Cheddar and Sage Skillet Cornbread

Slightly coarse cornmeal adds a pleasing crunchy texture to cornbread. No multigrain flour? Use 1/3 cup (75 mL) each all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour. Be sure to measure out the ingredients before you put the skillet in the hot oven. There's just enough time to mix them while the butter melts and the skillet heats.

Irish Soda Bread

A loaf of bread takes too long to make — and isn't it fattening, too? So why bother? Irish soda bread says phooey to both these ideas. With baking soda instead of yeast, you can bake a loaf in less than an hour. With buttermilk and whole wheat flour, this dense, moist bread fits very nicely into a healthy diet. Here's a master recipe with two variations — one with honey and fruit and one with cheese and onion.

Shore Lunch-Style Fried Whitefish

Northwest Territories

Great Slave Lake in the Northwest Territories is a destination for fishermen from around the world. A shore lunch of fresh-caught fish is a must when fishing in N.W.T. In this version of the classic shore lunch, inspired by Greg Robertson of Bluefish Services, whole wheat flour replaces all-purpose flour and a touch of cornmeal adds a pleasant crunch to the coating. Use the freshest firm white-fleshed fish you can find, such as whitefish, pickerel, halibut or cod.

Cheddar and Chipotle Focaccia

This focaccia dough is moist and a bit difficult to handle at first. It needs a long kneading (easiest in a stand mixer) and a rise overnight in the refrigerator to come together in texture and flavour. To prevent the dough from taking on any fridge odours, place the covered bowl in a plastic bag. Whole spelt flour gives a wonderful and subtle nutty boost to the flavour of the white flour; you could replace it with whole wheat flour, if you prefer. To prepare the chipotle peppers, soak them in boiling water until softened, about 15 minutes. Remove stems; split and seed.

Whole Wheat and Oat Sandwich Loaf

Whether it's freshly sliced, or toasted and spread with butter and jam, this is a fantastic breakfast bread. It's full of flavour, rich in fibre and moist, yet beguilingly light textured.

Multigrain Bread

You can get a perfectly lovely loaf of bread in a conventional oven, but a convection oven gives bread an even crispier crust.

Honey Whole Wheat Scones

These tasty scones pair well with chunky vegetable soups and stews.

Country Seed Bread

When bread machines first became popular a few years ago, The Canadian Living Test Kitchen got busy adapting recipes. Very easy to make in the machine — and almost as easy by hand — this loaf is nutty, chewy and just plain good.

Cranberry Bannock

Molasses Oat Bread