Hearty Homestyle Murder: Book 9 in The Darling Deli Series Read Free Page B

chance at entering a soup in the fair. As she had just told them, having fun was what mattered. Winning came second.
    Candice and Eli arrived shortly after David did, with Dante hot on their heels. Moira still found herself wishing that the shy young man had wanted to be part of their little employee-only soup contest. He had proven himself to be a genius in the kitchen—his quiches were a big hit and nearly always sold out during their breakfast hours. She couldn’t blame him for being busy, though. Goodness knows, I’m way too busy myself these days , she thought. Especially now that I have to cater Elli Willis’s engagement party. The card that the mayor had given her was still burning a hole in her pocket; she hadn’t had a chance to call the other woman yet, and until she did she wouldn’t have the faintest idea of whether she was going to be preparing food for ten people or for a hundred.
    “Okay, Ms. Darling, we’re ready,” Allison said from the kitchen doorway, startling Moira out of her thoughts.
    “All right, Allison. You and the others can come and sit down out here. Dante and I will bring the bowls out.”
    Each of her three employees who had decided to take part in the competition had made enough soup for eight people. Each of them—her, David, Candice, Eli, Dante, Alison, Meg, and Darrin—would be getting three small bowls of soup, but only David, Candice, and Eli would be judging the soups. Moira would, of course, have the final say later, but for now she was happy just to sit back and enjoy someone else’s cooking.
    They pushed two of the deli tables together and pulled up enough seats for all eight of them, then brought the soups out. Once everyone was seated, Moira raised her glass of fresh orange and mango juice—her latest innovation was an industrial juicer, and since it had been installed, she had enjoyed playing around with different combinations—and toasted to the three employees who had worked so hard on their soups.
    “I can’t wait to start eating,” she told them. “Each of these soups looks delicious.”
    It was true. Each of the soups fulfilled the simple requirements of being a hearty, homestyle dish using simple ingredients. The bowl on her left held a creamy chicken and noodle soup that smelled temptingly of rosemary. When she took a bite of it, it was every bit as good as it had smelled, and the chicken was so tender that it practically melted in her mouth.
    The bowl in the middle held a rich beef soup, with dark broth flavored with a dry red wine and bite-sized, flavorful dumplings. She had been certain that the chicken soup would be her favorite—she had always been partial to chicken noodle soup—but after tasting the delicious, savory flavor of the beef and dumpling soup she wasn’t so sure.
    The final soup was some sort of gumbo, chock full of vegetables. She tasted it warily, concerned that it might be too spicy compared to the others, but the heat was mild and was balanced perfectly by the sweet kernels of corn that burst between her teeth. Noticing the square of cornbread sitting on the plate next to the bowl, she tore a small piece off and dipped it in the gumbo before popping it into her mouth. Scrumptious. This was going to be a hard decision for her three judges to make; she thought that each of the recipes was amazing.
    “It’s a tough choice,” David said at last after taking one more considering bite of the gumbo. “But I think I’m ready to cast my vote.”
    “Me too,” Eli said. Candice nodded in agreement.
    “You go first,” David said to her.
    “Well, I loved everything,” she began. “Seriously, you guys are really good cooks. But I think my favorite was the gumbo. I like that it’s a bit different, but still uses normal, everyday ingredients. Plus, it’s one of the best vegetarian soups that I’ve ever had.”
    Moira was startled; she hadn’t even realized that the gumbo had been lacking a meat. The thick slices of portobello