Find the best version of any recipe across 37 trusted sites — with offline cookbook, pantry match, substitution lookup, meal planning, and USDA-backed nutrition. Trigger phrases: `find the best recipe for`, `what can I make with`, `substitute for <ingredient>`, `nutrition for <recipe>`, `use recipe-goat`.
Find the best version of any recipe across 37 trusted sites — with offline cookbook, pantry match, substitution lookup, meal planning, and USDA-backed nutrition. Trigger phrases: `find the best recipe for`, `what can I make with`, `substitute for <ingredient>`, `nutrition for <recipe>`, `use recipe-goat`.
This skill drives the binary. If it is missing, install it first:
recipe-goat-pp-cli
You must verify the CLI is installed before invoking any command from this skill.
Install via the Printing Press installer. It defaults binaries to $HOME/.local/bin on macOS/Linux and %LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\PrintingPress\bin on Windows:
Ensure the reported install directory is on $PATH for the agent/runtime that will invoke this skill.
If the npx install fails (no Node, offline, etc.), fall back to a direct Go install (requires Go 1.26.5 or newer):
go install github.com/mvanhorn/printing-press-library/library/food-and-dining/recipe-goat/cmd/recipe-goat-pp-cli@latest
If --version reports "command not found" after install, the runtime cannot see the binary directory on $PATH. Do not proceed with skill commands until verification succeeds.
When Not to Use This CLI
Do not activate this CLI for requests that require creating, updating, deleting, publishing, commenting, upvoting, inviting, ordering, sending messages, booking, purchasing, or changing remote state. This printed CLI exposes read-only commands for inspection, export, sync, and analysis.
HTTP Transport
This CLI uses Chrome-compatible HTTP transport for browser-facing endpoints. It does not require a resident browser process for normal API calls.
Command Reference
foods — USDA FoodData Central — ingredient nutrition lookups
recipe-goat-pp-cli foods get — Get a specific food by FDC ID
recipe-goat-pp-cli foods list — List foods paginated
recipe-goat-pp-cli foods search — Search USDA FoodData Central for foods matching a query
Finding the right command
When you know what you want to do but not which command does it, ask the CLI directly:
recipe-goat-pp-cli which"<capability in your own words>"
which resolves a natural-language capability query to the best matching command from this CLI's curated feature index. Exit code 0 means at least one match; exit code 2 means no confident match — fall back to --help or use a narrower query.
Auth Setup
Set your API key via environment variable:
export USDA_FDC_API_KEY="<your-key>"
Or persist it in ~/.config/recipe-goat-pp-cli/config.toml.
Run recipe-goat-pp-cli doctor to verify setup.
Agent Mode
Add --agent to any command. Expands to: --json --compact --no-input --no-color --yes.
Pipeable — JSON on stdout, errors on stderr
Filterable — --select keeps a subset of fields. Dotted paths descend into nested structures; arrays traverse element-wise. Critical for keeping context small on verbose APIs:
recipe-goat-pp-cli foods list --agent --selectid,name,status
Previewable — --dry-run shows the request without sending
Offline-friendly — sync/search commands can use the local SQLite store when available
Non-interactive — never prompts, every input is a flag
Read-only — do not use this CLI for create, update, delete, publish, comment, upvote, invite, order, send, or other mutating requests
Response envelope
Commands that read from the local store or the API wrap output in a provenance envelope:
Parse .results for data and .meta.source to know whether it's live or local. A human-readable N results (live) summary is printed to stderr only when stdout is a terminal — piped/agent consumers get pure JSON on stdout.
Agent Feedback
When you (or the agent) notice something off about this CLI, record it:
recipe-goat-pp-cli feedback "the --since flag is inclusive but docs say exclusive"
recipe-goat-pp-cli feedback --stdin < notes.txt
recipe-goat-pp-cli feedback list --json --limit 10
Entries are stored locally at ~/.recipe-goat-pp-cli/feedback.jsonl. They are never POSTed unless RECIPE_GOAT_FEEDBACK_ENDPOINT is set AND either --send is passed or RECIPE_GOAT_FEEDBACK_AUTO_SEND=true. Default behavior is local-only.
Write what surprised you, not a bug report. Short, specific, one line: that is the part that compounds.
Output Delivery
Every command accepts --deliver <sink>. The output goes to the named sink in addition to (or instead of) stdout, so agents can route command results without hand-piping. Three sinks are supported:
Sink
Effect
stdout
Default; write to stdout only
file:<path>
Atomically write output to <path> (tmp + rename)
webhook:<url>
POST the output body to the URL (application/json or application/x-ndjson when --compact)
Unknown schemes are refused with a structured error naming the supported set. Webhook failures return non-zero and log the URL + HTTP status on stderr.
Named Profiles
A profile is a saved set of flag values, reused across invocations. Use it when a scheduled agent calls the same command every run with the same configuration - HeyGen's "Beacon" pattern.
recipe-goat-pp-cli profile save briefing --json
recipe-goat-pp-cli --profile briefing foods list
recipe-goat-pp-cli profile list --json
recipe-goat-pp-cli profile show briefing
recipe-goat-pp-cli profile delete briefing --yes
Explicit flags always win over profile values; profile values win over defaults. agent-context lists all available profiles under available_profiles so introspecting agents discover them at runtime.
Exit Codes
Code
Meaning
0
Success
2
Usage error (wrong arguments)
3
Resource not found
4
Authentication required
5
API error (upstream issue)
7
Rate limited (wait and retry)
10
Config error
Argument Parsing
Parse $ARGUMENTS:
Empty, help, or --help → show recipe-goat-pp-cli --help output
Starts with install → ends with mcp → MCP installation; otherwise → see Prerequisites above
Anything else → Direct Use (execute as CLI command with --agent)
MCP Server Installation
Install the MCP server:
go install github.com/mvanhorn/printing-press-library/library/other/recipe-goat-pp-cli/cmd/recipe-goat-pp-mcp@latest
Register with Claude Code:
claude mcp add recipe-goat-pp-mcp -- recipe-goat-pp-mcp
Verify: claude mcp list
Direct Use
Check if installed: which recipe-goat-pp-cli
If not found, offer to install (see Prerequisites at the top of this skill).
Match the user query to the best command from the Unique Capabilities and Command Reference above.
