Pikesville resident Susan Cohen enjoys entertaining. She loves setting a pretty table, hanging out with family and friends and of course, eating.
On the other hand, when she’s the one doing the entertaining, she wants to prepare easy dishes that “I can place in the oven and call it a day,” she says.
For a number of years, Cohen and her family participated in weekly Shabbat dinners with a group of neighbors. They would alternate homes, with the hostess cooking the main dish and the guests bringing a side.
Today, they still get together, but as life has become more hectic, it has become a monthly ritual. It was hard to walk in the door from work 5:30 p.m. and have dinner ready for the group by 6:30, she admits.
Shabbat dinner, she adds, is not always traditional. “We are happy to do Italian, Greek, Chinese, or whatever nationality the host feels like cooking for Shabbat,” she says.
Some of her favorite go-to recipes are this chicken scampi, given to her by her mother, Judy Zerwitz. “She gives me all of my good, easy recipes,” she says.
