Nominated by Kathryn Lambis

"Peggy Schuster is a joy to watch in the kitchen, where her love of family, friends and food is a true celebration of life. Originally from Ohio, Peggy can create wonderful 'Americana' dinners for her boys. But her real passion is to try new recipes and master all types of culinary cultures.

"Our book club rejoices whenever it's Peggy's turn to host. During the summer, we were served a selection of homemade individual flatbread pizzas, topped with a variety of crunchy veggies, tangy meats and herbs grown from Peggy's garden. This was capped off with fresh fruit garnished with an extraordinary light sour cream yogurt sauce flavored with Kahlua. At a spring birthday luncheon, she served a splendid light cold shrimp and shoepeg corn salad. For another fall birthday she prepared a sherried chicken and rice casserole, then re-created Horseradish Grill's famous Kentucky Oatmeal Cake, served with the maple ice cream, for birthday dessert."

Peggy Schuster's zest for life comes full circle in her kitchen and around her table. It is here that she makes people feel truly special and where she creates memories that last long after the dishes are put away.

Family/background: "I grew up in Springfield, Ohio, a good place to grow up. I have four brothers and one sister. For the past 22 years I've been married to Steve. We have two boys, Todd, 17, and Neil, 14."

Career: "I have a teaching degree but have worked in medical sales off and on for many years. I am now working part time helping my husband in his company."

Hobbies, interests: "I love gardening, reading, cooking and primitive rug hooking, which is a subculture that not many know about. Steve and I love our yard and enjoy working out there together. The boys dread a party sometimes, because they know they will be working hard in the yard a few days before, but in the end they enjoy it."

Who taught you to cook? "I helped my mom in the kitchen a lot while growing up, and developed my skills as I grew up. My mom had to feed my four brothers, who were all football players, so a big dinner every single night was a given. I learned early on to grab that last potato! We ate lots of normal things, but Mom was a good cook -- nothing fancy, but we all looked forward to dinner every night. When you heard the 6 o'clock church bells, you knew to head home for dinner."

Culinary roots: "My family and my husband's family are Irish Catholic and German. We enjoyed German food growing up as well. We both come from big families, so big get-togethers were the norm. Lots of friends, fun, laughs and good food."

Cooking style: "My cooking style is very eclectic. If I see a recipe that looks good, I will try it. I can count on my son Todd to find recipes he wants me to try."

Early food memory: "My dad grilling chicken with barbecue sauce on Sunday afternoons in our back yard on his specially built outdoor barbecue/rotisserie. He loved that thing! My mom's mashed potatoes and birthday dinners prepared just for me.

"My kids love our Red Plate, the 'You are special today' plate. I surprise them with it sometimes after they get good grades, have a good golf tournament, birthdays, etc. It's a great tradition that they love."

For whom do you cook? "I love to cook for family, especially on the weekends, when I have more time. I also enjoy doing birthday lunches for friends as gifts because they mean so much to me. Steve and I recently made dinner for a few of Todd's friends, all senior Marist football players. We grilled eight flank steaks, served chopped salad, pasta with tomato cream sauce, blue cheese pasta salad and chocolate chip cake for dessert. They ate a lot, and we loved having them."

Memorable meal: "We need to celebrate the good times as often as possible. We have so many wonderful memories of good times around our table and in our back yard with friends, neighbors and family. It's our favorite thing to do. We had a great dinner celebration at the beach this past summer with my family. My younger brother (my personal hero) had just arrived home from Iraq, and we had a shrimp feast. It was a joyful celebration. Also this summer about 24 pounds of live lobsters [arrived] from Nova Scotia one Sunday night in August around 11 p.m. We were leaving the next day for my son's golf tournament so we cooked the lobsters right then, spread the table with newspaper and ate them with lemon and butter at midnight. It was what I like to call a 'memory maker.' "

Culinary ambition: "I would love to bike, hike and cook through Tuscany some day, and I will. I'd also like to learn how to prepare Thai food, with its very interesting flavor combinations."

Favorite thing to eat: "A great salad, grilled meat or fish and a good glass of wine. Chocolate bread pudding with vanilla sauce, which I only make once or twice a year. You put on 10 pounds, at least, with each bite!"

Pet peeve: "Cleanup; and my son Neil asking me at 7:30 a.m. what is for dinner."

Memorable flop: "There have been many, but I've never let them stop me."

Preferred ingredient: "I like a really good olive oil."

Best thing about your kitchen: "I love my kitchen and my Viking range. Steve let me renovate our kitchen so that I was able to get most of the toys I wanted."

• Magic ingredient: "Love, of course! Cooking is my way of giving back to others who mean a lot to me. I can't do a lot of things well, but I can put a pretty good meal together and enjoy doing it and sharing it with others."

• Favorite cookbook: "One of my favorites is 'A Touch of Atlanta,' put out by Marist school. There are some very special recipes in there, like Shrimp and Eggs Mornay, that I have tried very successfully. Another good one I use quite often is 'This School Cooks,' put out by St. Jude the Apostle School in Sandy Springs. There is a recipe for Regency Beef Tenderloin with horseradish butter that people love, and a very nice pasta salad with blue cheese and grapes."

• Entertaining tips: "Invite someone over . . . do what you can with what you have, when you have it, and just enjoy the company. Don't get yourself tied up in knots."

• Fantasy meal: "My whole family -- brothers, sister, nieces, nephews, etc. We are spread around the country, and it is hard to get together. Our parents are gone, so getting together is important. We still miss them. We would eat one meal and start talking about what we will have at the next. Good food, good laughs and being together."

-- Betty Parham

SOUP

Cold Zucchini Soup

Makes 8 servings

Preparation time: 20 minutes plus 6 to 8 hours' refrigeration

Cooking time: 30 minutes

This soup can easily be halved for ease of mixing.

6 to 8 medium zucchini, quartered and sliced

2 (14-ounce) cans low-sodium chicken broth

2 bunches green onions, green part only

1/2 teaspoon dried or fresh dill, or to taste

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons chopped chives

Paprika

In a pot, bring zucchini, chicken broth, green onions, dill, salt and pepper to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes or until softened. Set aside to cool for a few minutes.

In a food processor, blend cream cheese and sour cream. Gradually add small batches of the zucchini mixture and process until well-blended and smooth (at some point, you will probably have to transfer the mixture to a bowl and stir in the remaining pureed zucchini).

Chill for 6 to 8 hours. Garnish with chives and paprika.

Per serving: 302 calories (percent of calories from fat, 74), 11 grams protein, 8 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber, 26 grams fat, 75 milligrams cholesterol, 660 milligrams sodium.

Who are the best cooks? We're looking for Georgia home cooks who deserve recognition for their talents and who have interesting recipes to share. Fax at 404-526-5509, e-mail kitchen@ajc.com or write to Betty Parham, Food Department, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 72 Marietta St. N.W., Atlanta, GA 30303. Give us your name and phone number, as well as the name and number of the cook you'd like us to consider. And tell us a little about what makes this cook special.