Most cooks have at least a few beloved hand-written recipes that have been passed along to us on index cards or slips of paper, or that may have been only verbal instructions given by a grandmother or friend that we later jotted down. We don’t notice or criticize the style in which they are written, or care if they are stained or torn or if we have to puzzle out the directions or the meaning of the words oleo* or manteca.**
We have different standards for recipes that are presented publicly. We expect them to be accurate, written in language that we can understand, the steps (whether numbered or not) presented in an orderly way. Styles of recipes vary. They may be written casually or formally, with humor or in all seriousness. They may have accompanying headnotes, footnotes, sidebars, photos, and/or diagrams.
* An outdated term for “oleo margarine,” a butter substitute made from vegetable oil. ** Spanish word for lard.