One of the many overwhelming parts of staying at home during the pandemic is deciding what to feed yourself (and perhaps your family members) with what’s available in the kitchen.

There are so many YouTube videos saved in your playlist on dishes you’d love to try. But having to sit through a 15 minute video to just see how each ingredient was measured is an “I wish I didn’t” feeling that resonates with many of us.

To reduce stress and fill your stories in the kitchen with a sense of joyfulness and fulfillment, we share with you how you can use tree tables to store/document your favorite dishes for easy access (templates available for free download)! And how you can use mind maps to turn delicious thoughts into a masterpiece of a recipe!

Turn Delicious Thoughts into a Recipe

Having the best time enjoying the after-dinner tiramisu and a mouth-watering thought strikes — what if you can put these marvelous squared-like desserts in other forms or shapes that’s easier for portability? Could this be the “wow” moment for your next gathering with family and friends? Instead of rolling up your sleeves and going straight to the kitchen, it is always wise to gather ideas and determine the feasibility with some research!

Write out all the ingredients needed for the base recipe on your mind map, and let your thoughts run free from here. Are there any alternative ingredients you’d like to try or pairings you think might sparkle? What needs adjustment if you’re changing the cooking methods? Organization is the key that leads to wonder. With greater clarity, you build a foundation to help you quickly jump-start your tasty journey in the kitchen.

Yummy Ideas Grow on Tree Tables

Once you have built a sound framework for a new recipe, the next step is to flesh out the details by adding precise measurements and documenting tools or pieces of equipment needed to make the dish. With a rough recipe we think that'll work, the details can only be perfected with real-time cooking action. Instead of finding a scrap piece of paper to write in the kitchen, XMind got you covered with this recipe template.

With XMind's cross-platform accessibility, you can easily edit and sync your .xmind file on different devices. Just make sure to connect your XMind with your cloud storage (iCloud, Google Drive, and One Drive) account. Make changes to your recipe with just a tap.

Here's what a complete recipe created with the recipe template on XMind looks like:

Feel free to download or view this tiramisu cupcake recipe here!

Make use of the recipe template below and start organizing recipes electronically today! For every minute spent mind mapping, an hour is saved in the future for relaxing and answering questions about how you manage to make meal-plannings look so effortless.

Download this tree table template here! Fill in the blanks accordingly and store the recipes in your .xmind file. Don’t forget you can also adjust the colors and fonts of your recipe by opening the panel and selecting “Style” to make further changes the tree table elements.

Insert a Webpage/YouTube Video/Blogpost

Moreover, use this to store recipes from celebrity chefs, watch cooking demonstrations alongside a detailed recipe to upgrade your cooking experiences. Just insert the webpage to that specific cooking video (or the blogpost) in your recipe after you finished writing down the details, and click on the link the next time you want to see the cooking in action.

Insert a Picture

You can also insert pictures of your gourmet cooking in the recipe! Using the tiramisu recipe as a demonstration, simply drag the photo in, or use the insert button on the toolbar to select the desired image from your computer.

Label Your Recipes

Label your recipe to boost your organization game. For example, you can mark the meal and cuisine of future browsing, label the main ingredient of this recipe to narrow down what you want to make today quickly, or use the tags to find the favorite dish of your loved ones!

Let the “Light” Guide Your Way

The kitchen mise en place ensures the cooking will go as smooth as possible, and the essential step to it is the preparation of kitchen supplies and ingredients. It is not uncommon to hear that story where one only found out the can of cranberry is missing when the turkey has been roasted to perfect golden. Last-minute grocery store trips can be avoided if you have a comprehensive shopping list. Using XMind, mark the ingredients using the markers from the panel and use different colors and shapes to differentiate the fresh produce and non-perishables.

Then, the next time you want to prepare ahead for a certain recipe you’d know what to get beforehand and what to get on the day of making the dish.

XMind’s Find and Replace feature could be useful alongside of your next grocery shopping. Light up parts of your map to let the ingredients stand out even more!

Bibbidi-Bobbidi-(Cook)Book!

Build your own cookbook with XMind by creating different duplicates of the recipe template. And remember you can also make copies of your legendary lasagna recipe for your friend that’s asking for it with just a tap on XMind! Read more on how to share your file with XMind share here.

Let your creativity run wild and have fun creating magic in the kitchen with the help of XMind's tree table structures!