BBC Easy Cook

What shall I cook for dinner tonight? As much as I love cooking, and since retiring have more time (or so I'm told!) I don't often plan menus in advance. I cook what I feel like on the day. But sometimes you want to try something new, maybe something easy and quick to prepare, but it must be tasty and look good - in other words look as if I've slaved over the stove preparing something wonderful for my loved ones!
I love having magazines to browse through and spotted the BBC Easycook in Somerfields one day. I'm a fan of cookery programmes and often use the BBC website to find a recipe that I've seen cooked, so decided to fork out £2.50 for the magazine.

Value for Money?
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Oh yes. I was amazed at how many recipes there were I would try, as I have shelves of cookery books and use only a few recipes from each of them, meaning that a recipe may cost me £3 or more! Out of the 80+ recipes in the autumn magazine I would make over half the recipes so a recipe costs only a few pence.
It now costs £2.50 - not as shown on the Ciao picture! But you can subscribe and get the 6 issues a year - it is a bi-monthly magazine for just £9.99 delivered to your door free of charge. A real bargain deal. Plus in each copy there is an extra pull out feature by Ready Steady Cook chefs. Plus and this is what I like about it - there are hardly any adverts, and only a few useful articles.

What's in it?
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The first page has a welcome from the Editor, information on how to contact them and names of staff etc. On the next double page spread, tempting photos indicate the different sections of the magazine and give the page numbers. This includes What's for supper? Feeding the kids. From your storecupboard. Family meals. Cooking for friends. Easy baking. Plus a great easy conversion chart if you want to change the metric to pounds and ounces, plus details of which page shows you an offer, and preview of the next magazine. There is also an index on the last page dividing the food into Meat and Poultry, Fish and Seafood, vegetarian, Side dishes and extras, desserts and cakes and bakes, with all items in alphabetical order, so if you want something different with chicken you can find it quickly.
Each of the recipes clearly state how many it serves, when it will be ready, the cost per portion, the calories and the amount of fat and whether it is suitable for freezing, which if you are making a recipe for 4 and there are only 2 of you, half can be frozen for another day if suitable.

What's for supper.
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There are some delicious recipes and most of these take 20 minutes to cook, plus preparation time. There are also suggestions what to serve with the meals, and for example if you don't have instant noodles, cook some egg noodles in vegetable stock. I like the fact it gives the cost, if it's the end of the month and your purse is empty, baked leeks with ham and corn served with a green salad, is only a £1 a portion, similar to a recipe I used to make and long since forgotten, but a great way of using up thin ham bought for sandwiches and never used! Spiced Rice with prawns costs only £1.06 a portion and is ready in 20 minutes, cheaper and healthier than getting a Chinese takeaway.

I love puddings. They might not be good for me but I love them! There are some that only take 10 minutes to make! A black forest trifle made so quickly would impress most people and satisfy the sweet toothed and chocolate cravers amongst us.

Feeding the Kids.
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I don't have children living at home now, but would use the idea from the Meatball and bacon Toad! Instead of ordinary Toad in the hole, they add bacon, red onion and herbs. I would make my own batter, but they use a packet mix, although they add a recipe if you have more time. Articles are rare in this magazine, but there are a couple of pages on cooking for children and suggestions for packed lunches, with some really tempting ideas. I fancy the Marmite bites! Bacon and Pumpkin pasta will be on the menu here soon too, you can use Butternut squash if no pumpkins about, and it sounds similar to my Risotto recipe but using pasta, and at 74p a portion is great value.

From the Storecupboard.
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We all have days when we don't feel like going out or may be can't as we're waiting for a delivery which could be between 8am and 8pm! There are some tasty pizza recipes, and some using beer!

Family Meals
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Some interesting chicken recipes in this edition for easy weekend food, and a wonderful looking waffle for breakfast served with coconut cream and fresh fruit. They use ready made waffles, but I have a wafflemaker and might try this one. There are a few recipes which take longer cooking in the oven which is OK at the weekend when you can put the casserole in and then relax until it's ready. There are seasonal recipes using blackberries in a cobbler and plums in a Crème brulee, both look wonderful! Plus a Toffee apple and Brioche pudding which I can recommend as I made it, and although they suggested using bread if you hadn't got Brioche I used a Fruit loaf and the result was yummy! The last recipe in this section was as upper on standby, I made it last night and it certainly will be on the menu here again, it was a Tomato and pepper risotto with Olives and Griddled salmon. Quite high in calories but Salmon is the kind of fish we need to eat more often, and although I used green olives it still tasted fab.

Cooking for friends
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Here is the suggestion for a safari supper, where you roam to a different friend's house for each course. Not sure if I'd like that idea, as it means coming back to the dirty dishes! There is also a suggestion on suitable wines.
There is a section on making the most of fish with a recipe amongst others for tasty Spicy tuna and chickpea patties.

Easy Baking
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I know a lot of people say they can cook but not bake. I learned to cook as an 11 year old and so don't have a problem, but there are clear instructions on making cheddar cheese scones. Plus recipes for some yummy Butterscotch bars, frosted carrot cake and another recipe with picture instructions for a Victoria Sandwich cake.

Ready Steady Cook Booklet
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I put on inches just looking at the gorgeous puds featured in this edition!
I'm going to have to make the Lemon Curd Cheesecake soon - I'm pleased to say this only gives the number it serves and time! No cost or calories!
There are some articles to read, a feature on Ready Steady new boy Alex MacKay and a section called Coffee break with Crossword, Sudoku and Wordsearch. Answers in the next edition! Plus a competition to enter to win a Smoothie maker. A useful list of websites for the chefs if you have time to surf.

Did I like it?
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I'm sure you guessed - I DID! It's the best value magazine I've bought for ages. There is something for everyone. It is exactly what it says. "Easy cook".

Will I buy it again?
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Most definitely, especially as the next edition is a special for Christmas and New Year, a time when we want to eat things which look and taste amazing but not spend days cooking.
If you haven't bought this magazine yet, then I suggest you look out for it or look out for the next one on November 7th. It will give you lots of ideas or easy to cook meals.

PS. I had to select Monthly but it is bi-monthly.