This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission (at no extra cost to you) if you purchase through my link. Thank you for supporting my blog!
There’s something about old cookbooks that feels like home. The kind you find tucked away in an old thrift store, pages stained with oil and filled with elegant cursive in the margins. These books weren’t just cookbooks – they were love letters to family life, scribbled in shorthand. The recipes inside weren’t just instructions, they were traditions, love and memories.
Where my Love of Cooking Began
While I’m not sure where my culinary interest came from, many of my earliest memories are rooted in the kitchen. My mom wasn’t much of a cook – I still remember the time she accidentally burned a pot of Top Ramen while trying to feed 6 children.
She had recently gotten 4 of us back from Child Protective Services and she was doing the best she could. As a young child eager to spend time with my mom, I hung around in the kitchen and incidentally learned by watching her success and failures. By 9 years old, I was already collecting magazine clippings and copying recipes off cereal boxes, tucking them into a shoebox under my bed.
Later, I found joy in cooking shows (before I could pause or rewind!) and scribbled notes furiously as the hosts walked through their creations. Cooking was never just about food – it was a way for me to feel empowered, creative and safe.
Why Handwritten Recipes Still Matter
These days, I still collect recipes on Pinterest, but my favorite recipes live in my handwritten tin. I think there’s something powerful about writing them down. In fact, studies show that writing by hand actually helps with memory retention.
But more than that, writing a recipe connects you emotionally to it. You’re not just copying steps – you’re preserving a story.
Recipes as Legacy
I didn’t inherit any cookbooks from my childhood, but I’ve seen how meaningful they can be.
My husband Luke and I had been married for about 5 years, when I asked him what dessert he’d like for his birthday. He paused and thought for just a second, a warm smile filled his face and said, “You know? My mom used to make this amazing fudge pie. Could you maybe make that for me?”
The next time I saw his mom, I asked about it. And she pulled out this recipe card that I could see right away was aged and had stories to tell. She showed me the little notes she made in the margins.
So, I took her recipe and notes and made the fudge pie. The smile it brough to his face said it all: Food can bring us home, even if just for a moment. He said it brought back memories from when he was a child and savored every bite. It reminded me of that scene in Ratatouille, where a single bite transports a food critic back to his mother’s kitchen. Some recipes are just like that – time machines disguised as dessert.
Food as Family Tradition
I didn’t have family recipes growing up. In fact, my childhood was unstable – my siblings and I spent time in foster care, and holidays like Christmas were only possible through programs like Angel Tree and food banks.
I don’t share this for sympathy. I share it because I know what it feels like to come from a place where there was no tradition, no legacy. And I also know how healing it can be to start building one anyway!
That’s why recipes matter to me. They’re not just about food. They’re about creating what I didn’t have – a sense of belonging, comfort, and continuity – and handing that down to my kids. Family legacy doesn’t have to be inherited – it can be built from the ground up, one handwritten recipe at a time.
Recipes preserve family
Did you know families who eat together at least three times a week are more likely to have better communication and emotional well-being? I’d take that a step further – those who prepare meals together form even stronger bonds.
In our home, we don’t always cook side by side, but when we do, it’s loud, messy and full of laughter. The process brings a sense of shared accomplishment. And more often than not, those are the meals we remember the most – not because they were perfect, but because we made them together.
I think that’s why I’ve grown to love recipes – not just for what’s written on the card, but for what happens around it. Every time someone recreates a family recipe, they’re not just following steps. They’re honoring the legacy of the person who passed it down. They’re preserving a piece of their family.
Why I Keep a Recipe Tin
I chose a recipe tin because it feels like a box of treasures. Each card holds more than a list of ingredients – it holds stories, flavors, and memories that have shaped our family. Someday, I hope my children will open this tin and feel the warmth and love I have fore than and the legacy inside.
Recipe Tin Recommendations:
I have been using this charming recipe tin that fits 5×7 recipe cards and I even designed my own printable cards to go along with it. It’s functional, cute, and gives off that cozy cottage-core vibe. It would make a thoughtful gift for a bridal shower, graduation, or just because.
Why I Keep a Recipe Tin
I chose a recipe tin because it feels like a box of treasures. Each card holds more than a list of ingredients – it holds stories, flavors, and memories that have shaped our family. Someday, I hope my children will open this tin and feel the warmth and love I have fore than and the legacy inside.
Want a copy of the free recipe cards I made? Just leave a comment with “recipe card” and I’ll send them your way.
This tin comes with dividers for every type of meal – breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, desserts – you name it.
First 3 Recipes in my Tin:
The first 3 recipes I added were ones that earned their place: Easy Rustic Sourdough bread, Chicken Caprese Salad and my homemade pizza recipes. I recently published my Sourdough recipe and would love for you to check it out!
I only include recipes I’ve made multiple times, because I want each card to be helpful to someone else one day – complete with all the little tips and notes that make it so special.
Whether you use a binder, a notebook, or a tin like I do, I’d love to hear how you preserve your favorite recipes.
Let’s pass down more than just ingredients. Let’s pass down love.
Thanks for gathering around my hearth today.
**Recipe card**
I keep my recipes on index cards, so this would be a perfect holder for them. I only have a few but I love the idea of having them written down.