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

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

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.

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.

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.

Although this recipe calls for liqueur, whisky, rum or any other spirit would work as well.

This recipe is adapted from Tom Jaine's and Nicholas Campion's book, Cosmic Cuisine - The Astrological Cookbook (Windward).

A decidedly different cranberry sauce. Serve warm or cold.

Dried cranberries sometimes contain a trace amount of oil on the surface. Take a moment and use paper towels to blot off any oily film floating on the strained liqueur.

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.

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.

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).

Spring lamb is very tender and flavourful. The vegetables and herbs in this dish mellow the gamey taste that lamb sometimes has.

Read Kitchen Essentials -- Meringue for tips and tricks on how to prepare this simple, gourmet dessert.

Henny Smith submitted this maple syrup-based recipe for the Tidings' Maple Syrup Recipe Contest.

Henny's recipe for maple pie is made with her own dark syrup. It is a variation on a maple tart recipe from Harrowsmith Country Life.

I love making stews. Hearty and nutritious, you can add almost any ingredient to the pot and end up with a scrumptious meal. Although this recipe calls for moose, which must be ordered from your butcher about two weeks in advance, you can use bison or beef instead. The ingredients are those I have on hand all the time, but feel free to add your own favourites.

This is one of those dishes that, at first glance, seems too complicated for anyone other than a chef. Actually, it couldn’t be easier. The sweet flavour of the meat compliments the dish’s melt-in-your mouth texture.

If dried peaches are hard to come by, substitute dried apricots instead.

If the jar's seal is rubber, cover the glass top with plastic wrap to protect the seal from the alcohol which can eventually soften the rubber.

Pierrette Mather submitted this recipe for Tidings' Maple Syrup Recipe Contest.

She suggests that this recipe is also excellent with rabbit.

A flavourful recipe adapted from the California Culinary Academy.

Mild sweet leeks are available year round but their peak season begins in the fall. Trim off the root end and green leaves, and use only the tender white part. Be sure to wash thoroughly as leeks can be gritty. Mushrooms, like leeks, are grown in dirt. Although some cooks prefer to gently wipe mushrooms, I always wash them in cold running water, patting them dry afterward with a paper towel.

Risotto is very easy to make. Give it a little attention as it simmers, and you’ll end up with a flavourful and enticing dish.

Steaming salmon and vegetables in parchment paper is one of the easiest of recipes. Vary this dish with your favourite seafood and whatever vegetables you have on hand. If using harder vegetables like carrots or potatoes, give them a head start by microwaving them in a small amount of water until nearly tender before wrapping them up with the fish.

Courtesy of The Silver Spoon (Phaidon Press).

This is a quick and lemon-lime-tasting recipe adapted from The Young Thailand Cookbook by Wandee Young and Byron Ayanoglu (Random House Canada). Fresh clams are a must. Look for specimens that have intact shells, and that close when they’re tapped. Serve with hot sauce and steamed rice.

Ask the butcher for 2 trimmed lamb rib roasts containing 9 bones each. Make sure he cuts off the back bones, so that it's easier for you to carve the roast, and that he joins the two rib portions to form a crown. Serve the roast with Tangerine Scented Rice.

Recipe provided by Chef Paul Stewart.