# Ipad or android app for recipes.



## rgm2 (May 28, 2011)

I am currently in the beginning stages of setting up a part time personal chef business that will hopefully grow into something bigger. I am currently looking for an app that similar to Mastercook or Living cookbook. Something that will hold my recipes and allow me to build a menu for each cooking date and a cookbook for each client that is editable. Would be great if it had the features to create a shopping list based on the menu also.

Anyone have any suggestions?


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

I've tried several, none that I've come across make the cut.

There are some web based applications that work. APPCA has one called Personal Chef Office that incorporates some business management tools in addition to recipe management.

Probably the most helpful idea is print to PDFs and use Evernote, currently being supplied with Mastercook 11, or something similar.

I've tried numerous shopping list apps, and I still use my Mastercook printed shopping list.

Actually, I use Mastercook extensively, and find that, if I do my menu prep, the printed sheets work out fine and I can keep client specific menus and recipes pretty close at hand. Mastercook also calculates expected grocery costs, once you put in your local prices.


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## rgm2 (May 28, 2011)

So do you use Personal Chef Office at all?


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## chefmikesig (Jul 22, 2011)

As much as I hate some of the quirks of MasterCook, I have not found anything that meets my recipe, menu, and order requirements. Especially considering the price.

I will follow this thread to see what anyone else says.


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## phatch (Mar 29, 2002)

look into something with the cloud.  I use text filr synced to dropbox so my data is available. via phone, tablet, pc or even log in to dropbox via the web on some one else's pc.


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

RGM2 said:


> So do you use Personal Chef Office at all?


I created my system long before PCO was though of, let alone developed, and, as such, do not use PCO at this time.

The recipe management is based on Mastercook, to a degree, but IMO, leaves out many of the Mastercook features I've grown comfortable with.

With regards to the business management side, it does provide a lot of help. I've just never taken the time to convert my multitude of Word and Excel documents to PCO, I'm happy with what I created and haven't found a pressing need to change. Guess I'm getting old and fixed in my ways /img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif


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## rgm2 (May 28, 2011)

So I found a pretty cool web application based here is Seattle. Big Oven seems to have what I am looking for from what I have seen of it. It has a web app, and mobile apps for both android and apple. I have not downloaded it to my driod yet though.

What do you guys think?


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

Tried it quite awhile ago, went back to Mastercook. Haven't looked at it recently.

I can see the advantages of some phone apps, I haven't seen advantages for phone apps for PCs /img/vbsmilies/smilies/crazy.gif

For me, at least, a cook day is very simply the execution of a plan developed before the cook day occurs. The menu has been developed, the shopping list and recipes printed, the prep and cooking schedule laid out. I'm not sure what I would need an app for while I'm cooking, one more thing to distract me?


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## rgm2 (May 28, 2011)

You do not use the the phone app on the PC... you can manage your account in either place. But I see where you are coming from. I have not bought Mastercook yet, at this point I have The Living Cookbook and it works, however I do not love it. I will probably pick up Mastercook in a couple weeks as I have spent my allotment of funds for this pay period on books and test recipe ingredients. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/chef.gif

I guess I am just looking for a streamlined way to develop the menu, create the shopping list and a way not to have papers running around everywhere.


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

RGM2 said:


> You do not use the the phone app on the PC...


Oops, acronyms! I was using PC=personal chef, not personal computer /img/vbsmilies/smilies/crazy.gif


> ...I guess I am just looking for a streamlined way to develop the menu, create the shopping list and a way not to have papers running around everywhere.


That's what I like about Mastercook, once you have your recipes entered as well as ingredient prices for your local area, you can compile a menu as quick as you select recipes, adjust servings as necessary, and print out menu, shopping list, and recipes with a click or two. If you do not like paper, print to a PDF and transfer to your smartphone or tablet.

I use FireFox and RecipeFox so capturing recipes from the internet or electronic documents that can be displayed in a browser is a snap. There are other tools available for capturing scanned and OCR'd recipes as well.

Getting comfortable with Mastercook may take some effort, the program was developed before Windows standardization so it may not be that intuitive to those raised on Windows. Setting it up, especially pricing ingredients, can be tedious at the beginning, but, to me, that is part of the power of the program, you can do it your way, not just the way the programmer(s) set up, they've locked in what needs to be locked in and left flexible where possible.

Though I have Mastercook on my laptop, I rarely access it during a cook date, it is there if I need it, but I haven't found a need for it for that cook day.

Oh, I do have remote access to my desktop PC as well, I use LogMeIn


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## cheffindc (Oct 21, 2011)

Has anyone tried Paprika? http://www.paprikaapp.com/

I want an app with recipe scaling and that allows me to write and organize my own recipes.


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## pete (Oct 7, 2001)

While I love the idea of a cooking app, I don't really relish having my very expensive smartphone out on a counter where I'm cooking.  I, personally, would do all my work on my PC and only print off any notes or recipes I needed for that day.


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## chocdoc (Feb 21, 2010)

I'm on a Mac and have MacGourmet.  I can download all the recipes easily to my iphone or ipad.  Love the way it imports recipes too.

I was a die hard mastercook user until forced to switch with my new mac that wouldn't support it anymore.


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

For me, a smart phone is superb for communications but until I can plug in a 24" monitor so I can view prep lists, recipes, menus, etc., without squinting and fiddling with some device, I'll stay with paper and white boards.

For a home cook, maybe.

On those few, very few, occasions I access my computer with LogMeIn and have full access to what I need.

Technology is great, but it doesn't always lead to productivity. When it does, use it, otherwise, don't!


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## islandgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

... felt the same way, at least with my 'smartphone' screensize -- but have been blown away by the clarity of my tablet screen and am reconsidering the capacity to do planning and organizing whilst away from the workhorse workstation.

The tablet is an ASUS Transformer version 1, and amazing.  Hence the revisit here, as my 'old' MasterCook, to which I have been faithful since Version 3 (really!) and through Version 9, is just not porting into the new world.


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

Try MasterCook 11, it has a NEW owner!


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## islandgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

Well, actually, no, ValuSoft has been the owner for a number of years, including my Version 9.  I was not happy with the lack of maintenance of the Ingredients database, more than anything else, and haven't checked in with them lately, just continued to work with my Ver9 and my customized ingredient 'list'; also the appinterface looks very much like IPad only, and not Android.

That being said, I'll look further.  Who knows, miracles could happen...


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

Um, actually yes, THQ has sold the ValuSoft division, the recent owners of Mastercook, to Cosmi.

See http://www.valusoft.com/

and http://www.businesswire.com/news/ho...Cosmi-Software-Acquires-ValuSoft-Division-THQ

and http://finance.yahoo.com/news/cosmi-software-acquires-valusoft-division-130000612.html

From information on the http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MastercookDiscussion/messages board, Cosmi is working on numerous upgrades and revisions


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