Recipe Binder

Do you have meals that you fix every so often that you're family likes but you always need to refer to the recipe?  Do you spend too much time searching for that recipe? I used to.  Then, I made myself a recipe binder with a standardized recipe template to use with it.  It has made my life easier when searching for one of our family favorites, Tex Mex Turkey Soup.  All you need is a three-ringed binder (whatever size you want), page protectors, and dividers.  You can go as pretty or as plain as you want on this project.

I had a little fun making the spine of our binder suit my tastes.  Mmmm.....peppers.  I think decorating the binder is the best part of the whole thing :).  I still have more work to do on mine.

I like to put my recipes in a standardized form using the template above.  Having a spot to put our "family rating" on it also helps to remind me just how often I should use that dish.  We use a five-star system and I only keep recipes that rate 3 or higher.  And, if you're ambitious, you can add a picture of the dish to the top left corner.  It's amazing how just a little organization can make fixing dinner less stressful.