Welcome to Recipe Realism – where real thinking and home cooking come together in this online recipe collection.
About Me
I am a self-proclaimed realist and home-cooking enthusiast! I prepare home-cooked meals for my husband and myself about five nights a week. When considering what to make for us, I use tools like monthly calendars and weekly meal planners. My meal planning inspiration comes from new recipes I find, existing recipes I make again and again, meal kits, and leftovers. Currently, I rely on recipes at least twice a week, meal kits twice a week, and the utilization of leftovers once to twice per week.
I have cookbooks, recipe books, recipe cards, and a binder of recipe printouts. And I like to write on my recipe copies (or use sticky notes, especially in books). I jot down what I did and didn’t do, notes on ingredients or alternatives used, how it went, how long prep or cook time actually took, ideas for what I’d like to try next time, how that went, and so on. As you can imagine, my recipes quickly look messy and become hard to follow. Not the mention, there’s usually the inevitable splash of oil or dribble of sauce on the page, too. Eventually, it’s all too much and it’s time to incorporate my notes and scribbles into a new, clean, updated copy.
About This Blog
Therefore, with this blog, I can type and re-type recipes with my updates and notes, edit again and again, and share again and again! I like to modify, adapt, simplify, and streamline recipes. An online recipe collection makes that ongoing effort easier.
Furthermore, with my own online recipe collection, I can create, modify, and expand on my recipe organization system with tags and categories. Here I can quickly look up gluten-free recipes, recipes that provide leftovers, gluten-free recipes that provide leftovers, and more. All with the click of a button or two. I can’t imagine trying to do that with a recipe box or, in my case, recipe binders. Basically, with this blog, I can forever edit, share, organize, and re-organize recipes! And access them from anywhere!
Subsequently, more and more, the recipes that make it on the blog are recipes I have made again and again. That’s because these are the recipes with the most notes and scribbles (and dribbles!). It’s recipes like these that benefit from the agility this online recipe collection provides to the iterative cooking process.
In addition to the recipe, I like to include a concise intro for context, and sections with ingredient recommendations, ingredient alternatives, notes on pairings, tips for leftovers, and more. And finally, the recipe card. I take care that the recipe cards are written concisely for clarity and streamlined for efficiency.
Ultimately, this online recipe collection reflects my approach to recipes, experiences with cooking, musings from the kitchen, and elements I desire from recipe websites but do not often see.
The Recipe Realism Approach
- Recipes First – Our goal is to make recipes the priority. Not ads.
- Streamline Preparation – Provide clear, concise, efficient instructions and shortcuts.
- Simplify Ingredients – And offer convenient alternatives.
- Tried and True – If I haven’t tried it, I am probably not writing about it.
What you will find here:
- Easy to find & budget-friendly ingredients – I LOVE using store-brand and generic ingredients!
- Recipes for every skill level – I try to write recipes simply, with every skill level in mind. The post itself may contain more beginner-friendly tips or more advanced tricks.
- Dishes for a variety of palates and dietary needs – Gluten-free, vegetarian, and red meat alternatives are commonly found in this recipe collection.
- Cooking for two – As I shared above, I regularly cook for two, so the majority of my recipes and notes are approached from that perspective. You’ll find that most recipes here have a serving size for two or make a meal for two plus one round of leftovers for two.
- Real photos – I take all of my recipe photos. My photography skills are a work in progress. I often snap photos of meals just before sitting down to enjoy them. No over-stylizing or editing here. What you see is what you get.
What you won’t find here:
- Another recipe site cluttered with ads – It is not our intention to bog down and disrupt your experience on our site with ads.
- Endless scrolling – Furthermore, a ‘Jump to Recipe’ link is at the top of each recipe post to help you quickly find what you are looking for.
- Alternatives that sacrifice taste, texture, technique or recipe integrity – Recipes that do not taste the same (or better) with ingredient alternatives (gluten-free, vegetarian, or otherwise) will not be posted.
These are my intents with the ever-evolving process that is recipe blogging.
I hope you like what I have to share. Leave a comment and let me know. You can also reach out to me at [email protected].
Disclaimers
General
To date, all opinions are unsolicited and completely my own. Any ‘name dropping’ is solely to give credit to sources and provide reference for my readers. The vast majority of items that I share and link to I have purchased and used.
Affiliate
This site is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. I may earn a small percentage from qualifying purchases made through links on this site, at no additional cost to you.