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Make Your Recipe Lenses Remarkable

lettucesandwichYes.

That is a lettuce sandwich you’re looking at.

You’re probably thinking that a sandwich made of salad isn’t very note worthy.

I beg to differ with that opinion.

 

Here’s Why:

  • The Salad Sandwich recipe lens houses a personal recipeThe lensmaster and her granddaughter created this made-up-at-home sandwich recipe and tells us how and why the recipe came to be.
  • The lens shares detailed instructions and useful tips to help a reader successfully recreate this recipe at home.
  • The lens sports step-by-step photos taken by the lensmaster of the entire “cooking” process.    Okay, making a sandwich isn’t “really” cooking, but you get the idea.
  • Each of the ingredients and products featured in Amazon modules have a personal note added to them.  Here’s one that accompanies a recommended cookbook:Enjoy your sandwich with a bowl of soup to make an even bigger meal choice.”
  • The lensmaster has included interactive modules to draw a reader into the recipe.  On this lens you’ll find a poll module and a guestbook.  Each provide a thought-provoking question to be answered by the reader.

Stop by Salad Sandwich Delight which was created yesterday by Bonfire46 for our Lunch! Quest, and you’ll find what I call a truly remarkable recipe lens.

Then, use the guidelines featured above to make your own recipe lenses remarkable too!

http://www.squidoo.com/salad-sandwich-delight

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Robin Svedi aka rms is a Community Organizer and member of the Creative Team at Squidoo.com where her daily mission is to help lensmasters build better and more successful lenses about the things they know and love.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/LadyDuck LadyDuck

    Thanks for this new recipe lens, very interesting.

    • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/rms rms

      I’m glad you liked it.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Susan52 Susan52

    What a perfect example of a remarkable recipe lens! Love this!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/LeenaBK LeenaBK

    Thanks for sharing the tips….I can defintely use them since I post recipe lenses too.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/RenaissanceWoman2010 RenaissanceWoman2010

    I look forward to checking out this recipe lens. I really should create more of these types of food lenses. Thanks for the tips.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/EditorDave EditorDave

    Aargh! Now you’re getting me hungry! :-) I’m not much of a “foodie” … other than the fact that I like munching on stuff. I’ve done a few “food” lenses … with pictures of the *components* along with the *end results*. Just haven’t gone into details with the exact measures. (You know, the “your milage may vary” type of thing … and the “your tastes may be different so adjust accordingly” type of thing.) Now I have to get back to work on my breakfast (this morning? left-over salmon with scrambled eggs and Kona coffee!).

    • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/rms rms

      Oh, that’s another aspect of remarkable recipe lenses that I failed to mention. They make you hungry. :)

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/EditorDave EditorDave

    Hmm. The closest I got to this was my lens on Chicken Kelaguen — a favorite dish from the island of Guam (where I learned to like it, too). I’m not sure that it qualifies, because I didn’t put down exact measurements. Most cooks on Guam and elsewhere use their own particular twists to making it (other than the main ingredients of chicken, coconut, lime/lemon juice, onions, and peppers). And yeah, I made a booboo and spelled it wrong on the URL … *sigh* .. so, http://www.squidoo.com/chicken-kelaguin is what it turned out to be. Ah well… I guess I better get on my next Squidoo adventure while I’m between jobs again.

    • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/rms rms

      Nicely done!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/pero-peri pero-peri

    Thank you Robin

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Emily88 Emily88

    thnx for those tips

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/britflorida britflorida

    That looks great (and tasty too!)

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/tvyps tvyps

    Thank you Robin!

  • http://workwithmom.blogspot.com/ HAG

    interesting tips thanks

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/alkapuri alkapuri

    thanks for this recipe.. really a new one.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/webmavern webmavern

    I’ll go take a look at this lens and learn how to do it, thanks!

  • gloria freeman

    Thanks for sharing this recipe lens.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Denmarkguy Denmarkguy

    I’m all about the unconventional, and my wife and I are booth foodies, to some degree. I really like the idea of personal story interwoven with the actual recipe…

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/sue826 sue826

    Good recommendations. I haven’t started a recipe lens but I’ve thought about it – I love the pictures that people post to illustrate steps.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Lewisgirl Lewisgirl

    I love the experimental side of this lens, much more interesting.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/jennysue19 jennysue19

    You missed something. Your recipe is much more than a case of opening a pack of cake mix and a few Amazon ads

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/emerald125 emerald125

    I used to create recipe lenses, original ones where I cooked the food and wrote easy to follow instructions. I got a LOTD and a purple star or two but they never saw any traffic outside Squidoo yet the ones I see on Squidoo with lists of links to external recipes seem to do quite well. I am not sure if I feel confident to create any more until I know they will see some visitors.

    • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/adragast adragast

      I agree, one of my recipe lens received great reviews but they are all outside tier 3 and it is not rewarding to keep updating them.

    • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Mickie_G Mickie_G

      My green tomato recipe page does get traffic outside of Squidoo. I was one of the first lensmasters to use step-by-step photos on recipes (no, I am not bragging even though it might appear that I am, honest) when this lens was published years ago. Yes, it does have links to outside pages that do help the lens get found. I also discovered that my photos were being used without permission and without attribution, too. As with most lenses, the longer it is on the web, the more traffic it will get. The traffic to my green tomato page is also seasonal. Just remember to keep the recipe page updated.

      • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/flycatcher flycatcher

        I wonder if your green tomato recipes lens does well in large part because it solves a problem – at the end of the gardening season, everyone is stuck with green tomatoes to find a use for! I really appreciate the recipe lenses that give a new way to serve something standard, for variety, or a low-fat healthy alternative to an old fav comfort food, and that sort of thing: they give solutions to meal-planning dilemmas in the process of giving a recipe. Just a thought…

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/worldflashpacker worldflashpacker

    I’ve never written a lens about food, but I may consider it after reading this. I still love reading them though. Maybe I should write about “what I had for lunch” thanks for sharing.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/KonaGirl KonaGirl

    I am a “foodie” and am always looking for new recipes to add to my “tried and True” repertoire of recipes. My old digital camera bit the dust in New Orleans and until I get a new one – no foodie lenses for me. This is a very useful check list, however, for the next food lens I do create and when I update older food lenses.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/ChefWilliam ChefWilliam

    I like to write about food and share recipes. I find that more people will try a recipe if they have a step b step that includes pictures. The nice thing about that is when I am getting ready to write, I must make the recipe myself. It also means I will get to eat it after i have taken the pictures.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/SoundFinance SoundFinance

    Now I’m off to look at the lens:)

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/victoria91 victoria91

    Recipe lens always make me hungry lol. I have not done any personally yet. But, I plan on doing some in the future.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/KateHon KateHon

    Just did an Easter Brunch ideas lens – I’ll have to go back and see what improvements I can make on it using these tips. Thanks!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/TheRatRaceRebel TheRatRaceRebel

    Common sense stuff that’s all too uncommon. Thanks for the tips/reminders. Now off to dig into my recipe stash…

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/jarkaskvarka jarkaskvarka

    Great and very “Hungry” lens! Very nice!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/partybuzz partybuzz

    That is truely a remarkable recipe lens…and the sandwich sounds great.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/kerryhrabstock kerryhrabstock

    You’re right, a good recipe lens doesn’t necessarily feature the best cuisine, only someone’s favorite which is presented well.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/getmoreinfo getmoreinfo

    I agree if a recipe lens is done correctly it can compel you to want to make a version of it at home, not to mention it will make you hungry just looking at all the photos. LOL

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/lorlinda lorlinda

    never really did a recipe lens but thanks for the information perhaps soon :)

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/entertainmenteveryday entertainmenteveryday

    Thanks for the tips! I’m going back to my recipe lenses to incorporate them.
    Thank you!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/jcs10319 jcs10319

    Thank you Robin!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/bloomingrose bloomingrose

    Ok, this is one area in which I want to grow on Squidoo. I am not that much of a photographer so the whole step by step thing I haven’t done. I guess that is just a “thought” that I am not a photographer and not a proven reality. I mean past performance does not predict future performance. :) ( I do make a big effort to get public domain photos, just because I have not taken my own photos does not mean that I cannot find creative commons ones that are available. But I think the step by step thing is best.) I do feature recipes and products I care about and try to make the lens fun with quizzes, youtube videos etc.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/myfirstjobsecondshift myfirstjobsecondshift

    I need to get better with pictures on my lenses. Thanks for the tip.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/veryirie veryirie

    Bravo! :)

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/AilynK AilynK

    yum yum

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/blackspanielgallery blackspanielgallery

    I actually like salad sandwiches.

    • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/rms rms

      Oh, please don’t misunderstand. I like salad sandwiches too. In fact my all-time favorite is a tomato and mayo sandwich. My intention with this post was only to say that a super simple recipe can produce a remarkable lens.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/DARdreams DARdreams

    Many of my lenses are low carb recipes I have created. Some have pictures with step-by-step directions, some have one picture of the finished recipe, and some don’t have a picture of the recipe. I created many recipes before I started sharing them, so I haven’t photographed them all. Some of my recipes use special ingredients that many people aren’t familiar with, so I provide links to info and sources for those ingredients (including Amazon). Some of my lenses are devoted to specific ingredients with a listing of the recipes I have created containing them. I spend a lot of time and effort creating and sharing recipe and special ingredients lenses, but it’s discouraging to find them frequently dropped back to “works in progress” because they just don’t get the traffic more popular subjects get. How are they going to get seen if they are dropped?

    • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/rms rms

      You could try to promote them in places where people looking for low carb recipes might find them. Facebook and Food blogs are a good place to start. A bit of traffic should bring them out of WIP.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/samanthaperry samanthaperry

    Love salad but never tried making a sandwich with it before. Thanks for the tips.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/IraMency IraMency

    Thanks for the quick and easy tips!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/KarateKatGraphics KarateKatGraphics

    food photos I take at home often turn out kind of blah and undersell the dish I’m making — maybe ’cause I don’t have the right lighting. I think others suffer from this issue too …. once saw a featured lens with a really unappetizing photo, though in real life it probably looked fine! need to work on this. thx for the tips!

  • http://www.sharisphotos.webs.com/ Shari

    A lettuce sandwich. Hmmm….interesting.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/LeeStewart LeeStewart

    some good thoughts here

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/CarolHoule CarolHoule

    Recipe lenses don’t just make us hungry, they help us learn and try new things, they often facilitate a process we thought too difficult, and they make us and our families EAT GOOD!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/AlishaV AlishaV

    I love making recipe lenses. They are a great way to share with readers and are fun to put together. I always have lots of step-by-step pictures, and I find adding the printable recipe module twice, once at the beginning of the lens and once at the end after people get eager to make the recipe, makes the lens lots better. Too bad recipe lenses get hardly any attention and always rank among my lowest visited and worse ranked lenses. I’ve gotten rid of several because they always fall into wp, and I get tired of trying to keep them up.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/RawBill RawBill

    I really should create more recipe Lenses as I am kind of in the food business, but I have never really felt motivated in the past to get in the kitchen and record my meal creating. My wife has made loads of recipe videos before, maybe I should turn her dishes into lenses?

    • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/rms rms

      Sounds like a plan.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/motown22 motown22

    Wow, awesome lens and superb tips on how to create an outstanding recipe lens!
    I promise my next recipe lens will be much better! See you soon!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/bikerministry bikerministry

    I guess I need to be bold enough to write the recipes and put the lens on
    social media. I haven’t used Facebook or Twitter a lot because so many people follow our ministry on FB, but Irecipes would be really fun to exchange, and writing them in the Squidoo format is really pretty simple and thorough. Great challenge, food for thought ;]

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/nancycarol nancycarol

    My very first lens (gifted to me) contained some of my recipes. Since that, I’ve reworked it, and also created more recipe lenses. My problem is just as the others have said; not much traffic. It seems if you are not a “known” chef, nobody really wants your recipes. However, I keep them just because they are a part of me and my family. Whenever they drop into WIP, I just go see what I can do to update them and keep them floating. Meanwhile, I did not concentrate on recipe lenses alone, but expanded into other interesting subjects. This spring/summer I will be taking a road trip from Nevada to Wisconsin, and I hope to be able to write an in-depth lens of my travels.

    • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/rms rms

      Just like when I write about other topics, I find that some of my recipe lenses do well while others flounder. I think promotion has a lot to do with it but whether they do well or not, I love having them on Squidoo where I can easily find them when I need them.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/atsad141 atsad141

    wow… simply tasteful. Really remarkable recipe lens

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Decanus Decanus

    hmm….sandwich!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/kiwinana71 kiwinana71

    Nice sandwich I will have one for lunch.

    • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Tipi Tipi

      Yes indeed. Yummy!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/heehaw heehaw

    until now, i have not do any recipe lens, looking forward of doing an easy meal lens in future, great tips.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Possie Possie

    I’ve got lots of all my cooking escapade with my kids…hmm, maybe the kids will allow me to show it too. Better ask permission and I’ll follow this ideas. Really good. Thanks!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/mecheshier mecheshier

    Fabulous ideas. Thanks

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/mermaidsbite mermaidsbite

    It’s difficult to take proper photos of food, even for a pro, but a smart phone photo is usually enough to give the idea of what the recipe is… Do they come up in search engines on page one with all of the foodie sites out there? Just curious. I will continue to enjoy recipe lenses here. Thanks for the info!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Matie Matie

    hahahah I loved this :D

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Atreyusmommy Atreyusmommy

    I love recipe lenses. I have a few and will be making one more soon.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/LaughingLady LaughingLady

    I had just finished adding a new recipe and adding new items to my venison recipes lens when I saw this quest. I don’t really expect to make any money on this lens, it’s more for fun and to get feedback on my recipes. I really enjoy the foodie stuff!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/junaz11 junaz11

    I love cooking and I’m always making up my own recipes … My family tell me if there were only handful of ingredients in the pantry that I could turn it into an amazing dish. So I’ve been trying to get down and try making a couple recipe lenses. The problem is we are in the middle of moving to our new place so everything is on hold until I’m settled again. Loved this reading quest! Thanks :-)

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/AngryBaker AngryBaker

    I’ve been writing lenses on squidoo for a few years now…. and have even written a lens on how to use the recipe lens. I’ve had LOTD and a constellation of Purple Stars. But, despite having over 150 recipes on Squidoo, all mine, all with photos and complete instructions, in the month of January I didn’t even earn enough in the Tier system to reach the $5 payout minimum. (Yes, I use Facebook and Twitter, and have developed a following, but it doesn’t seem to help)
    It’s rather discouraging.

  • http://bameslive.com/ Bames Kaur Pabla

    I made a lot of recipe lenses which were original and had my own photos but after a few weeks I was notified that the lenses were locked due to copied content. I do not understand what is going on.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/inbarshahar inbarshahar

    i feel hungry when i see this lens..haha..thx for posting it

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/zafsot zafsot

    very useful info robin, thanks

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/charmilbrettdotcom charmilbrettdotcom

    ok

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/GreyHee GreyHee

    Thank you for the informative lens.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/holly2 holly2

    Thank you for your useful advice.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/butterbrickle butterbrickle

    Hadn’t thought about making a recipe lens. After reading this it seems like something to try and see what happens

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/VickiSims VickiSims

    Great example of an excellent recipe lens.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/cakeandpie cakeandpie

    The photos I take for any recipe lens never look very appetizing to me… hence I always shy away from these kinds of lenses…

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Helenee Helenee

    Can’t help but ask myself: will people be searching for Salad Sandwich recipes?
    (I might be surprised, right?)
    Otherwise, yes, I got your points.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Titia Titia

    I always improvise when I cook, I never follow a recipe all the way and I hardly measure things, so I wouldn’t be able to write that down. I don’t think we have a cooking and baking culture overhere like they have in the US and Canada.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Wysiwigs Wysiwigs

    Haven’t done a recipe lens for awhile; I’m a big fan of the step-by-step lens though (even if it is a ginormous pain the patootie to shoot ;o)

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/sunita sunita

    I like the tips.sandwich is loved by children also.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/jange52 jange52

    I’m not so much into recipe lenses, but I’ll keep these in mind.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/0ctavias0fferings 0ctavias0fferings

    I have to agree with emerald125 and adragast

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/designsbyharriet designsbyharriet

    Yes make it yummy.

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/Seaglass4 Seaglass4

    Also a good idea to add a recipe to an accompanying lens. I just wrote an article on celiac disease so the natural thing now would be to post a recipe lens on a gluten-free recipe. Thanks for the step progression with your lettuce sandwich!!

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/aldhio aldhio

    yummy. :)
    Haus Tecno
    Seo Edan

  • http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/LeslieCardinal LeslieCardinal

    I have been thinking about creating a few food lenses…thanks for sharing your perspectives. I appreciate it!

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