Rhode Island Recipes e-book sales to benefit Providence Ronald McDonald House

From September 15-22, Rhode Island Recipes will donate $2.00 of each e-book sale to help Ronald McDonald House of Providence provide shelter and support to families of sick kids at our local Rhode Island hospitals. Now's the time to grab the e-book, and help raise funds for this great nonprofit organization.

(Are you thinking, no, never, not me about e-cookbooks? Unwilling to give up those stained and splattered pages, and the hand-scribbled margin notes? Read on.)

Here are four things I really, really love about e-cookbooks:

1. E-cookbooks go wherever you go, on your smart phone or tablet or laptop. When I have a craving on the road or in the supermarket (doesn't that happen to you?), I can pull up our  book on my phone, find a recipe, check the ingredient list, and buy whatever I need. At home, I view that same recipe on the iPad or laptop that sits on the kitchen counter while I cook. And, just like in a printed cookbook, I can bookmark recipes in the e-book, and add my own notes.

2. E-books are searchable. If you have bottle of coffee syrup in your pantry, use the search function (the same way you'd look online for the perfect toaster, or new shoes) to find recipes in the book that call for it.

3. E-cookbooks can save the planet. As the owner of 400 (okay, 500) cookbooks, I realize that, if I kept 100 cookbooks on the shelf, the other 400 would fit electronically on my iPad/Kindle/tablet, where I could search them quickly at any time. Eco-friendly, paperless e-books are the way of the future.

4. E-cookbooks are a bargain. In fact, for what you get -- recipes, full color photos, and other cool information about Rhode Island's favorite food producers -- our e-cookbook is a steal. One of our retail vendors bought the e-book to check it out before ordering print books for the shop. We thought that was a great idea! If you're thinking about Rhode Island Recipes for holiday gifts but you're not sure which of your friends and family will like it, try the less expensive e-book edition first.

Remember, you can read Rhode Island Recipes on absolutely any electronic device -- smart phone, tablet, laptop, maybe even your VCR or coffee maker -- with a free Kindle app. Download the free app for your device, then download the book, and in less than a minute, you'll be ready to cook.

And, from now through September 22, your purchase will help support Ronald McDonald House.

We're entirely grateful for your help.

Lydia