until they begin to boil.
• Add the flour mixture to the peaches and cook until it becomes thick. 
• Pour the peaches into an oblong pan.
• Break the biscuits into smaller pieces and lay them on top of the peaches.
• Sprinkle 3 teaspoons of the cinnamon sugar mixture over the biscuits.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 8-12 minutes or until golden brown.
• Remove from the oven and push the biscuits down into the sauce.
• Sever warm or cold.

Severs 8-12 people, depending on the serving size.

Tastes delicious served with a side of vanilla ice cream!

A family cookbook is a wonderful way to share your family recipes and pay tribute to your ancestors. It also makes a wonderful gift to pass down from generation to generation. 

The first step to creating your family cookbook is to ask your family members to submit their family recipes. We also encouraged them to submit a few family photos and a short story about the recipe. The photos and stories make a nice addition to the family cookbook.

After we collected all the recipes, and before the cookbooks were made, we asked family members to submit an order for the cookbook along with the number of cookbooks they wanted. So one person didn't incur all the costs of making and shipping the cookbooks to each family, we charged $15 per cookbook.  

Here are some awesome binders for creating a family cookbook. They hold 175-540 pages, depending on which binder size you order. There are 3 binder sizes available. You can also personalize them with your family name or other message, and with your own photos. Personalization is free. The cost of the binder varies, depending on the design and size you order.

Click on any recipe binder to view prices and customization options.