For decades upon decades, recipe books were the stuff of legend. They were the reason you got into cooking, or perhaps they were a means of passing down recipes from generation to generation. How often do we hear about that classic “this recipe has been in our family for centuries” story?
This is because human beings have been physically writing things down for thousands of years. However, in this day and age, technology has taken up the mantle, and the way people consume recipes has changed. But are recipe books going out of style?
Same, But Different
Perhaps a less gloomy way to look at the situation is that technology may not be replacing recipe books, but just offering a new alternative. What with TikTok videos, YouTube channels, Instagram posts, and endless chefs with their own websites, the opportunities to consume recipe content digitally are seemingly endless. But the truth is, they’ll take truly take over—as long as one thing stays the same.
The Heart Of It All
Perhaps the one thing that matters most isn’t whether the actual written-down recipes are going out of style. The thing that matters most is whether or not the heart of it all—the warmness, the love, the tradition—will be preserved. This is a crucial aspect to consider. With digital taking over, it can seem like we’re all forgetting about the old ways. But if we fight to retain the heart and beauty of the written down recipes that paved the way for it, we may just preserve it after all.
