Why I buy this one ?
- Comprehensive, easy-to-use recipe and meal-planning software
- 150,000+ recipes; grocery lists and meal plans; meal calendar creation
- Automatic recipe scaling; leftover wizard; nutrition analysis; PDA companion
- Capture recipes and photos from any source; Organize your own recipes with easy data-entry features, including web capture and import tools.
- Built-in Web browser; rate and share recipes online; post recipes to Web

What our customer's say!

"The BEST by far!", I have tried virtually every program for recipe management over the last 15+ years, and I didn't stick with any of them, because none suited my needs well enough to make it better than handwritten recipes. Big Oven fixes everything that was wrong with the others and adds features I wouldn't have even thought of! It is quick and easy to add recipes from anywhere on the internet, or any file on your computer. Great shopping list features and nutrition as well.

"Big Oven Is A Big Help", I've been using BigOven ( BO ) just about since it started . It has helped me manage recipes , meal plans , shopping lists and my sanity. The creators are very responsive to feature requests , bug fixes etc. What I like the most about their support is you know your talking to a real person , someone who cares about the program and its users.

The program isn't just recipe software its interactive. The left side of the program is located on your PC the right side of the screen is the internet where you can post recipes, post pictures and rate recipes. You can also have your own chefs page.

Heres how it works you browse the BO recipe archive , you find a recipe you want you hit the import button and POOF its directly imported into your PC. It works the same in reverse to post recipes.

The program has screen capture what does that mean? Lets say you find a recipe you want , you copy it to your clipboard , with BO open you click on screen import from there you highlight the title and click on title , you highlight ingredients and click ingredients and so on when your done you click import and poof theres the recipe with out retyping.

It can import MasterCook , MealMaster and other formats.

TIP

Organization in BO : Look at BO as the recipe box look at what BO calls recipe boxes as chapters before you start using the program delete the recipe box the program comes with ( unless you really want it ) and then create your own recipe boxes as you may have elsewhere , example Beverages , meats , veggies etc.

You can also create multiple shopping lists that you can save and edit

Menus and meal plans

Nutritional values

Everything is drag and drop

Click on a recipe , then right click and select copy to clipboard , you get a perfectly formatted copy of the selected recipe for forum posting or sharing with others .... if those others have BO they can directly import the recipe into he program without using the screen import just by having the recipe in their clipboard.

Is the program perfect , no

are there features that are not there or need improving , yes

Are the programmers open to listening , a big YES I even had a program version named after me because they put into place my ideas.

Steve , the BO CEO is a truly nice man and totally into listening and acting on users requests.

Nothing is perfect but BO is getting close :)



"I like it", This product actually exceeded my expectations of it. I do have a few issues with the structure of the program but not with the program itself. There are thousands of recipes already installed and broken down by main ingredient but the ingredient list is very broad (i.e. meat, vegetable, etc). There is no way to create subcatagories for these items so you must create an entire new folder and transfer recipes one at a time. I believe you can choose which recipes to install at the beginning but I chose to install them all. It's a tedious task as there is no way to enter the database directly and edit the items.

On a lighter note, it is very easy to copy and paste recipes from various websites and adding your own recipe is very straight forward. You can determine the nutritional value of your own recipes as well. It's also very easy to set it up on 1 computer and network it to another computer in the house. Printouts are precise and easy to read.

Overall I enjoy using my Inspired Cooking program. It helps me keep all my cake, cookie and pastry recipes within easy reach. There is no more fumbling through various cookbooks and sheets of paper to find exactly what I want.

"Outstanding Software and Support", Having been a software specialist for over 20 years I must write and say how impressed I am that when I had a computer problem (my machine) which caused an installation problem, I sent an e-mail and recieved a response within two hours!

I am exceptionally satisfied with not only the software program BigOven, but with the support staff as well! Thank you!

"No Support", The software is limited. You cannot enter new ingredients that are not within the program itself. The software lets you enter new items from USDA items but only those listed within the program. This list is by no means complete. Also, I registered on their website for support. My login and password were confirmed but to date it does not let me login. I sent an email about a week ago and am still waiting for a response. I think I will be going back to using the MasterCook program.

Read this reviews before You buy...

"Hands Down the BEST Recipe Software Out There", A couple of days ago I ran into some serious problems with my recipe software and started looking around for a new one to replace it. I happened upon this recipe software, downloaded it, and set about trying to convert my old program's recipes to the new format. My first attempts were fruitless so I posted to their forum and was quickly contacted by the staff who didn't just tell me how to fix it, they actually FIXED IT FOR ME. These guys are incredible! The previous reviewer who said their customer service is top-notch wasn't blowing smoke. I've never, ever had customer service this good. EVER.

And the program? It's terrific. I haven't had one problem with it. The nutritional database is vast and comprehensive, and it's not filled with nutritional data on processed food products (like my old software was), either. It actually has nutritional information for raw, whole foods.

The interface is very user friendly. It's clean and familiar and logically organized. Everything functions seamlessly.

I'm a professionally-trained chef and I'd recommend this to anyone--home and professional cooks alike!

"Big Oven a "BIG HIT, HOT ITEM."", I am an avid recipe collector and enjoy trying new and interesting dishes. I had been looking, for some time, for an easy to use recipe software that did all the things I had in mind. I had checked out others and none had all the qualities I was looking for in a recipe program.

Then...I discovered Big Oven software and my long search was over. After downloading the trial version, it took only a few days to know this was the software I had been looking for. I ordered it and have been happily using it since.

There are too many good qualities to list here; and, no disappointing features that I have been able to find. Not only that, but Steve and his Big Oven crew are always ready to help, answer any questions or discuss any problems you might have.

This program deserves FIVE STARS and Steve and the Big Oven crew deserve FIVE STARS. Long may they shine!

Carolyn aka "Crittermom"


"Well Done!", Great software! Simply the best! Love the PDA feature - but nothing tops the best support around!



"THE BEST RECIPE ORGANIZATION/STORAGE/SEARCH SOFTWARE ANYWHERE", As an inveterate Weight Watcher and recipe/cookbook collector, I am always on the lookout for great tasting, low fat recipes, and I'm here to tell you that the great folks at Lakefront Software have truly delivered with this program.

I love being able to import recipes right into the program from the Big Oven website at http://www.bigoven.com with just the click of a mouse, as well as recipes in other formats (such as Mastercook, etc). I then plan my menus on the provided calendar, and then print out a shopping list....... all from within the program.

Many recipe programs do virtually the same things, but I have NEVER seen the type of customer service that Steve and the gang at Lakefront offer their customers (actually, customers is not the best word, because once you use this program, you'll find that they become friends). Got a suggestion for program improvements? Just let them know and most get added to the list for future updates. Having problems? Steve is always there with an answer and a solution.

If you love to cook, or even if you don't, and you're looking for recipes for "lazy cooks" (like I am), look no futher!! You have found the one and only software you'll ever need. Just search for recipes with keywords, cuisine types, main ingredients, preparation method, etc., etc., etc. Couldn't be easier or more fun.

And no, I don't work for the company, but boy am I happy to be able to tell you how happy I am with this program, and with the incredible people who bring it to you.

:) Anne