How did you create this recovery disk?
Was it done on the PC that you want to reinstall the software on?
Is it a single CD, a single DVD, or a set of 3 or 4 DVDs?
The normal process with a recovery disk is that you put the CD/DVD in the drive, then you change your PCs boot up process to make the recovery CD/DVD load before Windows loads from the hard disk.
Then the recovery process starts, and as part of that recovery process the hard disk is formatted, and then Windows is re-installed.
Your question seems to indicate you want to format the disk first, THEN start the recovery process. This is not required as the formatting is done as part of the recovery processs.
You say "I have all the programs that came with my PC on a different part of the drive". By this I assume you mean you have a "hidden partition" on the hard disk that contains a complete image of your software so your disk can be returned to factory settings.
Many recovery disks work with a hidden partition, you "boot" from the single recovery CD/DVD and then it uses the files on the "hidden partition" to reinstall everything.
However there are some recovery DVD disks that contain everything needed on the actual DVDs (normally 3 or 4 of them) so you can reinstall all the software if, for example, you have to buy a new hard disk that does not contain the hidden partition.
Which is why I asked at the begining how you created the CD/DVD and how many of them there were.