Cookie Policy

Effective Date: January 14, 2026
Last Updated: January 14, 2026

What Are Cookies? (The Digital Kind)

Cookies are small text files that websites store on your device when you visit. They’re not the delicious chocolate chip kind (though we have great recipes for those). Think of them like little memory notes that help websites remember things about you – like your preferences, login status, or what recipes you viewed.

Why We Use Cookies

We use cookies to make your experience on Time for Smoothie better and more personalized. Specifically, we use them to:

Keep you logged into your account
Remember your dietary preferences and restrictions
Save your favorite recipes for easy access
Track which recipes are popular so we create more like them
Understand how people navigate our site so we can improve it
Show you relevant ads that help keep our site free
Remember if you’ve seen certain popups or messages
Analyze site performance and loading speeds

Without cookies, you’d have to log in every single time you visit, we’d have no idea what content you like, and the site would feel clunky and impersonal. They’re genuinely helpful.

Types of Cookies We Use

Essential Cookies (Can’t Really Opt Out)

These cookies make the site actually work. Without them, basic features break.

Session Cookies: Remember you’re logged in as you move between pages. They expire when you close your browser.

Security Cookies: Protect your account from unauthorized access and help prevent fraud.

Load Balancing: Ensure the site distributes traffic efficiently so pages load quickly.

Preference Cookies: Remember choices like language settings, text size, or dietary filter selections.

You can’t opt out of these without basically breaking the site, so they’re not really optional. They’re just necessary for functionality.

Analytics Cookies (Help Us Improve)

We use Google Analytics to understand how people use our site. This tells us:

Which recipes are most popular
Where people spend time or lose interest
What devices and browsers people use
How people find our site (search, social media, direct links)
Where visitors are located (country/region level, not your home address)

Why This Matters: If we see everyone loves our 15-minute dinner recipes but abandons 45-minute weekend projects, we’ll make more quick meals. If the site loads slowly on mobile, we’ll fix it. This data genuinely helps us create better content.

How to Opt Out: You can disable analytics cookies in your browser settings or use Google’s opt-out browser add-on. The site will still work fine.

Advertising Cookies (Keep Our Site Free)

We use Google AdSense and possibly other ad networks to show advertisements. These cookies track your interests across websites to show relevant ads.

How It Works: If you’ve been searching for blenders, you might see blender ads on our site. If you read lots of dessert recipes, you’ll see more dessert-related ads. This is called “behavioral advertising” or “interest-based advertising.”

Why We Use Them: Ads help pay our bills (hosting, software, ingredients for recipe testing). Relevant ads perform better, which means we can keep the site free for readers.

Privacy Note: These cookies don’t collect personally identifiable information like your name or email. They create an anonymized profile of your interests.

How to Opt Out:

Use browser settings to block third-party cookies
Visit the Network Advertising Initiative opt-out page
Use Google’s Ads Settings to control personalization
Use browser extensions like Privacy Badger or Ghostery

Social Media Cookies (When You Share)

When you share recipes on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, or Twitter, those platforms set cookies to track the share and potentially show you related content.

What They Do:

Enable sharing buttons to work
Track how content is shared across platforms
Allow social media platforms to show you related content
Help social networks understand what’s popular

We Don’t Control These: Each platform has its own privacy policy and cookie practices. We just provide the share buttons – the platforms handle the rest.

How to Manage: Check privacy settings on each social media platform you use. Most let you control cookie preferences and ad targeting.

Third-Party Service Cookies

We use various services that set their own cookies:

Email Marketing (MailChimp/Similar): If you subscribe to our newsletter, these cookies track email preferences and engagement.

Comment Systems: If we use third-party comment tools, they set cookies to remember your comment author information.

Payment Processors: If we ever add e-commerce features, payment processors will set security cookies during checkout.

CDN and Security (Cloudflare): Helps protect the site from attacks and speeds up content delivery.

Specific Cookies We Use

Here’s a detailed breakdown of actual cookies you’ll encounter on our site:

Our Own Cookies

_timeforsmoothie_session: Keeps you logged in (expires when browser closes)
user_preferences: Stores dietary preferences and site settings (lasts 1 year)
favorites_list: Remembers your saved recipes (lasts 1 year)
notification_seen: Tracks if you’ve dismissed certain notifications (lasts 6 months)

Google Analytics Cookies

_ga: Distinguishes unique users (lasts 2 years)
_gid: Distinguishes users (lasts 24 hours)
_gat: Limits request rate (lasts 1 minute)

Google AdSense Cookies

_gcl_au: Used by Google AdSense for advertising efficiency (lasts 3 months)
IDE: Tracks ad impressions and interactions (lasts 1 year)
NID: Remembers preferences and other information (lasts 6 months)

Cloudflare Cookies

__cfduid: Identifies individual clients for security purposes (lasts 1 month)

This list isn’t exhaustive – third-party services occasionally add or change cookies. Check their privacy policies for complete details.

How Long Cookies Last

Session Cookies: Expire when you close your browser. These temporarily remember you’re logged in or viewing specific content.

Persistent Cookies: Stay on your device for set periods (ranging from hours to years). These remember long-term preferences like dietary restrictions or favorite recipes.

Expiration Varies: Some cookies last minutes, others last years. We try to use the shortest reasonable timeframe for each cookie’s purpose.

Browser Settings

All modern browsers let you control cookies:

Block All Cookies: Possible but will break site functionality. Not recommended.

Block Third-Party Cookies: Prevents tracking across sites while allowing our essential cookies. Good balance of privacy and functionality.

Clear Cookies: Delete existing cookies anytime in browser settings. You’ll need to log in again and reset preferences.

View Cookies: See exactly which cookies are stored and delete specific ones.

How to Access Settings:

Chrome: Settings → Privacy → Cookies
Firefox: Options → Privacy → Cookies
Safari: Preferences → Privacy → Cookies
Edge: Settings → Privacy → Cookies

Cookie Consent Management

When you first visit our site, you’ll see a cookie consent banner. You can:

Accept All: Allow all cookies for full functionality and personalization

Essential Only: Use only necessary cookies (limits functionality and personalization)

Customize: Choose specific cookie categories to allow or block

Change Your Mind: Access cookie settings anytime through the footer link

Mobile Devices

iOS: Settings → Safari → Block Cookies

Android: Settings → Site Settings → Cookies (varies by browser)

Privacy-Focused Browsers

Browsers like Brave, DuckDuckGo, or Firefox Focus automatically block many tracking cookies. Our site should still work but might have limited functionality.

Do Not Track Signals

Some browsers send “Do Not Track” signals to websites. Unfortunately, there’s no industry standard for how websites should respond, so we don’t currently honor these signals. Use browser cookie settings instead for reliable control.

How to Completely Avoid Cookies

If you really want to avoid cookies:

Use Incognito/Private Browsing: Cookies are deleted when you close the window

Clear Cookies After Each Visit: Manually delete in browser settings

Use Privacy Extensions: Tools like Privacy Badger, uBlock Origin, or Ghostery

Sacrifice Functionality: Accept that the site won’t remember your preferences or keep you logged in

Honestly? Cookies make your experience better. We recommend allowing essential and analytics cookies while potentially blocking advertising cookies if you’re privacy-conscious.

Impact on Your Experience

With All Cookies Enabled

Stay logged in automatically
See personalized recipe recommendations
Save favorite recipes easily
Remember dietary preferences
Fast site performance
Relevant ads (if we must show ads, might as well be relevant)

With Limited Cookies

Need to log in frequently
Generic experience without personalization
No saved recipes across sessions
Must reset filters each visit
Possibly slower site performance
Random, less relevant ads

With Cookies Blocked

Can’t stay logged in
No account features work
No recipe saving
Must select dietary filters every visit
Potentially broken features
Analytics don’t work (so we can’t improve the site based on data)

Children’s Privacy

We don’t knowingly collect cookies from children under 13. If you’re a parent and concerned, check your child’s browser settings and consider using parental controls.

Third-Party Privacy Policies

We don’t control how third parties use cookies. For detailed information:

Google Analytics: policies.google.com/privacy

Google AdSense: policies.google.com/technologies/ads

Facebook: facebook.com/privacy

Pinterest: pinterest.com/privacy

Cloudflare: cloudflare.com/privacypolicy

We’ll update this policy when we add new features, change services, or need to comply with regulations. Check the “Last Updated” date periodically.

Significant changes will be announced via email or site notice. Your continued use after updates means you accept the changes.

Contact Us About Cookies

Questions about our cookie usage? Want to exercise your rights?

Email: privacy@timeforsmoothie.com
Response Time: Within 48 hours

We’re happy to explain exactly what data we collect and why. We’re not trying to be creepy – we genuinely just want to make the site work well and understand what content you enjoy.

The Bottom Line

Cookies help us create a better experience for you while keeping the site free. We use them responsibly, protect your privacy, and give you control over your preferences.

If you’re okay with websites remembering your preferences and understanding what content is popular, allow cookies. If you’re privacy-focused, use browser settings to block everything except essential cookies. Either way, you’re still welcome here!

Happy cooking (and happy browsing)! 🍪 (The digital kind!)