| There are so many beautiful books on the market | | | | ingredients that were used in the dish. Maybe you |
| extolling the virtues and sumptuousness of food. It's | | | | want to set the table for a more formal layout. Add |
| no surprise given a growing market in North America | | | | a bottle of wine. Depending on the subject matter, |
| filled with people who are obsessed with food. Just | | | | you will need to plan an appropriate setting for each |
| look at the Food Network on TV, the proliferation of | | | | dish. |
| recipes available on the web, the cooking section of | | | | Styling your food will be critical for your picture's |
| your local bookstore. Cookbook sales are growing | | | | success. Food tends to stand out best on a white |
| with our consumer demand for a visual feast even, if | | | | plate and make sure you wipe any drips off and light |
| we are not that experimental with new dishes. It | | | | the plate adequately. Be sure to spend some time |
| seems we all love to look at food, think about food, | | | | and thought on your photography. |
| and yearn for foods from other places. | | | | A forward or interview with the chef that created or |
| Food being a hugely popular subject right now is only | | | | inspired your recipes can help differentiate your |
| one of the reasons to write about it. Whether you | | | | cookbook from others. If you have extra knowledge |
| are writing about organic cooking, an encyclopedia of | | | | about nutrition and or food science, these can be |
| food, a historical point of view or a traveler's | | | | helpful to include. You will need to consider what |
| selection of favorite recipes, there are so many ideas | | | | measurement system you will use throughout the |
| you can explore and you are bound to find an | | | | cookbook. It must be consistent. If you choose to |
| audience for your niche. You may have someone in | | | | use Imperial which is still widely used in Canada and is |
| your family with a flair for cooking fantastic creations | | | | used officially in the USA, you may consider including |
| or your grandmother's old style home cooking. | | | | a conversion chart to metric. This is an invaluable |
| Capturing your family's food secrets in a cookbook is | | | | addition. Substitutions are a really kind thing to add to |
| a great way to preserve the invaluable and often | | | | each recipe. Substitutions helps the less experience |
| unrecorded recipes for future generations. | | | | cooks or those who forgot one of the ingredients |
| Where to begin? Once you've compiled your recipes | | | | when grocery shopping! |
| you can start to think about how best to sort them. | | | | Creative additions such as anecdotes or stringing |
| A simple way to divide your recipe book into useful | | | | your recipes together in a story is a unique way to |
| and readable chunks is to put them in chapters titled | | | | stand out in a sea of cookbooks. You will want your |
| appetizers, side dishes, main courses for breakfast, | | | | book to fit a niche market so be clear about what |
| lunch and dinner and desserts. This is the easiest way | | | | your theme is and keep it in mind when planning the |
| for your readers to make use of your cookbook. If | | | | styling for your photographs and the cover artwork. |
| you are concentrating only on one subject area such | | | | Now the technical part. Any good book printer will be |
| as desserts, consider an alphabetic sorting of your | | | | able to work with the file you created your book |
| recipes. | | | | with. If you are a bit more technical you can save |
| A table of contents and index are useful depending | | | | your files in print-ready PDF files. When you send in |
| on the size of the cookbook. You can't really get | | | | your files, you must remember to include the original |
| away with not including a table of contents but if the | | | | picture file or graphic file as well as the document |
| cookbook is on the larger side, an index may be | | | | itself. This helps your printer make sure the pictures |
| necessary as well to help your reader find all the | | | | are of the highest resolution possible and 300 dotes |
| recipes that, for example have pork or tomatoes in | | | | per inch is best. |
| them. | | | | Cooking, like language, dies if it not communicated to |
| Photography is very important when it comes to | | | | future generations. What a perfect way to preserve |
| your cookbook. Unless you are skilled with drawing, | | | | your fantastic creations or the classic recipes of your |
| you will probably be relying on photographs to | | | | parents or grandparents. Having made a family |
| capture your audience and draw them to each recipe. | | | | cookbook myself, I know what a joy it brings and |
| Try to get images of parts of the cooking process | | | | what a great gift it is. Turn all those hours over a hot |
| as well as the finished product as a good starting | | | | stove into your own creation and show the world |
| point. Layouts for your photographs may consist of | | | | your passion for food! |
| the plated dish surrounded by some colorful raw | | | | |