Software Gadgets

There are an amazing number of recipe programs available. Most are fairly expensive, and all have somewhat different sets of features. None seem to have everything my wife wanted, so it was hard to justify actually paying for one. Recipe Center is a freeware recipe program I discovered today. It doesn't look like it will do everything my wife wants either, but it has the advantage of being free, so I'm going to ask her to give it a try. It has the following features:

* Create New Recipes: Compile your own recipe collection. Uses IntelliSense, a tool that makes suggestion of words to use as you key in the letters in Recipe Center Version 5. It is very useful when encoding recipes because it makes your work faster and more consistent.
* Import/Export recipes to and from Meal Master
* Recipe Download: Recipe Center can import thousands of recipes from various compatible recipe websites
* Recipe Resizing: Recalculates the quantity of ingredients needed according to your desired yield
* Advanced Search Filters: Search by multiple recipe name, ingredients, keywords, etc.
* Recipe Card Printing: Print out recipes, with the option to attach pictures.
* Recipe Exchange: Send recipes to your friends by email (PDF format, Text format and Recipe Center format)
* Shopping List: Print your shopping lists based on ingredients of selected recipes
* Unit Conversion Tool: a flexible unit conversion tool to convert an extensive list of units of measurements, example: 1 cup of strawberry converted into pound, ounces, g or kg
* Advanced Recipe Encoder: Allows the user to simply cut and paste recipes into the program - no need to retype recipe ingredients
* Spell Checker: Spell check your recipe ingredients, procedures, shopping list

This program does have one obvious drawback. It is a Microsoft .NET 1.1 program. This means it only works in Windows 2000 or XP -- and only if you install the .NET 1.1 framwework (it's free, but it is a 20 meg download from Microsoft).

Rating: 4.0
Operating System: Windows 2000 and XP
Special Requirement: Microsoft .NET 1.1 Framework
License: Freeware
Price: Free
Version Reviewed: 2005_08_29
Web Site: http://www.recipecentersoftware.com/
See Screenshots