Every year, a vast number of printed publications centred around cooking and eating hit the stands: 26,000 books worldwide. In spite of this, the Gerstenberg Publishing House, a small publishing company that specialises in high-quality culinary and art books, needs to manage to rise above the rest.

We develop a cookbook in a limited special edition: ‘The Real Cookbook’. Its the first cookbook that has actually earned such a title: A cookbook that readers can genuinely cook and eat, that’s because its pages are made of 100% fresh pasta. And packaged as a classic lasagne dish. The book was sent to business partners as a customer loyalty measure and was intended to generate and draw attention to the publisher’s range of cookbooks.

‘The Real Cookbook’ made some awesome noise in publisher`s and booksellers' circles. And quickly created a buzz throughout the web: Over 250 blogs reported on the meaty masterpiece worldwide. A resource of valuable PR for the Gerstenberg publishers was generated.

As simple as the idea may be, its realisation was a challenge. Over several weeks, various printing methods and dough consistencies were tested in order to achieve an optimal print and cooking image. In the end, a secret dough recipe combined with a traditional book printing process delivered the ideal result. With a little sauce between the pages and a sprinkle of cheese on top, ‘The Real Cookbook’ becomes a lasagne that can be baked in the oven at 200 °C. The prose, etched on the 4 inner pages of the pasta, ruminates on the subject of cooking.