Cook Book Publishers Key Terms

Prepare your cook book for publication using these important terms

By Laurie Edwards

Publishing a cook book is different from most other publishing projects. In addition to the usual writing and editing process, a cook book requires preparation and testing of each recipe. Cook book authors and publishers must guarantee that the recipes work when prepared in consumers' kitchens. They also want their creations to look tasty enough to make buyers select their book. Finally, once the customer purchases the cook book, publishers must make it easy to use. Each of these steps requires special techniques or processes that make cook book publishing a unique science.

Cook books may be produced for the general public, but some are generated for special purposes such as fund raising or as family keepsakes. These books may generate sales for an organization or may be given away to relatives. These cookbooks might not use professional stylists, testers, or analysts; their authors often provide these services themselves.

Nutrient analysis

Most cook books today provide a nutrient analysis of their recipes. A nutrient analysis details the ingredients and the amount of calories and fat in each recipe, along with percentage of the RDA (recommended daily allowance) of vitamins and minerals each serving supplies. Health-conscious consumers look at these labels to see if the recipes fit their diet plans.
Try: Gourmania provides a brief explanation of nutrient analysis and shows detailed pictures of both American and Canadian labels.

Indexing

Indexing is key for cook books. Readers will want to look up recipes by both recipe name and main ingredients, so it is important to include both in an index. Preparing indexes is a specialized skill, so find an expert to do the job if you are not detail oriented.
Try: Nancy Humphreys offers six variations on cook book indexing.

Food stylist

Cook books usually have photographs of the various dishes. Many cook book publishers hire food stylists to arrange the food before taking pictures. Stylists not only make the layout look appealing, they often dye or brown the food or create other illusions to make the food look more appetizing.
Try: Diet-Blog describes what a food stylist does to prepare food for a photo shoot.

Recipe testing

Recipe testing is an important part of the cook book publishing process. Before each recipe is published, it must be tested to be sure that the recipe works, has no missing ingredients, and tastes good. To do this, a publisher often finds someone other than the author to test the recipes.
Try: The message board on ChefTalk.com discusses recipe testing procedures.

Sensory analysis

Sensory analysis can be used to write descriptions of a recipe's flavor and texture. These descriptive words are then used to write the short blurbs that appear below each recipe heading. For cook book projects by individuals or fund-raising groups, these descriptive terms often come from the recipe's creator. Larger, more professional cook books may rely on a specialized lab to offer a description.
Try: K-State College of Human Ecology explains what happens in their Sensory Analysis Lab.

Fund-raising cook books

Raise money by selling your group's cook book for a profit. Many companies specialize in cook book fundraisers. Organizations with special interests can gear their cook book recipes to the members of their associations. By selling to the members as well as their family and friends, the cook book will have built-in sales. A portion of all sales then go to the organization.
Try: Favorite Recipes Press offers many reasons for publishing a cook book to raise money.