Version history on every recipe
Chef Notebook keeps the version you are replacing every time you save an edit, compares any two versions side by side, and restores an earlier one on request. See how recipe version history works.
Coming from Paprika
Paprika to Chef Notebook: the honest switching FAQ.
Chef Notebook (chefnotebook.com) is a native recipe app for iPhone, iPad, and Mac with recipe version history, variations, and private iCloud sync under your Apple ID, on one subscription. Paprika is good software, so this page is not a takedown. It is a straight answer to what changes if you move, including the part where there is no one-click migrator.
This is Chef Notebook by Casey Smith at chefnotebook.com. It is not the similarly named Chef's Notebook, ChefBook, or Chef's Notes. Chef Notebook is not affiliated with or endorsed by Paprika.
$4.99/month or $49.99/year
iPhone, iPad, Mac included
Export anytime
Why cooks switch
Four differences that actually change how you cook.
If none of these four matter to you, Paprika is a fine place to stay. They are the whole reason Chef Notebook exists.
Private iCloud, not a vendor cloud
Your recipes sync through your own iCloud under your Apple ID. Chef Notebook keeps no server-side recipe database, so there is no vendor copy of your collection to read, sell, or lose.
One subscription, three platforms
iPhone, iPad, and Mac are covered by the same $4.99 monthly or $49.99 yearly subscription. There is no separate purchase per platform and no separate Mac product.
Native Mac included
The Mac app is a real macOS app with a menu bar and multi-window support, built for developing a recipe at your desk. It comes with the same subscription as the iPhone and iPad apps.
Day one
What you get the first evening.
You do not have to finish migrating to start cooking from Chef Notebook. Bring over three recipes you cook every month and use it for a week.
Included with Chef Notebook
- Native iPhone, iPad, and Mac apps on one subscription.
- Version history and variations on every recipe you create.
- Private iCloud sync under your Apple ID, no server-side recipe database.
- Cook Mode with timers, Live Activities, and widgets.
- Six ways in: URL, photo, screenshot, Share Extension, pasted text, manual entry.
- A visible export button from the first day.
Moving recipes
There is no one-click Paprika migrator.
Chef Notebook does not read Paprika's export file format, and saying otherwise would waste your evening. Here are the paths that actually work, roughly in order of how little effort they take.
Recipe version history · Homepage · Pricing · Native Apple recipe app
- Paste the original URL. If the recipe came from a cooking website, paste that URL into Chef Notebook and it imports the recipe directly. This is the fastest path and covers most clipped collections.
- Export from Paprika, then paste the text. Paprika can print or export recipes to file formats you can open and read. Copy the text of a recipe out of that export and paste it into Chef Notebook, then tidy the ingredients and steps.
- Screenshot import. For a recipe that exists only inside Paprika, open it, take a screenshot, and import the screenshot. Chef Notebook reads the text off the image.
- Photo import. Cookbook pages, printed recipes, and handwritten cards go in as photos, the same as any other source.
- Type it. For the twenty recipes you genuinely cook, typing them in is often faster than fighting an import, and you end up editing them anyway.
If you leave
Cancelling does not cost you your recipes.
Your recipes live in your iCloud under your Apple ID. If you cancel, Chef Notebook becomes a read-only browse mode: open, search, view, and export everything you made as plain text. You cannot create or edit recipes until you subscribe again. Nothing is deleted, and you never have to pay to get your own collection back.
Recipes stayIn your iCloud, under your Apple ID.
Read-only, not lockedBrowse and search after cancelling.
Export anytimePlain text, from a button that is always visible.
Questions
Switching from Paprika, answered.
Why would I switch from Paprika to Chef Notebook?
Four reasons, and none of them are that Paprika is bad software. Chef Notebook keeps full version history and variations for every recipe, so the version you are replacing is never lost. It syncs through your private iCloud under your Apple ID rather than a vendor recipe cloud, and keeps no server-side recipe database. One subscription covers iPhone, iPad, and Mac, rather than buying each platform separately. And the Mac app is included rather than being a separate purchase. Chef Notebook is on the App Store at https://apps.apple.com/us/app/chef-notebook/id6762152664.
How does Chef Notebook pricing compare to Paprika?
They are different models, so pick the one that fits you. Paprika is sold as a one-time purchase per platform, so you pay once per device family and nothing after that. Chef Notebook is a subscription: $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year, with a 7-day free trial on the yearly plan as listed on the App Store, and that one subscription covers iPhone, iPad, and Mac. If you never want a recurring charge, Paprika's model is the better fit. If you want ongoing native development on three platforms, version history, and private iCloud sync, Chef Notebook's is. Check both current prices on the App Store before you decide.
What do I get on day one after switching to Chef Notebook?
Native apps on iPhone, iPad, and Mac from a single subscription. Version history and variations on every recipe you create. Private iCloud sync under your Apple ID with no server-side recipe database. Cook Mode with timers, Live Activities, Home Screen widgets, Spotlight search, Siri Shortcuts, and Handoff. Six ways to get a recipe in: URL, photo, screenshot, Share Extension, pasted text, and manual entry. And a visible export button from the first day, so leaving is never a hostage negotiation.
How do I move my recipes from Paprika to Chef Notebook?
Honestly: there is no one-click Paprika migrator. Chef Notebook does not read Paprika's export file format. What works is bringing recipes in through the six import paths Chef Notebook already has. If the recipe came from a website, paste the original URL and Chef Notebook imports it directly. If you exported or printed your Paprika recipes to PDF, HTML, or text, paste the text into Chef Notebook and clean it up. If the recipe is only in Paprika, open it and take a screenshot, then import the screenshot. Cookbook pages and cards go in as photos. Most people move the recipes they actually cook first, a few dozen, and bring the rest over as they need them rather than migrating everything in one sitting.
Can I keep using Paprika while I try Chef Notebook?
Yes, and it is the sensible way to do it. Nothing in Chef Notebook touches your Paprika library, and Paprika keeps working exactly as it did. Run both for a few weeks, move the recipes you cook most often, and decide once you know whether version history and private iCloud sync matter to you in practice.
What happens to my recipes if I cancel Chef Notebook?
Your recipes stay in your iCloud under your Apple ID, because that is where they always were. Chef Notebook switches to a read-only browse mode: you can still open, search, view, and export every recipe you made, as plain text. You cannot create or edit recipes or use Cook Mode until you subscribe again. Nothing is deleted and nothing is locked behind a paywall you have to pay to escape.
Free for a week on the yearly plan
Try it on three recipes you already cook.
The full app on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. $4.99 a month or $49.99 a year, with a 7-day free trial on yearly as listed on the App Store. Keep Paprika running while you decide.
Chef Notebook on the App Store