Nx Generators

Recipes are not frozen at scaffolding time. Spoonfeed ships Nx generators so you can evolve your stack after project creation — add new capabilities, remove unused ones, or migrate between compatible recipes.

Available Generators

Generator	Command	Description
Add	nx g spoonfeed:add	Add a recipe to an existing project
Remove	nx g spoonfeed:remove	Remove a recipe cleanly
Migrate	nx g spoonfeed:migrate	Migrate between compatible recipes
List	nx g spoonfeed:list	List all available and installed recipes

Generate-time vs Post-scaffolding

The CLI (pnpm create-spoonfeed) and Nx generators both install recipes, but they operate at different stages.

Aspect	CLI (generate-time)	Nx Generators (post-scaffolding)
When it runs	Project creation	Any time after the project exists
Input	Interactive prompts or preset file	Explicit --recipe / --from / --to flags
Scope	Full project scaffold: folder structure, package.json, tsconfig.json, CI/CD, Docker, etc.	Single-recipe changes only
Conflict resolution	All recipes selected at once, validated as a set before any files are written	Validated against the current .spoonfeed.json manifest
File generation	Creates every file from scratch using EJS templates	Patches existing files (adds/removes imports, env vars, dependencies)
AI context	Generates CLAUDE.md, .cursor/rules/project.mdc, .github/copilot-instructions.md with all selected recipes	Appends or removes recipe-specific sections in existing AI context files
Rollback	Discard the generated directory	Use nx g spoonfeed:remove to undo
Typical use	Greenfield project setup	Evolving an existing project

When to Use Generators

Adding a capability you did not pick at scaffold time. You created an http-api project with jwt-auth and typeorm-postgres, and now you need API documentation. Run nx g spoonfeed:add --recipe=swagger instead of manually wiring @nestjs/swagger, updating main.ts, and adding env vars.

Removing a recipe you no longer need. You shipped with nodemailer for transactional emails but switched to a third-party service that handles delivery. Run nx g spoonfeed:remove --recipe=nodemailer to strip the dependency, env vars, source files, and module registration in one step.

Swapping one technology for another. Your team decides to move from TypeORM to Prisma. Run nx g spoonfeed:migrate --from=typeorm-postgres --to=prisma to atomically remove the old recipe and add the new one, then follow the printed migration guidance to convert your application code.

Auditing what is installed. Run nx g spoonfeed:list to see every recipe that is currently active and which ones are still available. Useful before a dependency audit or when onboarding a new team member.

Tip

Always run --dry-run first to preview changes before they are written to disk. Every generator supports it.

Generator Workflow

The add-recipe generator follows this workflow to safely add a recipe to an existing project:

flowchart TB
    A[Read Manifest] --> B{Validate\nCompatibility}
    B -->|Pass| C[Copy Template Files]
    B -->|Fail| X[Abort with Error]
    C --> D[Merge Dependencies]
    D --> E[AST Transforms]
    E --> F[Update AI Context]
    F --> G[Update Manifest]

    B -.- B1[Check conflicts]
    B -.- B2[Check requires]

    style A fill:#dbeafe,stroke:#3b82f6,color:#1e293b
    style G fill:#dcfce7,stroke:#22c55e,color:#1e293b
    style X fill:#fee2e2,stroke:#ef4444,color:#1e293b
    style B1 fill:#e2e8f0,stroke:#475569,color:#1e293b
    style B2 fill:#e2e8f0,stroke:#475569,color:#1e293b

How Generators Work

Each generator handles the full lifecycle of a recipe change:

1. Validates the operation against the current recipe set (conflicts, requirements)
2. Modifies package.json (adds or removes dependencies with exact versions)
3. Generates or removes source files, configuration modules, and templates
4. Updates app.module.ts imports and registrations
5. Updates environment variable files (.env.example, .env.*)
6. Updates AI context files (CLAUDE.md, .cursor/rules/<recipe-id>.mdc, .github/copilot-instructions.md)
7. Generates or removes test files

Prerequisites

Nx must be available in the project. Generated projects include Nx as a dev dependency:

pnpm add -D -E nx

Listing Recipes

To see all available recipes and which ones are currently installed:

nx g spoonfeed:list

This displays the full recipe catalog with installation status, making it easy to see what is available and what is already in use.

No Lock-In

Add what you need, remove what you do not. The generators ensure clean transitions with no orphaned code or stale configuration.