Want to try something new in the kitchen? Join the All in a Weekend Cookbook Club

The All in a Weekend Cookbook Club is back! That's when you get to try a cookbook and come on the radio to talk about your adventures in the kitchen.

We have a brand new crop of books to get you through the chilly weather, and maybe try cooking something outside of your routine.

Jonathan Cheung from Appetite for Books in Westmount, Que., helped narrow down the selection to the three we have for this season:

• Eat, Habibi, Eat! by Shahir Massoud.
• From Gujarat with Love by Vina Patel.
• A Pot, A Pan, and a Bowl by Lidia Bastianich.

Shahir Massoud, known for his time on CBC's The Goods, tapped into his Egyptian heritage for Eat, Habibi, Eat!, his first cookbook. Massoud describes the recipes as a "fun take on Middle Eastern cooking," with 100 recipes that explore the flavours and colours of the cuisine.

"It's intimidating for people trying this cuisine for the first time," says Cheung. With easy-to-follow instructions and approachable recipes, this is a good cookbook for people who want to try cooking Middle Eastern Food at home with recipes for things like Egyptian whole wheat bread, fried shrimp sandwiches and the classic fudge-like sweet halva.

Indian vegetarian food is a world full of textures and flavours that are perfect for the cold months in Canada. Vina Patel explores authentic cuisine from India's west coast in the state of Gujarat. Cheung really likes the soup section of the book, in particular, the samosa soup and spiced yogurt soup.

Patel has included some of the popular street food in Gujarat, as well as common dishes in Gujarati households such as different kinds of dahl (lentils) as well as vegetable-forward dishes like smoky eggplant curry. He denotes recipes that are vegan, gluten free or dairy free.

Lidia Bastianich is a bestselling cookbook author and an award-winning TV host of her own cooking show on public television in the United States. Her latest cookbook is A Pot, A Pan, and a Bowl.

"She's known for making warm, hearty Italian comfort food that's simple to make at home," says Cheung. There are recipes for Italian classics like wedding soup as well as a recipe for skillet lasagna and two different kinds of panzanella salad. For those who are looking to try something new, Cheung suggests the recipe for risotto, made with steel cut oats instead of Arborio rice, is one to try.

If you would like to be a part of the All in a Weekend Cookbook Club and join me live on the air in January to talk about your culinary adventures, you will need to try a minimum of three recipes from the book of your choosing.

To enter, send an email to weekend.montreal@cbc.ca with your name, address, the cookbook you would like to try (and a second choice), as well as a little bit about yourself and who you'll be cooking for (those in your household or people who will come over to taste what you're trying).

Participants must live in the province of Quebec. The deadline to enter is midnight on Dec. 4, 2021.