How to write a family cookbook introduction

The introduction tells people why this book exists and whose cooking is in it. It does not need to be long or polished. It needs to sound like your family.

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Book setup

The words that make it yours.

Dedication

For Mom, who taught us all to cook.

Introduction

These are the recipes our family comes back to. Some came from Grandma's card box…

✨ Draft oneSave the front pages

What to put in it

Who is cooking: the people whose recipes fill the book.
Where the recipes came from: a card box, a notebook, years of holidays, a group text.
What the food means to your family, in a sentence or two.
How the book is organized, and anything a reader should know before cooking: old measurements, oven quirks, what “a pinch” meant.
A thank-you to the people who shared their recipes.

How long it should be

One page is plenty. Three or four short paragraphs read better than one long one. If you have more to say, put it in the notes on each recipe, where it sits next to the food it is about.

An example to adapt

These are the recipes our family comes back to. Some came from Grandma's card box, written in pencil and stained with butter. Some came from Mom's notebook, and a few were never written down at all until we stood in the kitchen and watched.

The book is sorted the way we eat: everyday dinners first, then Sundays, then the holidays. Where a card said “bake until done,” we cooked it and wrote down what that meant.

Thank you to everyone who answered the phone and said “here is how I do it.” Now it is written down, and it is yours.

Five ways to start when the page is blank

Start with a smell or a sound: the kitchen on a Sunday morning.
Start with the reason: “We made this book because Grandma's recipes were in one drawer.”
Start with a question someone always asked: “Is there more?”
Start with a list of the people whose recipes are inside.
Start with the dish everyone will turn to first, and why.

Let us draft it

In Snap and Simmer, open your cookbook, tap ✏️ Book setup, then ✨ Draft one next to the introduction. We write a draft from the recipes in the book, where they came from, and your kitchen's ratings and comments. We never invent people, memories or habits, so the draft only says what your recipes show. Read it over, keep what fits, and add the stories only your family knows. See making a family cookbook.

Questions

How long should a cookbook introduction be?

About one page. Three or four short paragraphs is enough.

What should a family cookbook introduction say?

Whose recipes are in it, where they came from, what the food means to the family, how the book is organized and a thank-you to the people who shared recipes.

Can you write the introduction for me?

We can draft one from the recipes in your cookbook and your kitchen's ratings and comments. Nothing is invented, and you can rewrite any of it.

Should the introduction come before or after the dedication?

After. The usual order is title page, dedication, introduction, then contents.

Keep going

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