This dish comes together so quickly it will amaze you and your family. You can try it with Thai green or yellow curry as well. To save time, purchase peeled uncooked shrimp.

There is something truly amusing about serving tiny little bits of this and that as a precursor to the main. Nothing too filling, but altogether satisfying unless you have the appetite of Sasquatch. This combo has caused my friends to dig in without cutlery — it’s that good. You can vary this recipe by preparing the plate with Boursin-style cheese, sugared walnuts, sliced avocado, smoked salmon and date–nut bread. I also like to substitute hot-pepper jelly or peach chutney for the fig jam. Another nice touch is to prepare one larger plate for each couple at the table. This recipe divides the ingredients into four individual servings for four people.

Perfect drizzled over fish, potatoes or beef.

Ajo blanco, a white version of gazpacho, is believed to have originated with the Moors. If you’d like a smoother texture, try soaking the blanched almonds in milk before processing.

This decadent dessert is impressive and easy to make.

For a Mexican dinner, I substitute tomato salsa and guacamole for the Mango Salsa. Sautéed sweet red peppers and onions make a delicious side dish.

Adapted from The Fondue Cookbook by Gina Steer (Whitecap Books).

Courtesy of www.pc.ca.

So simple to make with so few dishes to clean up - a nutritious dinner in a bowl. This dish can be prepared quickly in the microwave. However, a wok or frying pan can be used as an alternative.

Serve with cherry or plum dipping sauce. Adapted from a VH Sauces recipe.

I ordered a wedge salad on one of my first dates back in the 1960s and felt very grown-up doing so. This satisfying salad fell out of fashion for many years but is now popping up on restaurant menus again.

This white, meaty fish has great flavour whether its prepared simply or not. Rice and sautéed spinach make delicious accompaniments.

This takes forever to make, but man, is it good!

I deliberately buy too many bananas so I always have a few extra in the freezer for this bread. When bananas are just past the point of ripeness, peel and chop, then freeze them in a freezer bag or container. Be sure to use within two months. This recipe calls for sour cream or plain yogurt, which both happen to be staples in my fridge. They keep well and can be used for many other recipes as well. Plain yogurt is particularly delicious as a dessert when drizzled with honey.

Flank steak is a tougher cut of beef. It will be even juicier if you let it sit overnight in a marinade containing the juices of 1 lemon, 1 orange and 1 lime.

This sauce is incredibly versatile. It's used in a whole array of dishes from every day macaroni and cheese to special occasion lasagne. You can even easily increase or decrease the amount according to your needs.

This dish is sometimes called Involtini or Roulades, but my family has always referred to it as Braciole after the cut of beef used. This is my mother’s signature dish and it is my absolute favourite food in the whole wide world.

Continuing on the Russian theme, this is a dish we’ve all eaten at least once, probably years ago. The name alone — where it came from, no-one seems to know — makes any home cook feel important. And the taste, no matter what cut of beef you may choose to use (recipes call for everything from yesterday’s prime rib, to filet, to skirt steak — your choice), offers pure rib-sticking comfort.

Beef tenderloin is an expensive cut, but instead of treating your friends to a fancy restaurant, make dinner at home. It will cost less than dining at a high-end steak joint.

This recipe has 3 components to it -- beets, goat cheese phyllo packets and an egg. You can choose to put all three together on one dish, make 3 distinct dishes, or create one unique combination.

For an easy afternoon snack, whip up this delicious soy smoothie, using Tetra Pak packaged soy beverage. Use your favourite local berries for a treat the whole family will love.

Nothing blah about them. Crisp bacon and lettuce teamed up with avocado is an inspiring threesome. Go BLA!

Recipe courtesy of www.pc.ca .

This dish comes together in minutes, but be sure to turn on the fan because the cooking process creates some smoke. Serve French fries and a cooling side of coleslaw with the catfish.

Soy beverages in Tetra Pak cartons are a great alternative to buttermilk and it is full of vitamins and minerals.

Recipe courtesy of Lobel’s Meat Bible (Raincoast Books).

Surprise your taste buds with these tasty burgers.

Recipe courtest of the Dairy Farmers of Canada.

These delicious kabobs are perfect for barbecue cottage cuisine. Recipe courtesy of The Beef Information Centre.

Executive Chef Jason Lloyd of the revitalized Terminal City Club in Vancouver served this dish at a recent winemakers’ dinner. It was delicious. Caramelized onions, with fresh thyme, butter and a touch of Noble Sour — a sippable vinegar of very low acidity — were layered on a puff-pastry shell with grilled pear slices. This was served with a small salad of baby greens tossed in a wild-mushroom vinaigrette, garnished with a quenelle of Devon cream and a drizzle of fresh chive oil, and paired well with Crowsnest Vineyard’s Chardonnay Stahltank 2004 Family Reserve.

This is a very yummy grilled flank steak recipe that I tried for the first time in Southern California. It’s a no-fail recipe that makes good use of a tough cut of beef. Serve with hot tortillas and salsa or with a side of grilled corn on the cob.

Recipe courtesy of McCormick Canada.

Serve this soup hot or chilled. Recipe adapted from Oster. 

This is a family recipe that has been passed down through the ages. This is not one of those crisp-tender veggie dishes — you cook the cauliflower until it’s soft and well-steeped with wine. If purple cauliflower isn’t your thing, try it with dry white wine. My older brother Allen prefers this dish made with red-wine vinegar and sugar rather than with regular vino. Try it all three ways and see what you think.

A soufflé isn't as tricky to make as is often thought. It's true that it must be served immediately for all to enjoy the sight of that spectacular puffy top. But, it's actually very tasty regardless of whether its "breath" has escaped and deflated it.

You can prepare the simple sauce a day in advance. Just heat before serving. When you're ready to serve it, arrange broccoli on a serving platter and top with chicken. Pour sauce over chicken and sprinkle with basil and green onion, if desired. Recipe courtesy of McCormick Canada.

Another fun dish, which when done with minimal care can make you a kitchen hero. Especially when the butter spurts. Steamed vegetables, minimally seasoned, will pair nicely with this rich dish.

I have been a paté freak ever since earlier writing times, when I would sit at the bar at Thursday’s in Montréal with a loaf of it, a jar of small, sweet gherkins and a red (probably plum) sauce. Whether or not there was bread, I can't remember. But it was a coarse paté; you could see the lumps and taste masses of herbs and tonnes of garlic. You don't forget things like that, especially in the first twelve or so hours! This recipe calls on several others, but ended up being mostly my own. I use frozen livers, and just before they thaw, cut them up like red ice cubes. It's less yucky than having a great glob of fresh meat!

My mother started making this dish when we were small. Imagine four little kids sitting around a dinner table with palates so refined that we scarfed up Chicken Marsala like other kids eat Kraft Dinner. Of course, we threw chicken at each other when our parents weren’t looking, so we weren’t totally refined. I use sweet Marsala Fine for a great tasting sauce.

Tuck the grilled chicken pieces into a pita, or lay them on top of hot buttered rice. For a great taste variation, try using turkey, pork or lamb in place of the chicken. You can also roast or broil the meat in the oven instead of grilling it.

There's nothing like homemade stock. Yes, it takes hours to simmer, but the resulting flavour is unequalled. Here's my take on a classic. Feel free to add your own variations to it.

The flavour of the dish will change depending on the type of curry you use, so pick the curry flavour you like best and run with it, paste or powder. I buy chicken breast fillets when they’re on sale and keep them in the freezer for quick no-fuss meals.

I had this lovely autumn dish at a restaurant and experimented with it at home. A light sprinkling of cayenne pepper adds just enough bite to balance the sweet sauce. This is delicious with mashed red potatoes and steamed broccoli, which is exactly how the restaurant served it to me.

Pick up cooked chicken fillets, bagged salad, cheese, mango and ciabatta bread at the supermarket on your way home from work and assemble this salad in minutes. The hearty vinaigrette pairs well with leftover turkey too.

Hot chili and chocolate make a surprisingly good combination. Sweet, smooth chocolate flavour melts on your tongue and satisfies your taste buds, then finishes with a kick of heat.