Welcome to The Recipe Box Project

Ah right, because just what the internet needs is another cooking blog. A few weeks before Thanksgiving 2011, I was looking for a recipe that I knew I had "somewhere." While conducting this search, I came across a cardboard box

labeled "Cookbooks and Recipes". Inside this box there were hundreds, if not thousands, of recipes: some that I had clipped from newspapers and magazines, some that had been written down and photocopied and passed around the office, a couple issues of a cooking magazine.   The common thread is that although I saved these recipes, I'd never prepared 99.99% of them.  There are main dishes, side dishes, desserts, appetizers, snacks, drinks, you name it. Things to bake, things to broil, things to sauté, things to grill.

And perhaps a warranty card or two, but that's not important right now.


So here's the plan . . . each week, I'm going to randomly select a recipe from the piles and prepare that item, whatever it is. I might unilaterally veto any selections, based on seasonality, or possible time constraints, but I'll try to just go with whatever turns up. Most likely the selection will be made on Wednesday and the cooking or baking will be done on Saturday. That will give me a couple days to make sure I have the required ingredients, pots, pans, utensils, etc to make whatever it is.


On the day of the selection, I will document the recipe*; after the recipe has been attempted, I'll post about the process** and the results.


* I don't know exactly what the copyright status would be for many of the recipes, or for recipes in general, and my attorneys at Google and Bing LLC haven't been very clear. I'll try to follow the guidelines here, and we'll see how it goes.


** I hope this will be the most interesting part. My general theory has been that a recipe is a suggestion, and I often make changes on the fly - except for baking, which I figure is a more exact science. Primarily this is going to be a learning experience for me.


Some basic blog stuff -- 

Comments are turned on, with moderation. I may not be sitting on top of the "approve" button at all times, so it might take some time for comments to appear. Spam is right out, of course (except maybe it will be in some of the recipes, who can say?). Most other comments will probably be approved, but there's no guarantee. Also, I have Google's AdSense enabled and turned on. I'm not expecting to make a ton of money, but maybe enough to buy myself a beer once in awhile. If I see or hear about really annoying ads, I will revisit the ads concept.