Allrecipes.com: Why I Love This Recipe Website

While I always considered my mom a good cook growing up, I cannot tell you what we generally ate. So when I first moved out on my own, I was at a loss for what to feed myself every night, and my boyfriend, and maybe his friends, when they were around. I'd do the basics, like the taco kits or a whole chicken (pre-cooked) and boxed potatoes. But I wanted more. When I asked my mom for recipes, most of what she gave me was crazy health food, and used no or little carbs, since she is diabetic. That was simply not going to do for college students.

So I started searching the web. I checked out some websites I had heard about from friends or TV, but many of them require you to join, and others just were not user-friendly. Then I stumbled upon allrecipes.com. While they do have some recipes that are partitioned off for members only, the majority of their recipes are free to anyone surfing by. On allrecipes I found new and exciting things to do with chicken, and one fantastic recipe for Amaretto cake that is simply to die for. They will even cut down the portions automatically for those who are cooking for only one or two, and do not have the mathematical skills to reduce the portions themselves (by this I mean myself, of course).

Now that I am married, I have been wanting to branch out even more. I started by finding different recipes for shrimp, including a very good one for coconut shrimp that actually worked. But we both already liked shrimp. So I started looking at fish recipes, and choosing ones that sounded like they hid the taste of the fish well. I have actually found some that have us both eating fish, me for the first time, and my husband for the first time actually enjoying it.

The features of the site are excellent. The homepage always offers season-appropriate ideas, popular recipes, and specific searches. Another great thing is that you can do an ingredients search, in which you specify ingredients you do want, or those you do not want, a great tool for someone with allergies to specific foods.

Another neat function allrecipes.com has is the menus. These are put together by other users. They take recipes from the website and put them together in pre-done menus. What could be easier! You can browse them by meal, cuisine, occasion, or cooking style. The cooking style option is especially useful for those who are beginning to eat low-carb, or pursuing a vegetarian lifestyle. Also, you can take your recipes and click on "Add to Shopping List", and the site will make out a shopping list for you. Then you can also add your own extra items to it, and print it out to take to the store.

For those who want to go beyond just choosing a recipe or menu, there is a "Tips and Advice" page, and of course shopping. They offer a wide variety of cookbooks, including Rachael Ray, kitchen accessories, specialty ingredients, some gardening accessories, and seasonal items, such as cookbooks and cookie cutters.

Allrecipes.com is definitely a good place to look for recipes, and while you are there learn to use their other features too. Whether a new wife looking for some fresh recipes, or a seasoned cook looking to expand their repertoire, allrecipes.com is sure to please.