By Mollie Chen

I've got shelf upon shelf of cookbooks at home - everything from Julia Child's classic Mastering the Art of French Cooking to Michel Richard's gorgeous Happy in the Kitchen - plus dozens more squirreled away in my desk drawers and cabinets. But when it comes to actual cooking, my first stop is usually online search engines. Or Google - a fun trick is to plug in random ingredients that you have on hand (Garlic scapes? Pesto! Beets and fennel? Delicious farro salad!) and see what you come up with.

The problem is, instead of smeared and tattered cookbooks (the sign of a well-loved kitchen, I think), I end up with shreds of computer print outs with scribbled notes on them. Not nearly as charming as glossy cookbooks. Plus, when I lose the shreds of paper, then I'm back at square one, clicking through websites trying to remember which plum cake was ethereal and which was leaden.

TasteBook, which just launched today, is a collaboration between Epicurious and two former Ofoto execs that seems like a perfect way to bridge online and print. It's a simple concept: log into their website, browse through a huge database of recipes (the majority are currently from Gourmet and Bon Appetit but they'll add more publications - print and online - soon), and pick the ones you want to put in your cookbook. You can also plug in your own personal recipes or steal ideas from pre-made tastebooks (Best Party Recipes, Top Holiday Cookies). For the actual book, you choose a cover picture from a gallery of glossy food porn shots and then organize the recipes however you like. The cost is reasonable: $34.95 for the book and 100 recipes. From there, you can add as many as you like.

The company sent a sample book to the office and I have to say it beats the battered school binder that I briefly tried storing recipes in (I mean, who has time to do all that hole-punching?). Sturdy covers, high-quality paper stock - mom the graphic designer would be proud. Each recipe has an easy-to-read (and follow) design and is accompanied by a picture of the finished dish. I do wish there were some handy flash cards with the kind of "How to Debone a Chicken" or "Basics of Pie Crusts" diagrams that Cook's Illustrated publishes, and maybe a little area to scribble notes. But I love that each card also has the full URL of where the recipe came from originally - useful if you're like me and love reading the reviews that people post online.

While I can't see the word "TasteBook" rolling off my tongue anytime soon but I have already started creating an all-star recipe line-up for my very own cookbook.

A Cookbook for the Google Generation

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