Tomorrow I’ll post a recent recipe I tried from one of my favorite cookbooks. When I began planning my blog, I was unsure about sharing recipes online. I didn’t know what the letter of the law said about reproducing cookbook recipes online. I wanted to be ethical and fair. I also didn’t want the FEDS kicking in my door, confiscating my kitchen gear, stomping my laptop to pieces, and locking me up at Guantanamo Bay (Sorry, I'm crossing the line here. One of my unwritten goals for this blog is to never mention politics. One strike for me). After some research I found the following two articles that made me feel comfortable about posting recipes online:
Can a Recipe Be Stolen? By Joyce Gemperlein from the Washington Post
Basically, the US Copyright Office states that it boils down to the following rule of thumb when posting someone else’s recipes online:
- “Mere listings of ingredients as in recipes, formulas, compounds or prescriptions are not subject to copyright protection. However, where a recipe or formula is accompanied by substantial literary expression in the form of an explanation or directions, or when there is a combination of recipes, as in a cookbook, there may be a basis for copyright protection.”
When sharing recipes I’ll clearly state the source of the recipe. Also I’ll limit the number of recipes I share from any single cookbook, and any literary elements will be rewritten with my own personal twist.
I’m choosing to share these recipes because I want to give you a glimpse into my kitchen, and I want to share recipes that I love. LOVE – that’s the word I associate most often with food and cooking. I just want to share the love.
Love and happiness,muddywaters
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