In recipe method, spell out whole numbers less than 10, unless they are followed by a unit of measurement or time (teaspoons, cups, minutes, weeks, degrees, servings, etc.).
Combine two of the eggs.
Divide greens among eight salad plates.
Sprinkle with 1 cup of the flour.
Chill 5 minutes.
Freeze in an airtight container up to 3 months.
Cut peels from three tangerines.
Add the two cloves garlic.
Use half of a 6-ounce can.
Top three graham cracker squares with 1 tablespoon chocolate-hazelnut spread.
For subrecipes and stand-alone paragraph-style recipes, use a number for any ingredient that would be written with a number in a traditional ingredients list.
Add 1 egg.
Cut peels from 3 tangerines.
Mince 2 cloves garlic.
Use half of a 6-ounce can. (subrecipe)
Use half of a 6-oz. can. (stand-alone paragraph-style recipe)
Top 3 crackers with 1 tablespoon chocolate-hazelnut spread. (subrecipe)
Top 3 crackers with 1 Tbsp. chocolate-hazelnut spread. (stand-alone paragraph-style recipe)
Spell out numbers in the following cases:
When a number precedes another number in instructions copy, captions, and other text:
sixteen 2-cup measures
Numbers used in portions and descriptions:
half
five-spice powder
A number that’s part of a partial ingredient:
spoon one-third of the mixture
add half of the sauce
For whole numbers with fractions in ingredients list and method: Do not use a space (or hair space) between whole number and fraction. (updated 7/20/22)
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