Apps 11 & 12: Cocktails

Do you need to learn how to make some cocktails for an upcoming holiday party?  Have you ever thought about becoming a bartender?  Both of these apps provide recipes and tips for creating delicious cocktails. 

11.  Martha Stewart Makes Cocktails

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/martha-stewart-makes-cocktails/id555738168?mt=8

Similar to Martha Stewart Makes Cookies, this app provides recipes for alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails and bar snacks.  Recipes are accompanied by pictures, step-by-step directions, and ingredients lists.  You can also use the app to create a shopping list.  This would be a fantastic way to learn about cocktails to include for a holiday party.

12.  Mixology drink recipes

Link:  https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/mixology-drink-recipes-free/id320926534?mt=8

This app includes a wide range of recipes for drinks.  You can search for drink recipes by ingredients, category, or name.  You can also add drinks to your favorites.  The app also provides tips and information for bartending.  This app would be a great choice if you want to become a bartender or work at parties with a bar.  While it includes some great information, the site lacks pictures, and there are a lot of annoying ads.

App 10: Smoothies

Smoothies can be a quick way to add something healthy to your diet.  This app will teach you how to make healthy smoothies.

10.  Smoothies from Whole Living

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/smoothies-from-whole-living/id548645496?mt=8

This is a simple and easy to use app which provides recipes for smoothies.  The recipes are organized in categories: essential, meal in a glass, allergen free, weight-loss, immunity boosting, and detox.  The recipes are all very simple, and you can add recipes to your favorites.  While there are only about a hundred recipes, this would be a great place to start if you want to try to learn how to make healthy smoothies.

Apps 8 & 9: Planning

Do you want to learn how to plan meals and organize shopping trips more effectively?  These two apps will help you do just that.  They could also be used to help children learn about planning healthy meals, creating a weekly menu, and writing and sticking to a shopping list.

8. Grocery List Free

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/grocery-list-free-shopping/id491297400?mt=8

This is an easy to use app which helps you to create a shopping list.  You can add items by typing them in, or you can select items on a pre-made list.  It would be really easy to use this at the store because you simply tap items as you add them to your shopping cart, and they disappear from the list.  This app would also provide a great learning opportunity for kids who are just learning to cook.  They could help to create the shopping list and keep track of items at the store.

9. Meal Planning by Food on the Table

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/meal-planning-by-food-on-table/id418971697?mt=8

This app helps a family learn how to plan meals and create shopping lists.  The app provides recipes which you can add to your plan, and you can set a date for when you plan to make the meal.  The app also provides an easy to using shopping list which allows you to check off items as you add them to your cart.  The app also allows you to add local stores and find items which might be on sale.

App 7: Cookies

Around the holidays, everyone wants to try out new cookie recipes for gifts, gatherings, and parties.  This app from Martha Stewart will help you learn how to make fantastic cookies.  Some of the recipes may be challenging for children or beginning cooks, so be sure to select a recipe at the right skill level.

7. Martha Stewart Makes Cookies

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/martha-stewart-makes-cookies/id555726650?mt=8

This app provides recipes for lots of different kinds of cookies.  It would be great for families who want to learn how to make cookies for the holidays.    The recipes are organized into categories: classic, chocolate, giftable, kids, holiday, and sugar and spice.  The pictures and step-by-step directions are excellent.  The app also allows you to create a shopping list, add recipes to your favorites, and watch instructional videos.

App 6: Whole Foods

While most cooking apps offer some recipes for individuals with special dietary needs, those recipes may be difficult to locate.  However, the Whole Foods Market Recipes App allows a cook to easily find recipes based on dietary restrictions.  This is a great app to use to learn how to cook for vegetarians and vegans.

6.  Whole Foods Market Recipes

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/whole-foods-market-recipes/id320029256?mt=8

This app is excellent for finding recipes for those on a special diet (ex: vegan, vegetarian, low sodium, wheat free, etc).  On the search page, you can select the desired category, enter key words, and search for recipes.  They also have a great “On Hand” feature which allows you to enter three ingredients you have on hand and get a recipe.  The app also includes a Whole Foods store locator and shopping list.

Apps 3, 4, & 5: Magazines

The following apps all provide recipes which appeared in magazines.  The apps for Taste of Home and Better Homes and Gardens provide a wide range of recipes which will be appropriate for cooks with a variety of skill levels, including children.  I would begin with these apps if you are just learning to cook or want something simple and easy.  However, I would recommend the Epicurious app only for cooks with more experience who want to test or expand their skills.  Many of the recipes are difficult, so a beginning cook may want to wait before trying to learn some of these recipes.  However, if you are a cook who is looking for a new challenge or experiment, the Epicurious app would be a great place to start.

3. Must Have Recipes Better Homes and Gardens

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/must-have-recipes-from-better/id480016415?mt=8

This app includes a wide range of recipes which have been featured in Better Homes and Gardens.  The recipes are broken down into categories, and you can also search for recipes.  Each recipe includes a picture, list of ingredients, step-by-step direction, nutritional information, and an area to record notes.  You can add recipes to a list of favorites and create a shopping list.  While there are many great recipes and features with this app, I found the frequent advertisements annoying.  I also didn’t like that some recipes and features required a purchase.

4.  Taste of Home

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/taste-of-home/id450218890?mt=8

This app features recipes which appeared in the Taste of Home magazine.  The recipes are organized by collection: quick dinner recipes, potluck recipes, easter recipes, etc.  I like that these collections offer specific suggestions for holidays and other events.  Recipes include images, nutritional information, and directions.  Most of these recipes are simple and easy to follow.  The app includes ads, but they are not as intrusive as the ads on some of the other apps.  It is also missing a shopping list feature. 

5.  Epicurious

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/epicurious-recipes-shopping/id312101965?mt=8

If you are looking for more advanced or unique recipes, the Epicurious app would be a great place to start.  The app includes lots of recipes from Bon Appétit magazine.  You can use the app to search for recipes, or you can browse through categories such as healthy breakfasts, Thanksgiving sides, vegetarian holiday, and soups and stews.  Each recipe includes a picture, recipe, and reviews.  You can also add recipes to your favorites and create a shopping list.

Apps 1 & 2: All Recipes

The two apps below are from allrecipes.com.  I would particularly suggest these apps for people who are trying to learn the basics of cooking.  Many of the recipes you find on the apps are fairly simple, and the Allrecipes Video Cookbook would be an excellent way to get detailed, step-by-step instruction for making some basic meals.  The Allrecipes Video Cookbook could even be used to help kids learn how to do some simple cooking.

1. Allrecipes.com Dinner Spinner

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/allrecipes.com-dinner-spinner/id299515267?mt=8

This app has a few great features.  The “Dinner Spinner” allows you to select a type of dish, ingredients, and cooking time.  Then recipes which meet your criteria are provided.  You can also search for recipes, look through a list of featured recipes, and add recipes to your favorites.  I also really like how easy it is to create a shopping list and mark items on the list that you already have.  I would also recommend this app for cooks who need to accommodate a wide range of dietary needs.  You will find vegetarian, vegan, low carb, low sugar, etc recipes on the app.  Also, each recipe includes nutritional information.

2. Allrecipes Video Cookbook

Link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/allrecipes-video-cookbook/id575737564?mt=8

Allrecipes also has a video cookbook app which provides videos with step-by-step directions for creating each recipe.  The videos are well-made and easy to follow.  The number of video is a bit limited, but there is still a great variety especially for desserts and main courses.