Summer Benton

Pairs Well With: An Autobiographical Cookbook

Recipes are traditionally instructional material that allow for the sharing of dishes between people. In this project I explore the possibility of using recipes as instructional material that can facilitate the sharing of memories and bigger moments. Using food as a starting point, I reflected on times in my life that could be told as a story using the concept of ingredients and instructions. While the recipes are all functional as traditional food recipes, they also can be read simply as stories.

I have long been a fan of cookbooks myself but found that many existing recipes do not include the most meaningful ingredients, such as people you eat with, the music that’s playing, the clothes that you’re wearing, the tone with which you mix or slice or even microwave. In my work I attempt to include these other valuable but overlooked elements, specific to my own experiences in the hopes of entertaining my audience while also encouraging them to notice similar recipes inherent in their own life.