If you have a relative who

never writes down recipes (it seems like all the best recipes are never

written down), but rather cooks by "a dash of this, a little bit

of that," consider having someone in your family be the "helper,"

and prepare the dish along with them. Adams suggests the "helper"

measure, guesstimate, and generally keep track of how the dish is prepared,

including cooking times and temperatures. The "helper" should

also be sure to ask about consistency, color, texture and doneness.

According to Adams, "This

last bit of information is always the most important part of passing along

a recipe." Once you have a written recipe, prepare it again according

to the directions, and adjust the recipe as necessary to get as close

as possible to the original.

When you're asking for

recipes, provide everyone with a similar format. For example, ask family

members to list the ingredients to be used in order, together with the

quantities. Lay out the steps that are needed in order to make the item,

and always add little comments about what to look for as the dish is prepared,

and when it is done. It can be a lot of work, especially with recipes

that were never written down. But, said Adams, ultimately it's worth

it because you'll be saving an important - and delicious bit

of your family's history.

Once you have the recipes,

you'll want to create a look for your cookbook that reflects your

family. A simple way to do this, says Meryl Epstein of The Art Institute

of Phoenix, is to include family mementos or old photos, along with the

recipes. A simple way to share one-of-a-kind memorabilia is to take them

to a local copy center and make color copies.

"You can use the color

copies you make as background, and print a recipe over the photo, or have

the recipe on one page, and a photo on the facing page. You can also create

a collage using items such as blue ribbons (won for a cooking), tickets

stubs or airplane tickets from a favorite trip that produced a great recipe,"

said Epstein.

For text, use simple fonts

like Times Roman or Arial so that they are easy to read for all ages.

Save decorative fonts for recipe titles or chapter headings. Consider

creating a box - with shading and borders - for the recipe itself

so that there is enough contrast between the recipe and any background

artwork you use.

Epstein suggests writing an

introduction about the cookbook, its organization and how family responded

to the project. Be sure to date the book and have a table of contents

so family and friends can easily find a favorite recipe. Here are a few

of her suggestions for organizing recipes:

- By category (for example,

appetizers, soups, salads, entrees and desserts).

- By family (for example,

grandmother, aunt and uncle, or cousin recipes).

- By holiday (for example,

favorite dishes for the 4th of July, Thanksgiving or Labor Day).

To keep recipes easy to read

and clean, consider putting them in plastic sleeves (available in craft

and office supply stores) and then in 3-ring binders. "This way,

you can add a new recipe every year," said Epstein.

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