Cooking Pleasures magazine is the magazine produced by the Cooking Club of America. I very happily joined Cooking Club of America, and began receiving this magazine quite a while ago. The Club offers so much to its subscribers, but as time wore on, I could see that the Marketing Department was a tad too aggressive for my taste.
The Cooking Club of America offers their potential members numerous items to entice them to join. Members can take part in member-only contests where kitchen products and gift baskets are some of the prizes. They can be sent food items or kitchen products to review. They can also receive a cheese grater for joining!
There are some nice photographs in this publication. The recipes are not complicated either, although they do require some unusual ingredients and some that are very expensive that many people would find hard to locate. I, personally, had to forego some recipes, and others; I had to order a couple of ingredients online, because of the reasons given.
The cheese grater sent to you is a nice idea, but being it is a rotary grater, you have to squeeze very hard to get the cheese to grate. Also, the grater is made of plastic and eventually snaps in half after using it only a handful of times.
The Club also offers you a Culinary Resource Directory. The information contained in this directory is not difficult to find in a basic Internet search. You can also receive standard sized blank recipe cards. Unfortunately, due to the size of recipe cards, I do not believe anyone can even write the ingredients onto them without running out of space.
Also, part of the member benefits is to sample products for review. Potential members can see photographs of blenders, ice cream makers and much more. While a member there for three years, I did have the opportunity to review quick rise yeast and a chipotle spice. Both were nice products. They were not the glamorous photos of kitchen appliances, but it was something!
Currently, they are offering a VISA credit card with their logo. With this card, not only can you use the card like any other credit card, but also you can receive club discounts. If this is something that appeals to you, see the Club for details.
Approximately 3 months after you renew your own subscription, they start mailing you about how you should renew your membership for the following year now, so that you can help them keep club costs down. After just paying for the current year, I was not interested in paying for another year already. An idea may be to NOT contact members so soon after they just paid their subscriptions. That may save the club some money.
I have Caller ID, and I utilize it all the time, screening my calls to specifically avoid telemarketing calls. Imagine my surprise when I pick up a call and it was a representative for Cooking Club of America. I was, actually, pleasantly surprised, thinking I was about to embark on another benefit of being a member. I was most disappointed to hear the mono-toned voice on the other end of the line, reading the script, suggesting I become a Lifetime Member now. When I tell them I am not interested, they have a "new" deal for me. When I still tell them I am not interested, they have yet another deal. The calls continued after this conversation for another couple of months.
At this point, my subscription has expired. I was relieved as the telemarketing phone call really turned me off. You should have been there to see me receive my credit card statement. Cooking Club of America automatically charged my credit card with my next subscription without my permission. It was three months after my original subscription expired! As you can imagine, this was extremely upsetting.
Upon doing my research for this article, I have come to find that others have had similar experiences with this magazine. It's a shame too, as this magazine has plenty of potential. Unfortunately, their marketing department could utilize different tactics in maintaining their current membership.
Despite this magazine being very affordable, I recommend that you save your money on this one and try Fine Cooking, Cuisine at Home or Cook's Illustrated. Not only do these magazines provide better recipes, more professional tips, they also do not call you daily to get your money.
I let this one go it reminded me to much of Cuisine Magazine and I already had that one so there was no need for the two. The recipes are real simple and not very complicated at all that was a PLUS and a break from all those other Magazines I subscribed to.
It's format is very good for the person that doesn't want to get bogged down in the ads or the product information in the back of the Magazine. The Magazine is thin so it doesn't take up much space and features step-by-step pictures.
Happy Reading
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I have had the subscription for 2.5 years now and I enjoy getting it bimonthly. The recipes often do call for hard to find ingrediants (since I don't live in a real big city) and most of them take alot of prep time and cooking but that's why the magazine is COOKING PLEASURES. It's not Quick 'N Easy.
I gave the magazine 4 stars instead of 5 because I find that most of the recipes are "pleasurable" in comfort and not calories or fat. I love the desserts and main dishes they usually have, its just that most of the dishes are not good for the waist line. But, I guess that's why its PLEASURES and not LIGHT.
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Yes, this magazine does provide some different recipes from other magazines. Yes, you gain access to an "exclusive club" when you subscribe.
Yes, you'll get harassed constantly by The Club (I get mail from them on a nearly weekly basis, always claiming to be my "last chance!", but apparently they'll also harass you by phone).
Yes, you'll get to test some cool products, but they're not usually all that great.
I've been a member for a few years now, and I'm letting my subscription run out this time. It's just not worth it and I'm tired of all the junk mail from them. I'm glad I wrote them checks instead of giving them my credit card info so there should be no surprise billing.
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The magazine itself is nice, has some pictures and the recipes can be good. Sadly the cooking club is such a nightmare. They harass you and send you things you don't want, that you have to pay to return like books. They want you to sign up as a life-time member, and will ask you to do so all of the time. The things in those letters, such as a magnet and a sponge, you have to send back if you don't want to become a life-time member.
I've been reading People Magazine since the early 80s, so I know I'm not in the demographic they're aiming at any more. It's turned into LOTS and LOTS of reality TV coverage of non-actors, along with very young new actors and musicians, with very limited coverage of established actors. It seems to me they cover a smaller range of people than they used to. I'm telling myself that I"m not going to renew my subscription, but I'm still reading every issue, just skipping the articles about people from shows I would never watch. Their reviews of books and movies are perhaps worth the price of the magazine, and aren't available on their website.
