With its soy sauce, rice vinegar and ginger dressing, this cucumber salad is the perfect side dish to any Asian-inspired recipe. It’s a refreshing salad that can be enjoyed in summer or any time of year.

In this recipe, cod fillets are served on a roasted sweet potato half and topped with a warm crunchy salad made with asparagus slices and raw broccoli. Top it all off with roasted almonds and enhance the flavour with maple syrup and sambal oelek. It’s big on flavour and texture!

We’ve improved the usual beef meatballs by adding grated zucchini and oats. Not only did we improve their dietary fibre content, but they’re also super tender and gluten free—as long as you used gluten-free oats—due to their lack of bread or breadcrumbs.

If you’re looking for a quick meatless meal to enjoy at home, try our RICARDO ready-to-eat vegetarian chili. Serve it alongside this rice cooked in chicken broth with green onions and garlic, flavours that pair well with those of the chili. With its touch of lime, it brings freshness to your plate, while the herbs delicately perfume the rice and colour it beautifully green.

Ham is a staple at the sugar shack, but it certainly begs to be revamped. Give it a strong aromatic base with fresh ginger, garlic, hot pepper and soy sauce. You can cook it fast in the pressure cooker or slower in the slow cooker for more tender meat. Serve it as is or in a sandwich. We’ve certainly come a long way from the traditional braised ham with boiled potatoes.

Look at tofu in a new light by grating it and then roasting it with spices and maple syrup for a protein-rich topping. Use it as a garnish on a crispy salad with sugar snap peas, red cabbage, carrots and cucumber. Sprinkle with dried ramen noodles (without the super-salty seasoning!) for added crunch.

One skillet is the only tool you need to make this simple and generous meal. First, brown the chicken thighs, and then soften the carrots and fennel. Then add some broth, brown rice and raisins, and continue cooking. Garnish with fennel fronds, lemon zest and a bit of Parmesan cheese.

Chickpeas have the same comforting power as yellow peas in this popular pea soup. However, this preparation is made much simpler thanks to canned legumes, which soak up the flavours of the curry powder, ground coriander and Jamaican pepper. Add Brussels sprouts leaves and roasted chickpeas as a topping, along with garlic chips. A drizzle of maple syrup intensifies the soup’s flavour.

There’s no need to wait for dessert to eat some maple taffy on snow; you can enjoy some during cocktail hour. In this drink, you’ll note the freshness of the white apple vermouth and the resinous aromas of the gin and rosemary. You’ll also find the latter in the sugar, which is used to coat the rim of your glass to give it a frosted look. Fill your glass with crushed ice and add a stick of taffy to it.

Cabbage Soup Gratinée (French onion soup-style)