Chef Maloney
Senior Cook
This is just an idea for anyone who wants to take the time to put together their own personalized collection of recipes and give them as gifts. Around 30 years ago, I put together 15 ringed binders with nearly 20 of my favorite soup recipes which I had collected over the years from family & friends. The binders I purchased have a plastic cover which allows you to slide a 'TITLE' sheet in the front & back sides. I titled them "MY FAVORITE SOUPS". Each recipe page was personalized with pictures of family & friends & pets, which I scanned and pasted in the upper right corners. I slid each recipe page into plastic protective sleeves (purchased at wal-mart) to keep the pages clean while they book is open in the kitchen. I gave the 'books' to family and friends for Christmas gifts, wrapped & tied to a cutting board. Well, it's been 30 years and the binders were so well liked (and still used today) I'm thinking I will do this again with dinner recipes I have collected. The binders took around 3 months to complete what with gathering the appropriate pics and recipes etc. Over the years, several friends have asked for copies and I have obliged them. Some of them have even sent me their own pictures to personalize and insert into the pages of the book. This is a great project for the family and lots of fun to do. Here are a few examples of the finished product.