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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

Recipe courtesy of McCormick Canada.

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

Spread this delicious curd on toast and croissants, use it to fill pastry shells, or pour into a pretty jar and give it away.

Somewhere in the back of your cupboard you have a can of crabmeat. Tonight’s the night. Lemon wedges and hot pepper sauce are the ideal condiments, with steamed green beans and potato salad to round out the meal. Or whatever you have. 

Large uncooked frozen shrimp are so convenient and often on sale. Pick up a bag next time the price is right and pair with beans for an elegant entrée. Garlic will keep in the fridge for quite a while, but for convenience’s sake, you can use jarred minced garlic instead. If you’d like, add a can of diced tomatoes to this dish.

Spread your favourite jam on each crêpe and spoon a dollop of whipped cream sweetened with sugar and a splash of Luxardo Maraschino liqueur to transform this appetizer into a luscious dessert. Updated from an old recipe I had from Sunset Magazine.

A court bouillon is a seasoned liquid that is cooked for only a short time. Once it has simmered for 30 minutes, it can be used to blanch vegetables or to gently cook fish or snails. 

A decidedly different cranberry sauce. Serve warm or cold.

Most of the components of this dish can be prepared ahead, allowing you lots of time to enjoy your guests. Recipe adapted from Gina Steer’s The Fondue Cookbook (Whitecap Books).

Be sure to choose firm cucumbers for this dish. English Cucumbers are the easiest to use because they contain minimal seeds. Otherwise, you can remove the seeds from other cucumber varieties with a small spoon.

Christine Sharp submitted this recipe for Tidings' Maple Syrup Recipe Contest

She makes a simple applesauce to accompany pork that all of her guests rave about.  It has a certain je ne sais quoi, except that only she and her husband know exactly what the "quoi" is. She likes the fact that no one can really tell what makes it taste so good.  The secret is a tablespoon each of maple syrup and calvados.

Skip takeout and start making easy-breezy sandwiches at home. This steak wrap couldn’t be simpler and comes with way less attitude than the teenager rolling up your sub sandwich at the strip mall.

If you have trouble finding some of the ingredients for this dish, there are some easy substitutions you can make, and you will still end up with the same delicious results. For the tamarind, make a paste out of lemon juice and dried dates, or use 1/2 cup cider vinegar mixed with 1 Tbsp sugar. For the galangal, use fresh ginger. For the lemon grass, use the rind of 4 small lemons.

In India, a chat is a snack, an appetizer or a light salad.

Some people prefer to blend all the ingredients together while others prefer the look of mixed and chopped ingredients. Experiment to find which method is your favourite.

Asparagus is best when it’s served immediately. Remember to rinse the morels well because they can harbour sand. This recipe, created by chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten of New York’s Jean Georges Restaurant, was taken from The New York Restaurant Cookbook by Florence Fabricant (Rizzoli International Publications, Inc).

Recipe adapted from Great Foods of the World -- Regional Italian, Mexican and Asian Cooking by Evan Kleiman, Susan Feninger, Mary Sue Milliken, Joyce Jue (Fog City Press).

Feel free to prepare corn up to 1 day ahead. Instead of tying the corn husk in place, seal each ear with its husk in foil. The corn can then cook over direct or indirect heat.

This popular Italian rice dish has infinite variations. If you’re short on time, make this risotto a day or two ahead of when you need it. It can be reheated in the oven in just a few minutes.

Recipe adapted from Great Foods of the World -- Regional Italian, Mexican and Asian Cooking by Evan Kleiman, Susan Feniger, Mary Sue Milliken and Joyce Jue (Fog City Press).

This recipe is quick and tasty. It's a great way to use up all of those tomatoes that are so abundant in late summer.