How I try to get out of my "same old food" cooking rut! (BBC Good Food)

Member Name: azana

Product:	BBC Good Food
Date:	28/02/09 (247 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Well written magazine with lots of inspiring ideas

Disadvantages: A bit repetitive

I've subscribed to this magazine for two years now, and they have even published one of my emails (in praise of the upside down pineapple cake, it was that good, honestly!), I read and enjoy this magazine every month.

My first tip if thinking of subscribing would be to consider using Tesco clubcard points, currently at £9.50 in vouchers. As a monthly magazine the cover price is £3.10, but whichever way you buy it I think it is a good buy and here are some of the reasons why;

What the magazine contains:

There are different sections, some of kitcheny things to buy, reviews of the same and then the actual recipes. These are broken down into "everyday" a section for the kind of meals you would make for yourself and a family, "in season", seasonal recipes for that month, and then a "special", e.g. on Christmas, Easter or a theme like Italian food. There is a section for children's recipes of late, a helpful new feature.
There are also some food related articles, food and travel and health. A section at the end has the schedule and recipes for BBC food programmes for the month. Sometimes the magazine comes with a mini recipe book, eg on kids' food or baking, these are always excellent.

The recipes:

Generally the recipes are fairly easy to follow, and have a breakdown of the calories (unless a recipe from another book, eg Jamie Oliver) and difficulty rating. If you cook and enjoy something you can find it again on the bbcgoodfood website, where you will also find ratings for all the recipes from other people and can create a "virtual recipe binder". Even if you don't buy the magazine the website is an excellent place for reference and inspiration. All the recipes are tested in the bbcgood food kitchen.

My experience of the magazine:

Having subscribed for 2 years now I have cooked a fair few of the recipes. When the magazine arrives I also sit down and flick through and identify a couple of recipes to try that month, and if I am feeling ultra organised I will plan a week of recipes. I do find that the magazine can get a little repetitive; this month there are hot cross buns in the magazine as there were last year in a slightly different form, having said that I tried that recipe last year and it was excellent. I find Christmas does overdominate - 2 editions the December and January editions were Christmas filled, having said that again some of the recipes were very good.
I haven't had too many disasters following the recipes in the magazine, and in fact some are now family favourites, the aforementioned pineapple upside down cake, sausage casserole, a scrummy cherry cake that has me salivating to think about it, and smartie cookies!
The magazine has given me the confidence and skills to try new things; the photos always make everything look absolutely delicious. BBC Good Food does follow trends closely - there have been a lot of cost cutting meals of late, in line with the times and cook at home takeaways. I have made lots of the recipes and there are more I could dip into.
The recipes are indexed by type at the front of the magazine so easy to find within the magazine.

Would I recommend?

I would recommed anyone trying to vary their cooking to buy this magazine as a one off or as a subscriber. It costs £29.75 for 12 issues, £3.10 for one copy, or clubcard points as already mentioned. The magazine is not too ad-heavy and for me the skill level is perfect. If you are a slightly less confident cook you may want to try "Delicious" which I have found to be a little simpler. This magazine is probably the reason my friends think I am a better cook than I actually am!

Overall BBC Good Food is a well written magazine which is excellent value and sure to be enjoyed by any good or aspiring cook. Bon appetit!

Summary: Recipes and more!