The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Cookbook \Cook"book`\ (-b[oo^]k`), n.
   A book of directions and receipts for cooking; a cookery
   book. [U.S.]
   [1913 Webster]

         "Just How": a key to the cookbooks.      --Mrs. A. D.
                                                  T. Whitney.
   [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

cookbook
    n 1: a book of recipes and cooking directions [syn: cookbook,
         cookery book]

The Jargon File (version 4.4.7, 29 Dec 2003):

cookbook
 n.

    [from amateur electronics and radio] A book of small code segments that the
    reader can use to do various magic things in programs. Cookbooks,
    slavishly followed, can lead one into voodoo programming, but are useful
    for hackers trying to monkey up small programs in unknown languages. This
    function is analogous to the role of phrasebooks in human languages.


The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (30 December 2018):

cookbook

    (From amateur electronics and radio) A book of
   small code segments that the reader can use to do various
   magic things in programs.

   One current example is the "PostScript Language Tutorial and
   Cookbook" by Adobe Systems, Inc (Addison-Wesley, ISBN
   0-201-10179-3), also known as the Blue Book which has
   recipes for things like wrapping text around arbitrary curves
   and making 3D fonts.

   Cookbooks, slavishly followed, can lead one into voodoo
   programming, but are useful for hackers trying to monkey up
   small programs in unknown languages.  This function is
   analogous to the role of phrasebooks in human languages.

   [Jargon File]

   (1994-11-04)