Chicken Fettuccine
Recipe 1:
Natasha’s Kitchen
https://natashaskitchen.com/moms-chicken-fettuccine-alfredo/
Recipe 2:
Allrecipes
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/22760/homemade-chicken-fettuccine/
Recipe 3:
Joshua Weissman
https://www.joshuaweissman.com/post/perfect-fettuccine-alfredo
Imagine abstract wireframes underneath the recipe layouts. Focus just on the recipes, and ignore other web page elements such as the navigation menu. How would you describe, compare, and contrast the common elements?
Focusing solely on the wireframes of each recipe layout I can see there are major differences amongst the three websites I have chosen. The recipe I decided to pick was a personal favorite, Chicken Fettuccine or Fettuccine Alfredo.
The first recipe from Natasha’s Kitchen provides an excellent way of describing what needs to be done within each step and even provides a before and after of what the dish looks like once the step is completed. I do want to mention that although her recipe is straightforward to understand and follow along with one thing I dislike is the sizing of each image, if the author had provided smaller images to go alongside the recipe then it would make for a more appealing visual representation. I would recommend having the images located on the left for the hotspots to be focused solely on the food first and if anyone is interested in the recipe then they should have text on the right side alongside the image rather than a large image and then a wall of text right underneath it repeatedly.
Allrecipes website’s recipe is in my opinion the most lackluster recipe out of the three. There are only two steps to the recipe which are shown by a block of text for each step and they only provide one visual aid that is amongst a selection of the same pasta being made instead of a step-by-step image for each process. The only good thing I could say about this website’s recipe is that it provides an estimated time for completion, unlike the other two websites. The recipe is very easy to follow since I’m familiar with the dish already, but I feel as though the content is very lacking for beginners or those not familiar with this recipe. I would prioritize improving the recipe so it’s beginner-friendly and provides better-quality photos.
Joshua Weissman’s website is by far the easiest to follow alongside and also provides very clean and clear instructions. Although his recipe doesn’t provide an appropriate amount of time or give too many photos like Natasha’s Kitchen, it’s made up by providing variants to his recipes such as the American style recipe or the healthy recipe. It allows the viewers of the recipe to see the author took a great amount of time learning and perfecting the recipe. The only thing I would recommend was that they provide a photo of each different variant of the pasta so people can compare them with one another and not worry about the result.
In your opinion, do any stand out for good layout, or bad?
Comparing all three websites I feel as though Joshua Weissman’s recipe layout is very well structured. It gets directly to the point and is very beginner-friendly for those unfamiliar with the recipe. Natasha’s Kitchen website is probably the most average website among the three, there are good things they are doing such as providing a well-thought-out recipe, however, there are a lot of places where they could improve said recipe layout. Allrecipes is by far the worst of the three in my opinion. Some of the pictures they provided don’t look visually appealing or were taken with a poor quality camera which deflects me from wanting to attempt it at all. Besides the photos, the recipe itself is very minuscule. It appears as though they typed the recipe using AI rather than an actual person behind it.
What are the top 5 most important elements of a recipe layout? Are any of the recipe layouts missing important elements?
I believe the five most important elements for a recipe layout in no particular order would be, the title, photo of the final product, description, list of ingredients, and directions. Without these 5 elements then the recipe’s layout would be entirely useless.
Overall thoughts on the recipe layouts
There are a lot of ways recipes can be written and based on this I can see which authors are genuinely more passionate and knowledgeable about what they are trying to teach others via their recipes. I enjoy learning about new recipes since cooking is a hobby of mine, and understanding how a well-structured recipe layout would look and comparing it with others gives me a greater understanding of how to find good quality recipes based on the recipe’s layout.