Slow Cooker Ready & Waiting
160 Sumptous Meals That Cook Themselves, by Rick Rodgers
This slow cooker cookbook offers instructions and recipes for dishes that taste delicious.
Slow Cookers, or Crock Pots as they're often referred to, have been around since the 70's for a reason. The concept is fantastic. Toss some ingredients in a pot early in the day, then have an effortless dinner later just when you're ready for it. Cooking in a slow cooker is different from regular cooking, and for that reason, a cookbook made especially for the job is a handy reference to have. Slow Cooker Ready & Waiting is an excellent choice for your kitchen library because the recipes will work for you.
Adapt Your Own Recipes
Something often lacking in slow-cooker books are instructions that enable you to adapt your own recipes for the Crock Pot, which keeps you from being limited by the recipes offered in the book. This book has a section to teach you how to adapt your own recipes for the slow cooker, which allows you not only some creativity, but also the ability to work with ingredients on hand rather than having to shop for your appliance.
Careful Preparation Makes Tasty Meals
There are many Crock Pot meals that suggest merely dumping ingredients right in the pot and turning it on. While this works, technically, there are very few dishes that actually taste good without a bit more effort. Soups can probably handle that treatment, but other dishes, such as those made from chicken parts or other meats, could benefit from a bit of browning first. Rick Rodgers has taken some grief for suggesting slow-cooker recipes that actually require preparation before pressing the on button. The outcome is worth the effort, and you'll still benefit by having a meal ready at day's end that you started before work.
What's Included
This cookbook includes recipes for dips and appetizers, soups and chilis, seafood stews and chowders (something often overlooked in a slow cooker book), slow-cooked beans, stews, pot roasts, chicken and turkey recipes, vegetables and side dishes, desserts, beverages and punches. While you may overlook a slow cooker for something like a dip, this appliance is not only a convenient cooker, it keeps foods at a safe serving temperature. You can even serve directly from it, which is great for a pot-luck party.
The Recipes
You'll find recipes for Beef Bourguignon, Chicken, Tomato and Tortilla Soup, Chicken with Mushrooms and Artichokes in Red Wine Soup, Turkey Breast Saltimbocca, Pear and Hazelnut Brown Betty as well as pot roast and chili recipes.
Useful for all Skill Levels
Crock Pots are useful to every cook, no matter the skill level. Some of the tips and techniques in this book will help an inexperienced cook develop confidence, and an established cook find kitchen shortcuts. Expect Mr. Rodgers' book to create a permanent counter spot for your slow cooker.
Paperback: 256 pages
Price: $11.16
Publisher: William Morrow Cookbooks; 1st Pbk. Ed edition (January 21, 1998)
ISBN-13: 978-0688158033
