Creating Cookbooks

Transform your digital recipe collection into a professional cookbook that you can print, share, or publish. This guide shows you how to use CookCLI's LaTeX export feature (supported in version after 0.18.0) to create PDF cookbooks from your Cooklang recipes.

🎯 What You'll Create

By the end of this tutorial, you'll have:

  • A professionally formatted PDF cookbook
  • Organized chapters by meal type
  • Color-coded ingredients and equipment
  • Automatic table of contents and index
  • Print-ready or digital ebook format

📋 Prerequisites

Before starting, make sure you have:

  1. CookCLI installed (Installation guide)
  2. LaTeX distribution installed:
    # macOS
brew install --cask mactex

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt-get install texlive-full

# Windows
# Download MiKTeX from https://miktex.org/
  3. Your recipes in .cook format organised in folders (that will become book chapters later)
my_recipes/
├── breakfast/
│   └── pancakes.cook
├── lunch/
│   └── sandwich.cook
└── dinner/
    └── pasta.cook

🚀 Quick Start: Your First Cookbook in 5 Minutes

Step 1: Get the Cookbook Tools

# Clone the cookbook creator repository
git clone https://github.com/cooklang/cookbook-creator.git
cd cookbook-creator

# Or download just the script
wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/cooklang/cookbook-creator/main/scripts/create_cookbook.py

Step 2: Generate Your Cookbook

# Generate cookbook LaTeX file from your recipes directory
python3 scripts/create_cookbook.py path/to/recipes my_cookbook.tex \
  --title "Family Recipes" \
  --author "Your Name"

# Or try with the included example recipes
python3 scripts/create_cookbook.py examples/recipes my_cookbook.tex \
  --title "Sample Cookbook" \
  --author "Jane Doe"

Step 3: Compile to PDF

# Compile the LaTeX file to PDF
pdflatex my_cookbook.tex
makeindex my_cookbook.idx  # Generate index
pdflatex my_cookbook.tex   # Update references
pdflatex my_cookbook.tex   # Final compilation

# Open your new cookbook!
open my_cookbook.pdf       # macOS
xdg-open my_cookbook.pdf   # Linux

📖 Step-by-Step Walkthrough

1️⃣ Organize Your Recipes

Structure your recipes in folders by category:

my-recipes/
├── breakfast/
│   ├── pancakes.cook
│   ├── french-toast.cook
│   └── smoothie-bowl.cook
├── lunch/
│   ├── caesar-salad.cook
│   └── grilled-cheese.cook
├── dinner/
│   ├── roast-chicken.cook
│   ├── pasta-carbonara.cook
│   └── vegetable-stir-fry.cook
└── desserts/
    ├── chocolate-cake.cook
    └── apple-pie.cook

The folder names become chapter titles in your cookbook!

2️⃣ Generate Your Cookbook

cd cookbook-creator
python3 scripts/create_cookbook.py ~/my-recipes my-cookbook.tex \
  --title "The Smith Family Cookbook" \
  --author "Jane Smith"

Script Options

# Basic usage
python3 scripts/create_cookbook.py <recipe_directory> <output_file> [options]

# Available options:
--title TITLE       # Cookbook title (default: "My Cookbook")
--author AUTHOR     # Author name (optional)
--no-index         # Skip index generation
--no-toc           # Skip table of contents

Manual Generation

For individual recipes, you can use CookCLI directly:

# Generate LaTeX for a single recipe
cook recipe -f latex "breakfast/pancakes.cook" > pancakes.tex

3️⃣ Customize Your Cookbook

Edit the generated .tex file to customize:

% Change colors
\definecolor{ingredientcolor}{RGB}{219, 112, 147}  % Pink
\definecolor{cookwarecolor}{RGB}{100, 149, 237}    % Blue
\definecolor{timercolor}{RGB}{255, 140, 0}         % Orange

% Add dedication
\chapter*{Dedication}
To my grandmother, who taught me that cooking is love...

% Add introduction to chapters
\chapter{Breakfast}
\section*{Introduction}
These breakfast recipes have been weekend favorites...

4️⃣ Add Special Sections

% Add conversion tables
\chapter*{Conversion Tables}
\begin{tabular}{ll}
\toprule
US & Metric \\
\midrule
1 cup & 240 ml \\
1 tbsp & 15 ml \\
\bottomrule
\end{tabular}

% Add tips section
\chapter*{Kitchen Tips}
\begin{itemize}
\item Always preheat your oven
\item Mise en place is key
\item Season as you go
\end{itemize}

🛠️ Advanced Features

Including Recipe Images

The script automatically finds and includes images that match your recipe names:

recipes/
├── pasta-carbonara.cook
├── pasta-carbonara.jpg    # Will be automatically included
├── chocolate-cake.cook
└── chocolate-cake.png     # Will be automatically included

Supported image formats: PNG, JPG, JPEG

Creating Multiple Versions

# Family version with all recipes
python3 create_cookbook.py recipes family-cookbook.tex

# Gift version with selected recipes
python3 create_cookbook.py recipes/favorites gift-cookbook.tex \
  --title "Our Favorite Recipes for You"

Customizing Colors

Edit the generated LaTeX file to change ingredient, cookware, and timer colors:

% Color definitions (RGB values)
\definecolor{ingredientcolor}{RGB}{204, 85, 0}   % Orange
\definecolor{cookwarecolor}{RGB}{34, 139, 34}    % Green
\definecolor{timercolor}{RGB}{220, 20, 60}       % Red

Scaling Recipes

# Generate scaled versions for different serving sizes
cook recipe -f latex "dinner/lasagna.cook:12" > lasagna-party.tex

Download Sample Cookbook

Download a sample PDF cookbook to see what you can create!

💡 Pro Tips

1. Recipe Metadata

The script extracts metadata from recipe comments. Add metadata to your .cook files:

---
description: A classic Italian pasta dish
tags: italian, pasta, quick
servings: 4
prep time: 15 minutes
cook time: 20 minutes
---

2. Organizing by Chapters

The script automatically creates chapters based on your directory structure:

recipes/
├── appetizers/     → Chapter: Appetizers
├── main-dishes/    → Chapter: Main Dishes
├── desserts/       → Chapter: Desserts
└── beverages/      → Chapter: Beverages

3. Recipe Index

The script automatically generates:

  • Recipe index by name
  • Index by tags (if metadata includes tags)
  • Index by author (if metadata includes author)

4. Version Control

Keep your recipes and cookbook under version control:

git init my-cookbook
git add *.cook *.tex scripts/
git commit -m "Initial cookbook version"

🚧 Troubleshooting

Common Issues and Solutions

ProblemSolution
"LaTeX command not found"Install TeX distribution for your OS
"Package not found" errorRun tlmgr install enumitem multicol xcolor titlesec geometry hyperref makeidx imakeidx fancyhdr
"cook command not found"Install CookCLI or use cargo run if building from source
Missing colors in PDFEnsure xcolor package is included
Index not generatedRun makeindex between compilations
Recipes not foundCheck file extensions are .cook
Images not showingEnsure image files match recipe names (e.g., pasta.cook → pasta.jpg)

📚 Resources

🎉 Share Your Creation

Created a beautiful cookbook? We'd love to see it!

  • Share on social media with #CooklangCookbook
  • Post in our community forum
  • Submit your template to the cookbook-sample repository

Ready to create your cookbook? Get started with the cookbook-creator toolkit →

Transform your recipes into a beautiful cookbook today with CookCLI!