Instructions. Instructions tell you what to do - for example, how to make a cake. Directions tell you where to go - for example, how to get from the city centre to the airport.

I'm looking through some recipe sites and I see: Directions (seriouseats.com, foodnetwork.com, allrecipes.com), Preparation (epicurious.com), Steps (pillsbury.com). Two of the more standard American cookbooks just list the ingredients and then let you know how to combine them. I think you could use either "directions" or "instructions."