I am fascinated by handwriting. Not in an analytical what-your-handwriting-style-says-about- you-kind-of-way, but rather in a human connection kind of way. Just like viewing an original painting conjures a connection to the artist, handwriting is connected to the person. You can almost feel it. They held that paper. It’s magical to me!
I love handwritten things, but perhaps nothing tugs at my heartstrings more than a handwritten recipe. There’s something about the nostalgia I feel surrounding food and the coupling of the connection to the human hands that made it. As with other forms of handwriting, it’s becoming rarer and so I wanted to share my top 5 reasons why we should handwrite our recipes.
1. Writing by hand helps you remember
There are physiological and psychological benefits to writing things down! It actually changes your brain chemistry in a way that doesn’t happen when you type! How amazing is that?!
One of these benefits is that it helps you remember, which is great when it comes to remembering instructions and ingredients of your favorite dishes. Recording the memories along with the recipes (try using the Keepsake Kitchen Diary) will also help you recall the happy times when you enjoyed the dish with your favorite people.
2. You can’t pass down a Pinterest pin
My Mother now owns my Grandmother’s handwritten recipe notebook and it is one of her most treasured positions. Someday, it will be one of mine too along with my mother’s handwritten recipes. When I make those dishes passed down by my Grandmother, I feel a connection to her and my Mom. It’s part of their legacy of cooking for our family. These recipes are tangible expressions of their love.
3. It’s a form of art
Handwritten recipes are an opportunity for artistic expression. No one’s writing is just like yours and even if it’s messy and imperfect, it’s an extension of you. Embrace the beauty in that!
4. Handwritten recipes tell stories
When my Mom was flipping through my Grandmother’s recipe notebook, she was telling me all kinds of stories told through these tattered and worn pages. Some had footnotes, little notes, and splattered pages where you could barely read the writing (you knew she made this recipe a lot). While some pages were barely touched – “She tried this recipe once and it didn’t turn out, so she never made it again,” recounts my Mom. A well loved recipe collection or book will be filled with stories.
5. It can become a record of who you are
As we go through life, our tastes change and we have new experiences that inspire us! A handwritten recipe collection can record this. Did you become fascinated with French cooking after watching Julie & Julia? Did you experience a new cuisine on a trip and seek to recreate it? Adopting a paleo lifestyle? I hate to say “you are what you eat”, but I do think this holds true in terms of your stage of life and experiences. What a cool thing to be able to preserve and look back on!
I hope this post inspires you to write down your recipes, embrace the imperfection of it all, and collect memories along the way!
P.S. Be sure to check out all the recipe cards styles we have available in the Lily & Val shop as well as our best-selling Keepsake Kitchen Diary for recording those memories, occasions, and stories along with each recipe.
Enjoy and Happy Writing!
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