Author(s): Michelle Ann Anderson
Publisher: Cumberland House Publishing
Publication Date: 2008-09-01
Pages: 276
Review: Home cooks who work on limited time will find attractive both the color photos and the ease of preparation in The Rotisserie Chicken Cookbook: all that’s needed is a rotisserie setup to produce a range of dishes from appetizers to entrees, including soups, casseroles, sandwiches and more. Quick steps and common ingredients make for an appealing presentation perfect for general lending libraries.
We see the stands full of pre-cooked rotisserie chickens whenever we go through the checkout lanes at our supermarkets. You may have purchased a few, I know I have. They usually have a variety of seasonings and some stores do them better than others. These pre-cooked birds have the virtue of being quick, easy to buy, and easy to eat. But you might want a bit more variety in your meals using these chickens. Michelle Ann Anderson provides us with a nice book of recipes that can help you prepare very nice and creative meals using store bought rotisserie chickens.
She opens the book with a couple of dozen nice color photographs of just a few of the meals described in this book. You get the idea that the author is really into being creative and treating these meals as a dining experience rather than a compromised meal you just toss off and wolf down. She divides the recipes into the part of the meal they are for: appetizers, soups, salads, sandwiches & wraps, entrees, casseroles, and breakfasts & brunches. Almost all these recipes use the chicken meat off the bone. That is, you use it diced, shredded, and sliced more often than as in the normal cuts of chicken such as breast, thigh, wing, and leg.
The recipes are clearly written and all follow the same helpful format. You get a list of ingredients (some use quite a few!) and then the exact set of three to six steps you need to take to pull off the dish. The recipe also tells you how many servings the recipe will provide. Again, these recipes are clear and easy to use. The ingredients use a variety of fresh and prepared ingredients to keep things both tasty and easy to prepare.
Anderson provides a page and a half of introduction that helps you get on the same page with her recipes and the book has a very helpful index at the back.
This is a great book for those of us who want to eat real food, but who also have busy lives that require us to take advantage of conveniences such as rotisserie chickens.
Enjoy!
Reviewed by Craig Matteson, Ann Arbor, MI
I find the recipes in the book easy to follow. Normally I only cook for myself therefore it is easy to adjust the recipes. Many ingredients are standard in most home refrigerators or pantries. Most stores have the cooked chicken so it is very easy to assemble the ingredients. Some of the recipes are a bit complicated but are fun to read.
As a truly uninspired cook, I have to admit I am hopelessly addicted to cookbooks. I love imagining the entrees, the rich desserts, casseroles, homemade soups and stews that look so enticing in the photographs. Unfortunately, my intentions don’t translate well into action. Neither do I often review cookbooks, but I am trying something new with this cookbook in the hope that I will progress from imagination to deed. The Rotisserie Chicken Cookbook meets the needs of this very conventional cook, hopefully infusing my lackluster meals with more creative ingredients. Winner of the 47th Annual National Chicken Cooking Contest, Anderson has built all these recipes around the core ingredient, precooked rotisserie chicken.
Having solved the most critical part of the decision- the main ingredient- I’m almost home- almost, not quite. Stopping by the introduction, I am informed that I must adapt my rotisserie chicken to the recipe (separating meat from bones, when to use a boning knife, preparing my own chicken stock, etc.). Too many trips to Trader Joe’s have made me lazy. But there are examples of the recipes inside in the front of the book, full color pictures of a variety of the offerings in the various sections and a table of contents that includes the vital chapters for a helpful cookbook, from appetizers to soups to casseroles and entrees, my only challenge to pick one and proceed beyond a grocery list of necessary ingredients.
Among the many choices: Sweet Pepper Relleno Poppers, Monte Cristo Minis, Chicken Tostada Compuesta, Grapefruit Chicken Salad, Chicken and Escarole Soup, Moroccan Chicken, Parmesan Chicken and Eggplant Bake, Chicken and Fig Casserole, Chicken and Asparagus Crepes, Chicken Artichoke Frittata. Low fat, high protein chicken is the foundation of these recipes, the combinations creative and appetizing, directions broken into easy-to-follow steps. Given the variety of combinations, including a great selection of vegetable and chicken meals, there are unusual choices to satisfy the needs of even the pickiest family. There is, however an absence of calorie content with each dish- after the creams and sauces in these recipes, I may be forced to purchase the most current successful diet book. Luan Gaines/ 2008..
Reviewed by Irene Watson for Reader Views (9/08)
Chicken, chicken, and more chicken. From appetizers to soups, from entrees to casseroles, this cookbook covers it all. Simple, easy instructions and ingredients found in most pantries, “The Rotisserie Chicken Cookbook” gives recipes using that infamous, hot rotisserie chicken found in most grocery stores. My only venture before was making soup from the carcass.
The “Gingered Peach Chicken and Rice” is to die for! Using fresh peaches as well as ¼ cup preserves and, my favorite spice, ginger, gives a wonderful sweet and sour effect, with just a little zing from the red pepper flakes. As suggested, serving it with jasmine rice was wonderful. I can guarantee there will be no leftovers.
I also tried the “Grapefruit Chicken Salad.” I never thought about combining grapefruit and chicken before and found it very appetizing. Of course, adding ¼ chopped fresh basil topped it off very nicely. Served on a bed of spring greens and sprinkled with toasted almonds made this dish perfect for a light dinner.
“The Rotisserie Chicken Cookbook” is a keeper for sure! Most of us are so busy we don’t have time to roast a chicken or let alone wait for it to cook on a rotisserie. Michelle Ann Anderson solved our dilemma.
Price: $16.95 Buy This Book
