What do you think are the characteristics of a REALLY well written recipe. I find that some cookbooks/recipes just don't describe things well - at least for us non-expert cooks. What do you think of while you're writing out a recipe?

Good question. When you've been cooking for awhile, you can start to intuitively go through a recipe and know what's missing or how exactly to work though a step. But for first time recipes, or complicated recipes, I want clear instructions that list what I need to do and what the results will be. If I'm whipping eggs, butter and sugar together tell me how long and what changes I can expect to the mixture the longer I whip the ingredients (light/airy texture, light color, etc.) The most descriptive a recipe, the more accessible it becomes.

I also like recipes that provide alternatives. If a specific ingredient is called for, what substitutes can I use. This helps me thinking about ways to alter a recipe to my specific tastes.

All that being said, I know I have some recipes are very detail oriented and some that are crazy simple and vague.

Thanks!

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