What Is Not Protected by Copyright?
Several categories of material are generally not eligible for federal copyright protection. These include among others:
- Works that have not been fixed in a tangible form of expression (for example, choreographic works that have not been notated
or recorded, or improvisational speeches or performances that have not been written or recorded)
- Titles, names, short phrases, and slogans; familiar symbols or designs; mere variations of typographic ornamentation,
lettering, or coloring; mere listings of ingredients or contents
- Ideas, procedures, methods, systems, processes, concepts, principles, discoveries, or devices, as distinguished from a
description, explanation, or illustration
- Works consisting entirely of information that is common property and containing no original authorship (for
example: standard calendars, height and weight charts, tape measures and rulers, and lists or tables taken from
public documents or other common sources)
So, if we define a recipe as a "list of ingredients and simple steps (procedure and methods) to take to produce desired results" it means
that recipes are not protectable by copyright. However, the explanations or descriptions about the recipe and methods may be.