FOXNews.com: The Washington Post's first cookbook celebrates its readers

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The Washington Post's first cookbook celebrates its readers Jul 8th 2013, 13:21 The explosion of online recipes and cooking resources may have changed the way people prepare food, but there's something enduring about recipes from a newspaper. I remember when going through my mother's recipes, there were tired bits of food-stained, yellowed newspaper with some of the most fantastic recipes: Things like icebox cake or buttermilk fried chicken.   The Washington Post has been churning out recipes like these and more since 1956 when the newspaper debuted its food section.  Over the years, the newspaper has printed thousand of recipes and entertainment ideas under the helm of such storied names in the culinary world like food critic Phyllis Richman. But unlike other newspapers, such as the New York Times or Chicago Tribune or Los Angeles Times, which have published a library of cookbooks, the Washington Post never put its recipes together in a cookbook—until now. In April it released, "The Washington Post Cookbook: Readers' Favorite Recipes." "It's really for our readers," says deputy Food editor Bonnie Benwick who edited the book. "I figured getting reader recommendations is something they would respond to the best." The cookbook features a mix of old and new recipes-- from home cooks to local chefs and wives of foreign diplomats. There's a recipe for Million-Dollar Fudge from Mamie Eisenhower. The story goes that the First Lady was the guest of honor at the Arlington Republican Women's Club luncheon in 1967, but couldn't make it, instead sending each guest a foil-wrapped treat. The headline in the Post for this recipe read: "Fudge Party Was a Hit." Recipe: Million-Dollar Fudge Recipe: White Chocolate Crème Brulee Classics like these are juxtaposed with modern-day selects, like the Chocolate Ganache Cupcakes from Georgetown Cupcakes, of TLC's "DC Cupcakes" fame, or the Icy-Spicy Watermelon Soup from food stylist Lisa Cherkassy. Recipe: Icy-Spicy Watermelon Soup Recipe: Hominy Grill Shrimp Burgers But Benwick – who put out public notices in the paper to take suggestions for which recipes should be included --says the cookbook is really a collection of recipes for and by readers, some of which were pulled from some from the paper's most popular series. For the past six years, the newspaper holds an annual "Top Tomato" contest where readers submit their favorite recipe. "I am a tomato hound and has always been," says Benwick. "I thought this would be a good community builder. And the first we did it, I got 350 recipes that year.&quot The one that eventually made it into the book is a recipe from a reader: Tomato Kimchi-chi made with fresh tomatoes, jicama, daikon radish and Thai fish sauce. "People come up with inventive things," says Benwick.   The cookbook's –which has been released in select markets-- doesn't try to be a complete anthology of recipes for the diplomatic sect; nor is it a go-to directory of cooking classics and techniques. "I think it's for the Washington community, " she says. "Although, people say they send it to the people who used to live here.  It's an interesting bonding thing." So why did it take so long for the Post to release its first cookbook?  Benwick says some of it had to do limited staff in the food section and shifting priorities of a newspaper in the digital age. "The bottom line for me is that it happened.  The Post really deserves to have a cookbook," says Benwick. "I hope we get to continue to do other things.  There's definitely another one we can do on cookies."

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