Recipe Information

How to follow a recipe:

• Before you start, read the recipe from start to finish so there are no surprises.

• Preheat the oven to the correct temperature, so that it is ready when you need it.

• Before actually starting to cook or bake, gather all the necessary ingredients and equipment. Prepare the ingredients according to the directions in the ingredients list.

• For determining doneness, always rely first on the recipe’s sensory descriptor, such as “cook until golden brown”. Consider any times given in a recipe merely as a guide for when to start checking doneness.

Ingredients – unless otherwise noted, assume that:

• Butter is always unsalted• Eggs are large (about 60ml – 2oz)• Flour is unbleached all-purpose (don’t sift

unless directed to)• Sugar is white granulated (table sugar)• Fresh herbs, greens and lettuces are washed

and dried• Garlic, onions and fresh ginger are peeled

Watch those modifiers!

A recipe ingredient list contains words such as “diced” and “chopped” that tell you how to prepare each ingredient for the recipe, but what you may not realize is that the placement of these “preparation modifiers” in the ingredient line is as important as the modifier itself.

For example:1 cup rice, cooked1 cup cooked rice

Recipe Components• Specific Ingredients

-listed in order of use-includes how to prepare them(e.g. cheddar cheese, grated)

• Exact Amounts-includes units

• Directions-step by step instructions

• Temperature & Cooking Time-you are often instructed to preheat at beginning of directions

Recipe Components (cont’d)

• Yield-amount that will be produced by recipe-may be in number of servings

• Nutritional Information-number of calories, fat content, etc.

• Variations/suggestions-ingredient substitutions (ie. substitute blueberries for chocolate chips)-additional ingredients-serving suggestions (ie. serve with warm bread)

Recipe Formats

Standard Format• most common format• takes up the least space• ingredient list is a quick reference to determine if they

are on hand• ingredient list is listed in order of use• easy to follow – step by step instructions follow

ingredient list

Recipe Formats (cont’d)

Narrative Format• written in paragraph form, giving ingredients along

with method• works well for short recipes with few ingredients

Recipe Formats (cont’d)

Active Format• step by step method that is easy to follow• takes up more space• checking ingredients is not as easy as in standard

format