Vegetarian

One of the best ways to fill Half Your Plate (and all of your soup bowl) is with a simple pureed soup. They’re a time-honoured and super-simple way to get a whole lot of vegetable flavour on the table in a hurry – maybe even hide vegetables from finicky eaters. This one was custom created by Honourable Jeff Leal with Chef Michael Smith’s coaching!

Who said baking a homemade dessert has to be difficult? Not me. This dessert could not be simpler and is fully customizable. It has 2 basic parts - the apple filling and the oatmeal topping. Choose any type of apple (or a combination), your favourite fresh or frozen berry, and any of the baking spices. Ginger, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, or simply cinnamon all work.

Sweet potatoes are undeniably healthy being packed full of micronutrients, betacarotene and fibre. They're guaranteed nutritional powerhouses, even when you make one of my favourite holiday treats from south of the border, covered with a thick layer of marshmallows. I'm convinced this classic was created by parents whose kids weren't the least bit interested in how healthy sweet potatoes are, until they showed up at the table covered in marshmallows.

One of my all time favourite ways to enjoy ripe tomatoes is in a chilly bowl of puréed gazpacho soup. Normally raw ripe tomatoes are the base for the soup but since the local tomato season is so fleeting you can concentrate and brighten their flavours any time of the year by roasting them first!

Pesto is an intensely flavored condiment traditionally made from fresh green herbs, nuts, cheese and olive oil. It’s an incredibly easy way to add a big, bright boost of fresh flavor to nearly any dish. This version is less expensive than the classic Genovese blend of basil, pine nuts and Parmigiano-Reggiano, but with spicy arugula, peperoncini and almonds it’s just as flavorful. You can just as easily incorporate traditional fresh basil into the works if you like. Either way, you’ll discover that a little goes a long way.

I love fruit. I live for fruit. I'm powered by fruit! When fruit is properly ripened, it can be one of the best things to eat, so when you combine all your favourites together in a fruit salad, it can be a revelation.

How about balancing all that sweet with some sour lime, spicy chilli and cooling mint? Or what about using a secret ingredient that pairs perfectly with fruit? No one will ever know that it's vanilla adding that mysterious yet familiar flavour.

You can add a delicious spin to this classic group of Mediterranean flavours by grilling the vegetables instead of stewing them. For bright bursts of flavour I like to add lots of fresh aromatic basil leaves too. Next time you fire up your grill try preparing this recipe first, it’s the perfect side dish for grilling season. What a great way to fill half your plate with vegetables and all your plate with grilled flavour!

Coleslaw is a classic pairing for pulled pork, primarily because of the crunchy texture contrasting against the soft pork. Plain cabbage can come along way with a bright dressing. My secret ingredient is fennel seeds, but it can be swapped out for your favourite herb or spice. As long as you start with mayonnaise and add something sour and something sweet, your coleslaw will taste great. It will be delicious as soon as you make it, but will taste even better the next day after the ingredients have gotten to know each other.

There are a lot of reasons to eat asparagus. It's green, it's healthy, it's tasty and delicious. And perhaps the best reason to eat these tender, slender stalks is because they're traditionally served with Hollandaise sauce. Here's everything you need to simply steam asparagus and extravagantly transform butter into the richest, silkiest, smoothest sauce known to man.

Steaming asparagus and other green vegetables is always a better option to boiling. Boiling takes away texture and leaches away flavour, colour, and nutrients.

This traditional tapas bar snack is sometimes served between two slices of rustic crusty bread. It’s just as delicious served plain. Either way, the bright pickled tomatoes steal the show. This is the sort of dish you’ll quickly come to crave.

Looking for more simple and delicious recipes to make for breakfast, school lunches, and weekday dinners when you are short on time? Check out my latest cookbook, Family Meals, for 99 more recipes that will help make mealtime fun and get your family involved in the kitchen.

In the middle of winter, few dishes comforts cold hands and empty stomachs like a big bowl of steaming chili. This vibrant vegetarian version is bursting with bright flavours and stick-to-your-ribs heartiness. It's jam packed with veggies, beans and barley, which fills you up without weighing you down.

This is one of my favourite variations on a classic rice pilaf. It's spiced up with vibrant curry, colourful saffron, and succulent sweet potatoes which, ounce for ounce, are one of the most nutritionally dense vegetables readily available.

For a meal befitting of the lords and ladies in your life, pack this fragrant rice into small bowls and ramekins, then inverse onto the serving plates. Top with a sprig or two cilantro before surrounding the rice with some sautéed shrimp or steamed mussels.