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Recipe Post Template: Photos, Video, Ingredient Cards, and SEO Checklist

UUnknown

2026-02-16

10 min read

A 2026-ready recipe post template: JSON‑LD, h-recipe, ingredient card, photo shot list, short-form video scripts, and a pre-publish SEO checklist.

Publish recipe posts that actually rank, convert, and save you time — with one copy-paste template

Are you tired of spending hours on a beautiful recipe post that never shows up in search, loses readers midway through the method, or performs poorly on social video? In 2026 the winners are publishers who combine fast pages, reliable structured data, smart image/video assets, and repeatable production workflows. This article gives you a downloadable, production-ready recipe post template for recipes and cocktails — with microformats, JSON‑LD schema, an ingredient card you can paste into any CMS, a complete photo shot list, and short-form video concepts that convert.

Why this matters in 2026 (quickly)

Search and social have changed since 2023. By late 2025–early 2026 we saw three major trends that directly affect recipe publishers:

Search Generative Experience (SGE) and rich answers increasingly use structured data and short clips to generate recipe previews, so missing schema often means missing placement.
Short-form video formats (vertical 9:16, under-60s clips) drive referral traffic and re-engagement; platforms prefer concise edits and text overlays.
Page experience and Core Web Vitals remain ranking and engagement signals. Large hero images and heavy embeds without optimization kill conversions.

That combination makes a repeatable template essential: you need predictable schema, small image budgets, and a short-form video plan baked into each post.

What’s in the template (downloadable)

The downloadable ZIP contains:

Copy-paste JSON‑LD Recipe schema (fully populated example)
Fallback h-recipe microformat snippet for legacy parsers
Accessible ingredient card HTML + minimal CSS
Complete photo shot list with camera settings, aspect ratios, and alt text examples
Five short-form video scripts & shot plans (15s, 30s, 60s)
Pre-publish SEO + QA checklist for recipes and cocktails
Editable editorial calendar rows and a content brief template

How to use the template (3-minute runbook)

Choose your recipe post or cocktail.
Paste the JSON‑LD (below) into the head or immediately before the closing <body>.
Drop in the ingredient card in the recipe body where readers expect it (top-left or sticky panel for mobile).
Follow the photo shot list while shooting — export the image set and push to CDN with responsive srcset (AVIF/WebP fallback).
Create one 15s and one 30–60s short using the shot list & video scripts. Host the full video on YouTube and provide a short-form clip for social platforms — follow distribution best practices in our YouTube hosting guide.
Run the pre-publish checklist (schema validator, PageSpeed, alt text, canonical, video markup).

Copy-paste: JSON‑LD Recipe Schema (2026 best practice)

Use JSON‑LD. Google Search Central still recommends putting structured data in JSON‑LD. Include video and image objects, ISO 8601 durations, detailed instructions as HowToSteps, and a clear author field.

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org/",
  "@type": "Recipe",
  "name": "Pandan Negroni",
  "author": {
    "@type": "Person",
    "name": "Linus Leung"
  },
  "datePublished": "2026-01-17",
  "description": "Pandan-infused rice gin mixed with white vermouth and green chartreuse for a fragrant, green negroni.",
  "recipeCuisine": "Fusion",
  "recipeCategory": "Cocktail",
  "keywords": "pandan, negroni, cocktail, pandan gin",
  "prepTime": "PT10M",
  "cookTime": "PT0M",
  "totalTime": "PT10M",
  "recipeYield": "1 serving",
  "recipeIngredient": [
    "10g pandan leaf (green part only)",
    "175ml rice gin (for infusion)",
    "25ml pandan-infused rice gin",
    "15ml white vermouth",
    "15ml green chartreuse"
  ],
  "recipeInstructions": [
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "text": "Roughly chop pandan leaf and blitz with gin in a blender. Strain through muslin.",
      "name": "Make pandan gin"
    },
    {
      "@type": "HowToStep",
      "text": "Measure infused gin, vermouth and chartreuse into a mixing glass with ice; stir and strain.",
      "name": "Mix drink"
    }
  ],
  "image": [
    {
      "@type": "ImageObject",
      "url": "https://example.com/images/pandan-negroni-hero.avif",
      "width": 1600,
      "height": 1067
    },
    {
      "@type": "ImageObject",
      "url": "https://example.com/images/pandan-negroni-closeup.webp",
      "width": 800,
      "height": 1200
    }
  ],
  "video": {
    "@type": "VideoObject",
    "name": "How to make a Pandan Negroni - 30s",
    "description": "30-second vertical clip showing infusion and pour",
    "thumbnailUrl": "https://example.com/video/thumb.jpg",
    "uploadDate": "2026-01-17",
    "duration": "PT0M30S",
    "contentUrl": "https://example.com/video/pandan-negroni-30s.mp4",
    "embedUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID"
  }
}

Notes on the schema

Use ISO 8601 durations (PT10M etc.) for times.
List multiple images with widths/heights — helps responsive selection and thumbnails.
Include a video object for short clips; platforms increasingly use that property for result features.
Keep ingredient strings simple and consistent; if you use structured ingredient parsing in your CMS, include both a display string and normalized quantity fields if possible.

Fallback: h-recipe microformat snippet

For extra compatibility (and to signal humans too), add an h-recipe block where the recipe appears. This helps some legacy scrapers and improves semantic clarity.

<div class='h-recipe'>
  <h3 class='p-name'>Pandan Negroni</h3>
  <div class='p-author h-card'><span class='p-name'>Linus Leung</span></div>
  <ul class='ingredients'
      ><li class='ingredient'>10g pandan leaf (green part only)</li>
      <li class='ingredient'>175ml rice gin (for infusion)</li>
  </ul>
  <div class='instructions'><ol><li>Make pandan gin</li><li>Mix drink</li></ol></div>
</div>

Ingredient card: accessible HTML (paste into post)

Make the ingredients instantly scannable on mobile with a sticky or inline card. Keep it copyable for readers and parsable for tools.

<aside class='ingredient-card' aria-labelledby='ingredients-heading'>
  <h3 id='ingredients-heading'>Ingredients</h3>
  <ul>
    <li><strong>10g</strong> pandan leaf (green part only)</li>
    <li><strong>175ml</strong> rice gin (for infusion)</li>
    <li><strong>25ml</strong> pandan-infused rice gin</li>
    <li><strong>15ml</strong> white vermouth</li>
    <li><strong>15ml</strong> green chartreuse</li>
  </ul>
  <button class='copy-ingredients' aria-label='Copy ingredients to clipboard'>Copy</button>
</aside>

Tip: add a small JS snippet that copies the UL text to clipboard for better UX. Keep CSS minimal to avoid site bloat.

Photo shot list: convert shoots into SEO assets

Shoot with distribution in mind. Each image should serve a purpose on the post and on social.

Hero / Hero cropping — 1600×1067 (16:10) AVIF for the article hero; alt: “Pandan Negroni in a tumbler with pandan leaf garnish”.
Vertical social crop — 1080×1920 (9:16) for Reels/Shorts; keep the glass centered high. Filename: pandan-negroni-vertical.avif.
Overhead flatlay — 1200×900 (4:3) showing ingredients prepped; alt: “Ingredients for pandan negroni on wooden board”.
Process closeup #1 — infusion in blender; 800×1200 vertical for quick cuts.
Pour / stir action — 1600×900; capture motion at 1/125 shutter to freeze pour or 1/30 for motion blur depending on the aesthetic.
Garnish closeup — macro, 800×800; show pandan leaf detail.
Final serve with context — 1600×900 showing glass and setting (bar or kitchen), alt: “Pandan negroni served on dark wood”.

Export guidelines:

Primary formats: AVIF > WebP > JPEG fallback. Keep hero under 300KB when optimized.
Provide responsive srcset (400, 800, 1200, 1600 widths).
Name files with descriptive slugs and dates: pandan-negroni-2026-01-17-hero.avif.
Add ImageObject entries to JSON‑LD for each most-important image.

Short-form video ideas & shot plans (copyable)

Each recipe needs at least one 15s hook clip and one 30–60s how-to. Keep captions, subtitles, and a CTA to save or tap profile.

15s Hook — "Why you need pandan in cocktails"

0–1s: Hook text overlay — “Make a green negroni in 15s”
1–6s: Quick montage — chopped pandan, blender blitz, vibrant green gin pour (cut at 1–2s each)
6–12s: Show the stir and strain into glass
12–15s: Final reveal + CTA overlay “Save this recipe”

30–60s How-to — full mini-recipe

0–3s: Title card with recipe name and 1-line benefit.
3–12s: Infuse pandan (fast-motion + text step).
12–30s: Mix and stir, closeups, garnish reveal.
30–45s: Taste note and serving suggestions; include subtitle lines for accessibility.
45–60s: Outro with CTA and link overlay to full recipe post.

Technical tips:

Shoot vertical at 60fps if you plan smooth slow motion; deliver final at 30fps to platform specs.
Use loud, clear audio or add ASMR b-roll; always add captions (auto-captions are unreliable).
Host long-form video on your channel (YouTube) with chapter markers; upload short clip to platform-native formats — see our YouTube hosting guide for discovery tips.

Recipe SEO + Pre-publish Checklist (copy into your CMS)

Run this every time before you hit Publish:

Schema: JSON‑LD present and valid (use Google Rich Results Test or Schema.org validator).
Image optimization: AVIF/WebP sources with srcset; hero & social sizes exported and ImageObject entries added to schema.
Video markup: VideoObject present and contentUrl/embedUrl correct; thumbnails uploaded to CDN and referenced.
Accessible ingredient card: copyable, keyboard accessible, with ARIA label.
Metadata: Title (60 chars), meta description (150 chars) with target keywords and intent (e.g., recipe, cocktail).
Open Graph & Twitter card: OG:image (1200×630), og:type article, twitter:card summary_large_image.
Page speed: LCP < 2.5s on 3G simulated mobile, CLS < 0.1, TTFB under 600ms.
Canonical: canonical tag present, and AMP/alternative URLs declared if used.
Internal links: 2–3 contextual internal links to related recipes or a cornerstone category page.
Disclosures: affiliate wording if using product links, and sponsor disclaimers for brand recipes.
Publishing schedule: add to editorial calendar and schedule promotional short-form posts over 7 days.

Tools, plugins and hosting notes for creators (practical picks)

Choose tools that minimize friction and keep pages fast.

WordPress: use a modern theme + Rank Math or Yoast for metadata, and Schema & Structured Data for WP & AMP or WP Recipe Maker for recipe fields (add JSON‑LD from above).
Headless & SSG: Next.js or Eleventy + image CDN (Cloudinary, ImageKit, Bunny) to generate responsive images at build time.
Video hosting: YouTube (SEO & discovery) + native short uploads to TikTok / IG / YouTube Shorts for distribution. Use Vimeo for high-quality embeds where you need control.
Testing & validation: Google Rich Results Test, Schema Markup Validator, Lighthouse for Core Web Vitals.

Accessibility, semantics and microformats — what to never skip

Use semantic HTML: <article> (this post), <aside> for ingredient cards, <ol> for instructions.
Provide full-text recipe instructions — not just a video — for screen readers and parsers.
Include alt text for each image that describes the content and purpose.
Consider h-recipe microformats as a fallback; many tools still index them and they’re human-readable.

“JSON‑LD + accessible HTML + optimized media = the fastest path to recipe visibility in 2026.”

Real-world example (how one small publisher used this template)

A small cocktail blog implemented structured Recipe schema, added a 30s vertical clip plus a hero AVIF image set, and used the ingredient card for mobile. Within four weeks their impressions in search increased and short-form clips drove 18% of new visitors from socials. The lift came from improved rich results and pinned short videos; this is typical when schema and short-form assets are used together.

Future-proofing and 2026 predictions

Expect the following through 2026–2027:

Greater reliance on video snippets in search result cards. Your short clips will act as thumbnails in many surfaces — include them in schema.
More emphasis on parsable ingredient data for grocery integrations and shopping features — consider adding normalized quantities in your CMS schema and consult a chef's ingredient and receptor guide for flavor-aware metadata.
AI-assisted recipe summarization will consume structured data to produce quick meal plans or shopping lists — structured, granular ingredient fields will improve inclusion in these answers.

Download the template

Grab the complete package (JSON‑LD, h-recipe snippet, ingredient card, photo checklist, video scripts, and the pre-publish checklist):

<a href='/downloads/recipe-template-2026.zip' class='download-link'>Download the Recipe Post Template (ZIP)</a>

Actionable takeaways — what to do this week

Pick one recipe and implement the JSON‑LD from this article before publishing.
Create one 15s and one 30s short using the provided scripts and upload both to platform-native formats (short-form video best practices).
Run the pre-publish checklist and aim to improve your LCP by optimizing the hero image to AVIF and serving it via CDN.

Closing: Ready-to-use, repeatable publishing

If you publish recipes or cocktails regularly, standardizing your post format saves time and consistently increases visibility. This template is designed for creators and small teams: fast to implement, aligned with 2026 search and social trends, and focused on measurable results. Copy, paste, shoot, and publish — and let the template handle the rest.

Download now and add this template to your editorial toolkit. It’s the fastest way to publish attractive recipe posts that rank, convert, and perform on social.

Want the editable Google Sheets editorial calendar and a short onboarding walkthrough? <a href='/downloads/recipe-template-2026.zip#trello'>Download the ZIP & subscribe for the walkthrough</a>.

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Senior editor and content strategist. Writing about technology, design, and the future of digital media. Follow along for deep dives into the industry's moving parts.