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Recipe Overview

PostedOctober 18, 2025
UpdatedOctober 21, 2025
Byicecreamcalc

What You’ll Learn: This guide explains the two-page recipe workflow in the Ice Cream Calc Web App. You’ll learn when to use Recipe View versus Recipe Editor, how to navigate between them, and how the auto-save system works to keep your recipes safe.

Introduction

The Ice Cream Calc Web App uses a two-page workflow for managing your recipes:

Understanding when and how to use each page will help you work more efficiently with your recipes.

The Two Pages Explained

Recipe View – Your Recipe Dashboard

Purpose: Overview and quick actions

Recipe View is your recipe’s home page – a dashboard where you can:

  • See recipe summary and key stats (mix weight, ingredient count, category)
  • Access quick action cards (Edit, Start Production, Print Labels)
  • View and manage recipe cards
  • Share your recipe with the community or via private link
  • View the ingredient list at a glance (desktop/tablet only)

When to use Recipe View:

  • Getting a quick overview of your recipe
  • Starting production (opens checklist mode)
  • Viewing or printing recipe cards
  • Sharing your recipe with others
  • Printing container labels
  • Deleting a recipe

Tip: Think of Recipe View as your recipe’s “info page” – great for viewing and quick actions, but not for detailed editing.

Recipe Editor – Detailed Editing Interface

Purpose: Creating and refining recipes

Recipe Editor is where you do all the detailed work:

  • Add, remove, and reorder ingredients
  • Adjust ingredient weights and percentages
  • Set recipe properties (category, tags, description)
  • Balance recipes using charts
  • View nutritional analysis and calculated data
  • Use advanced tools (ratio adjustment, volume conversion, etc.)
  • Undo/redo changes with full history tracking

When to use Recipe Editor:

  • Creating new recipes from scratch
  • Adjusting ingredient weights or adding new ingredients
  • Balancing recipes to target properties
  • Fine-tuning recipes using the chart system
  • Making any changes to your recipe formulation

Tip: The Recipe Editor auto-saves your changes every few seconds, so you never lose your work. You can also use Ctrl+Z to undo and Ctrl+Y to redo changes.

Navigation Between Pages

From Recipe View to Recipe Editor

There are two ways to open the Recipe Editor from Recipe View:

  1. Edit Recipe action card – Click the blue “Edit Recipe” card in the actions section
  2. Edit button (mobile) – Click the “Edit” button in the header area

From Recipe Editor to Recipe View

To return to Recipe View from the Recipe Editor:

  • View button – Click the “View” button in the top-right corner of the Recipe Editor
  • Back button – Click your browser’s back button (preserves your edit history)

Note: The Recipe Editor auto-saves your changes, so you don’t need to save before switching to Recipe View.

How Auto-Save Works

Temporary Recipe System

When you edit a recipe, the web app creates a temporary copy of your recipe. This system provides several benefits:

  • Auto-save – Changes are saved automatically every few seconds
  • Safe experimentation – Your original recipe stays unchanged until you explicitly save
  • Undo/Redo – Full history tracking with Ctrl+Z and Ctrl+Y
  • Session persistence – Your work is preserved even if you close the browser

Understanding the Save Button

The save system in the Recipe Editor works as follows:

  • Auto-save (continuous) – Your changes are saved to the temporary copy automatically
  • Save button – Copies your temporary changes back to the original recipe
  • Reload button – Discards temporary changes and reloads from the original recipe
  • Save As button – Creates a new recipe from your current changes

Visual Indicator: An asterisk (*) appears next to the recipe name when you have unsaved changes. This means your edits are in the temporary copy but haven’t been saved to the original recipe yet.

Quick Reference Table

FeatureRecipe ViewRecipe Editor
PurposeOverview and quick actionsDetailed editing and balancing
View recipe stats✅ Yes (quick summary)✅ Yes (detailed data)
Edit ingredients❌ No✅ Yes
Start production✅ Yes❌ No
View recipe cards✅ Yes❌ No
Balance recipe❌ No✅ Yes
Share recipe✅ Yes❌ No
Print labels✅ Yes❌ No
Delete recipe✅ Yes❌ No
Auto-saveN/A✅ Yes (every few seconds)
Undo/Redo❌ No✅ Yes (Ctrl+Z / Ctrl+Y)

Common Workflows

Creating a New Recipe

  1. Navigate to Recipes page
  2. Click Create New Recipe
  3. You’re taken directly to the Recipe Editor
  4. Add ingredients and adjust weights
  5. Click Save when ready
  6. Click View to see the Recipe View page

Editing an Existing Recipe

  1. Navigate to Recipes page or Recipe View page
  2. Click Edit Recipe (from action card or recipes list)
  3. Make your changes in the Recipe Editor
  4. Changes auto-save continuously
  5. Click Save to finalize changes to the original recipe
  6. Click View to return to Recipe View

Producing a Recipe

  1. Open the Recipe View page for your recipe
  2. Click the Start Production action card
  3. Follow the ingredient checklist in production mode
  4. Click Back when done to return to Recipe View

Sharing a Recipe

  1. Open the Recipe View page
  2. Click the Share icon (community) or Link icon (private)
  3. Fill in sharing details
  4. Your recipe is now shared!

Tips and Best Practices

Use the Right Page for the Task

  • Viewing? Use Recipe View – faster and cleaner
  • Editing? Use Recipe Editor – full toolset available
  • Producing? Start from Recipe View – clearer workflow

Take Advantage of Auto-Save

  • Don’t worry about losing work – changes save automatically
  • Use Undo (Ctrl+Z) freely – full history is tracked
  • The asterisk (*) shows when you have unsaved changes
  • Click Save when you’re ready to finalize changes to the original recipe

Navigate Efficiently

  • Use the View button in Recipe Editor to quickly see your recipe card
  • Use browser back to return to Recipe Editor with your history intact
  • Bookmark Recipe View pages for recipes you access frequently

Mobile vs Desktop

  • Mobile: Recipe View shows action cards in priority order (Produce first)
  • Desktop: Recipe View shows ingredient list for quick reference
  • Both: Full Recipe Editor functionality available on all devices

Next Steps

Now that you understand the two-page workflow, explore the detailed guides:

Happy recipe creating! 🍦