Chef Shares Recipe Finds with Club Members

Reliable Source diners who liked the soup last Friday got an additional treat: The recipe.
A long-time fan of newspapers' food sections, Executive Chef Susan Delbert decided to do what lots of foodies do: Try the recipe, make some tweaks and then share a good find.

Delbert was intrigued by the carrot and tahini soup recipe in the April 7 New York Times' food section. So she put it on Friday's buffet and left copies next to the soup tureen. In future weeks, she'll try an entree, salad or other recipe from a food section and provide the recipe for that week's selection.

"For those who cook, this will give you an opportunity to try something you've read before experimenting yourself," she said. "We take the guess work out of a new recipe."

Member Betsy Greer said she loved the idea -- and the soup.

"I like to make soups," she said, adding that the carrot tahini soup "had a nice little bite in it. I would never have thought of putting tahini in it."

Delbert said the recipe she chooses each week will be included in the buffet as soon as all the ingredients are in house and the dish is prepared by the NPC cooks.

"It might be Wednesday, Thursday or Friday, depending upon (ingredient) availability," she said. "I will copy the recipe for members who wish a copy and we will note any changes we have made to the recipe.

"Making the recipe and allowing interested cooks/members the opportunity to try it may take some of the angst out of trying a new recipe for the home cook. Often recipes call for ingredients one does not have on hand, and there may be a reluctance to purchase tahini, for example, if there is no way of knowing how a recipe will result. We take that uncertainty out of the picture."

Delbert said the recipie selection is likely to come from the Washington Post, New York Times, Washington Examiner or a paper farther afield, such as the Chicago Tribune.