What is CookBook Manager and what does its export look like?

CookBook Manager is a self-hosted recipe manager that stores each recipe as a human-readable YAML file. The export is either a single .yaml or .yml file or a directory of them — usually zipped for transfer. Every YAML carries the full recipe shape: title, ingredients, instructions, metadata, and notes.

How do I export from CookBook Manager?

Look in the app for an Export, Backup, or Download option — most CookBook Manager builds give you one YAML per recipe. If you have shell access to the server, you can also just zip the recipes directory directly. Upload the .yaml or .zip here.

Will my ingredients, tags, and notes come through?

Yes. YAML is a structured format, so we read every field cleanly: title, ingredient list with quantities and units, instructions in order, tags, source URL, prep and cook times, servings, and notes. Everything maps to schema.org Recipe equivalents.

Can I move my CookBook Manager recipes to another app?

Yes — convert to JSON or .cook here, then import into the destination app. Schema.org JSON-LD works in Mealie, Tandoor, Paprika, and most modern recipe apps.

CookBook Manager YAML and .zip supported

Convert your CookBook Manager recipes

CookBook Manager keeps every recipe as a human-readable YAML file. We parse the YAML and emit PDF, JSON, CSV, Markdown, or .cook — single recipes or a whole zipped directory.

100% free. Open-source parsing. No account required.

What we support

Single YAML files or a zip of your whole recipes directory.

.yaml / .yml Supported

A single CookBook Manager recipe file. We extract every field — title, ingredients, instructions, tags, times, and notes.

.zip Recommended

Zip your recipes directory and upload the .zip. Every YAML inside is parsed independently and bundled into your chosen output format.

How to export from CookBook Manager

1

Open your CookBook Manager instance

Sign in to whichever instance holds your collection.

2

Find the export option

Look in the settings or per-recipe menus for an Export, Download, or Backup option that produces YAML.

3

Or zip the recipes directory

If you have shell access to the host, the simplest path is to just zip the directory where CookBook Manager keeps the .yaml files.

4

Upload it here

Drag the .yaml or .zip into the upload area above and pick the output formats you want.

Why convert CookBook Manager recipes?

CookBook Manager's YAML format is excellent for source control and easy to read by hand — but no managed recipe app reads it. If you stop self-hosting, want to share a printable card, or move to a phone-friendly app, the YAML files need translating.

That's the gap this page closes. Because YAML is a structured format, the conversion is essentially lossless — every ingredient, instruction, and tag carries through cleanly.

Convert to JSON for re-import into another app, PDF for printing, Markdown for a personal cookbook, or .cook for any CookLang-compatible tool.

Export to any format

Get your recipes in formats that work for you

{ }

JSON

Schema.org compliant

PDF

Print-ready cards

CSV

Excel-friendly

MD

Markdown

Plain text

.cook

CookLang

For developers

DB

SQLite

Portable database

ORF

Open Recipe

YAML format

Free your CookBook Manager collection

Drop your YAML files or zipped directory above and we'll convert every recipe into the format you want.