Perfect gift ideas for Dad’s who likes to cook
Origins of Father’s Day
Have you ever wondered when the first Father’s Day was celebrated in North America?
Father’s Day originated in the early 20th century in the United States to celebrate fathers and fatherhood, like how we celebrate Mother’s Day. The holiday was established in Spokane, Washington in 1910 by Sonora Smart Dodd. Her father was a single parent who raised six children, so Dodd wanted to honour her father by creating a special day. Dodd suggested the idea to a pastor and the first Father’s Day celebration was held in June 1910 at the YMCA in Spokane. Dodd delivered gifts to handicapped fathers while boys from the YMCA pinned roses on the lapels of each father in attendance.
Father’s Day wasn’t officially recognized until 1972 when U.S. President Richard Nixon signed an act making Father’s Day a designated national holiday. (Source: History.com) Canadians began to observe Father’s Day in the 1920’s with Father’s Day always celebrated on the third Sunday in June, which means Father’s Day this year is on Sunday June 15, 2025.
Cookbook ideas for Dad
If you are looking for the perfect gift for the dad who likes to cook and barbeque, we have some great ideas for you!
Michael Smith Wood, Fire & Smoke; Recipes and Techniques for Wood-Fired Cooking
Man has been cooking with fire since the cavemen days and the trend continues today with barbeques, smokers and more. No one knows how to cook with fire better than award-winning Canadian chef Michael Smith who recently released his latest book Wood, Fire & Smoke: Recipes and Techniques for Wood-Fired Cooking. Smith is the master of the grill, having spent years perfecting wood, fire and smoke cooking. This book is inspired by Chef Smith’s annual FireWorks Feast that runs nightly at his seaside Inn of Bay Fortune in Prince Edward Island (from May 16th to October 11th).
Featuring over 80 recipes plus several chapters on cooking techniques, you won’t find a more comprehensive book on the art of cooking with fire. The different types of cooking techniques are explored, along with delicious recipes provided for grilling, smoking, spit-roasting, cooking over coals and more.
A few recipes to try include Apple Chicken Skewers with Mulled Cider Tare Sauce and Seven-Spice Sprinkle, Smoked Cracked Ribs with Old-School Dry Rub, Ember-Roasted Cavemen Ribeye Steaks with Board Sauce, Garlic Thyme Campfire Potatoes, Stick Bread with Three Butter Dips and Rum Creamsicle Campfire Marshmallows.
Chef Michael Smith. Copyright © 2025 Michael Smith, Photography by Al Douglas. Published by Penguin Random House®, Penguin Canada. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.
Michael Smith is a member of the Order of Canada, a Pinnacle Chef of the Year, and the author of 12 bestselling cookbooks. He’s also hosted and judged several TV cooking shows on The Food Network. If Dad likes to barbeque, Michael Smith’s Wood, Fire & Smoke is the perfect Father’s Day gift!
Excerpted from Wood, Fire & Smoke by Michael Smith. Copyright © 2025 Michael Smith, Photography by Al Douglas. Published by Penguin Random House®, Penguin Canada. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.
The New Camp Cookbook: Gourmet Grub for Campers, Road Trippers, and Adventurers by Linda Ly
Move over wieners, beans, and hamburgers. Your camping meals are about to go to the next level thanks to The New Camp Cookbook: Gourmet Grub for Campers, Road Trippers, and Adventurers by Linda Ly. Food will become part of your adventure as you combine fresh ingredients with upscale favourites and experience new global flavours.
This book will equip you with the tools needed to create an array of recipes in addition to tips on planning meals, packing a cooler, creating a camp pantry, building a fire, mastering the grill, how to cook in foil and more. Chapters include Setting Up a Camp Kitchen, Rise and Shine, Midday Meals, Small Bites, Camp Feasts and Sips & Sweets.
There is nothing like waking up to warm Buttermilk Pancakes with Maple, Mascarpone and Berries or Grilled French Toast and Bacon Bites. Ramp up your lunch menu by trying the recipes for Chipotle Cheddar Grilled Cheese with Mashed Avocado or Grilled Grape and Gorgonzola Pita Pockets. Dinner can include Charred Romaine Salad with Lemon-Anchovy Dressing, Tin Foil Seafood Boil or Korean Flank Steak with Sriracha-Pickled Cucumbers followed by Dutch Oven Strawberry-Rhubarb Cobbler. For late nights huddling around the campfire, kids and adults alike will love making Campfire S’mores 6 Ways.
Along with the many gourmet recipes, you will also find an array of kid-friendly recipes like Egg-in-a-Hole Grilled Cheese, Tomato Soup with Grilled Cheese Croutons and Pinwheel Picnic Wraps. For a delicious treat try Bacon-Wrapped Potatoes with Blue Cheese cooked in a Dutch oven over the campfire or Grilled Shrimp Tacos with Corn and Tomato Salsa.
Whether you are camping, glamping or cooking in your backyard, The New Camp Cookbook is a must-have book to make your summer even more enjoyable.
Excerpted with Publisher permission from The New Camp Cookbook: Gourmet Grub for Campers, Road Trippers, and Adventurers © 2017 Quatro Publishing Group USA Inc. Text © 2017 Linda Ly, Photography © 2017 Will Taylor. All rights reserved.
Matty Matheson Soups, Salads, Sandwiches
Renowned as his role as an actor (and executive producer) of the TV show The Bear, Canadian chef Matty Matheson is also a New York Times bestselling author. Matheson just released his third book called Matty Matheson Soups, Salads, Sandwiches which reinvents everyday fare into something special. You have never tasted soups, salads, or sandwiches until you try them Matty Matheson style!
A perfect recipe to make for Father’s Day breakfast would be Banana Bread French Toast with Fried Egg, Peameal Bacon and Maple Syrup. Or for an extra special lunch, treat dad to a steaming bowl of Cioppino (seafood soup). Perhaps a picnic is part of your Father’s Day plans and if so, a suggestion is the Grilled Salami Panzanella Salad, Taco Salad, or Everyone’s Mom’s Macaroni Tuna Salad. Sandwiches become company worthy when you try Matheson’s recipe for Chicken Parm, Fried Shrimp Po’Boy or Muffuletta, a huge loaf-style sandwich served on crusty Italian bread. And for dessert, Peanut Butter Cookie with Nutella and Salted Caramel Ice Cream Sandwich dipped in chocolate!
The delicious recipes are highlighted with mouthwatering photographs by Quentin Bacon. What makes this book special is the personal stories and photos of Matheson and his family enjoying life to the fullest.
Matty Matheson Soups, Salads, Sandwiches offers big, bold, beautiful and bountiful flavours to transform everyday meals from ho-hum to wowza, especially when mixed and matched to create exciting and delicious meals your entire family will love.
Excerpted from Matty Matheson Soups, Salads, Sandwiches by Matty Matheson. Copyright © 2024 Matty Matheson, Photographs copyright ©2024 Quentin Bacon. Published by Appetite by Random House®, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.
reviews by Laurie Wallace-Lynch
Check back soon for links to exciting recipes excerpted from these best sellers!
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