'EVERYBODY COOKS' FROM DIERBERGS' NEW CD-ROM

BARBARA MURRAY

CHESTERFIELD, Mo. -- Dierbergs Markets here has released a new CD-ROM cookbook containing more than 1,900 recipes that the expanding, family-owned chain of 18 stores expects will help boost its Center Store sales.

"Everybody Cooks," the interactive cookbook, draws from 15 years of Dierbergs' popular television show and recipe magazine of the same name, both issued quarterly. The CD, priced at $19.95, is displayed in several locations throughout the stores, which are clustered around St. Louis. The upscale chain will open its first store outside Missouri next year, moving into Belleville, Ill.

Each time the show airs, a list of ingredients goes out to all stores beforehand so they can stock up. Particular attention is paid to ingredients that are a little unusual, said Debbie Robberson, director of the store at West Oak Square where one of the four cooking schools is located.

"If it calls for something like pignoli nuts, you want to be sure you bring in an extra case or two, because they will sell out," she told SN during a recent store visit. And those ingredients are usually at full price, providing a decent margin for the stores.

On the first day the CD went on sale, 174 were sold, said Barbara Ritenhour, director of consumer affairs and of the cooking school. "We want to make it fun and interesting to cook at home," she said.