How recipe costing works
For each ingredient, divide the package price by the package size to get the cost per unit, then multiply by the amount the recipe uses. Use the same unit for both: ounces and ounces, grams and grams, eggs and eggs.
Add the ingredient costs, then add a small percentage for things too small to measure one by one, like salt, spices, oil and the bits lost to trimming. Divide by the number of servings to get the cost per serving.
Worked example: banana bread
With the default numbers, a loaf of banana bread uses $3.61 of flour, sugar, butter, eggs and bananas. Adding 5% for extras brings it to $3.79, or about $0.38 a slice for 10 slices. At a 30% target food cost, each slice should sell for about $1.26, or $12.64 for the loaf.
That price only covers ingredients at your chosen target. Your time, packaging and selling fees still need to fit inside it, which is why many home bakers also run the numbers through a full pricing method.
The formulas behind it
Every result cell is a plain spreadsheet formula, so you can check the math or rebuild it yourself.
| Cell | Result | Formula |
|---|---|---|
| B22 | Ingredient 1 cost | =IF(B3=0,0,B2/B3*B4) |
| B23 | Ingredient 2 cost | =IF(B6=0,0,B5/B6*B7) |
| B24 | Ingredient 3 cost | =IF(B9=0,0,B8/B9*B10) |
| B25 | Ingredient 4 cost | =IF(B12=0,0,B11/B12*B13) |
| B26 | Ingredient 5 cost | =IF(B15=0,0,B14/B15*B16) |
| B27 | Ingredients total | =SUM(B22:B26) |
| B28 | Recipe cost with extras | =B27*(1+B17%) |
| B29 | Cost per serving | =B28/B18 |
| B30 | Price per serving at your target | =B29/B19% |
| B31 | Price for the whole recipe | =B30*B18 |