Endless recipes call for onions as a base ingredient: soups, salads, pasta dishes, stir-fries, you name it. But many recipes also make onions the star ingredient of the meal.

Serve this tart as an elegant seasonal starter or with a green salad for a meatless lunch or supper.

This German-style autumn onion tart, with its dense rye crust, is traditionally served with new white wine called Suser, but we like it just as well with fresh or dry cider. Keep your work surface and rolling pin well floured because rolling out this low-gluten dough can be a bit messy. 

This pie is inspired by Swiss and German traditions. If you wish, top with about 3/4 cup/175 mL grated old Gouda, Gruyère or Cheddar cheese before baking.

The generous amount of onions, equal in weight to the meat and fried until golden, and the sweet spices (coriander seed and allspice) give this stew an unusual and attractive sweetness. 

Rich and luxuriously thick, this soup is delicious served with a crusty sourdough bread. For the most pleasing texture, remove the celery strings before chopping the stalks. 

In this simple yet perfect pizza, sweet onion balances sharp Gorgonzola, while the cheese's richness underlies peppery arugula leaves that top the pizza after baking. 

Sweet onions make for a fabulous pie that goes so well with a whole grain crust. The malt syrup (wheat, barley or rice malt) lends a rich sweetness to the dough. You can buy it at health and bulk food stores or substitute buckwheat honey or dark corn syrup. If you like, replace half of the olives with six anchovy fillets, halved lengthwise.

Vegetarians might like to replace the prosciutto in this recipe with strips of Italian style oil-marinated eggplant or roasted red peppers.

Cauliflower might sound strange as a pizza topping, but in this pizza with a Dutch twist, it is an excellent addition that blends with the Gouda cheese. The result: a unique autumn pizza with an authentic northern European flair.

Quick and easy, soda bread is an Irish tradition, but this version -- with its caramelized onions and poppy seeds -- has flavours usually associated with eastern Europe. 

This richly flavoured lasagna is so hearty and satisfying that no one will miss the meat. 

This colourful, easy side dish can be converted into a pasta sauce or stir-fry. 

Sweet potatoes and ham are an American tradition, but the sweet potato dish is often much too sweet. I find this simple layered casserole is a better accompaniment, especially when serving the ham with sweet-and-sour condiments. Bake it on the rack under the ham. 

These spring vegetables complement any menu. 

Premade curry pastes are convenient, but if you use them too often, everything starts to taste the same, so it’s good to mix your own easy seasoning from scratch. Serve this curry over rice, rice noodles or soft wheat noodles.

This satisfying dish delivers a lot of flavour. You can substitute rigatoni with any other short, ridged pasta. 

Make the most out of fragrant and mild spring green onions with this northern Chinese home-style stir-fry, where the onions star as the main vegetable. As in many Chinese stir-fries, the actual preparation of the ingredients takes longer than the cooking time, which is under two minutes. In lieu of Chinese pancakes, wrap up the beef mixture in warm tortillas spread with a little Sesame Hoisin Sauce (see below), and your favourite hot sauce, if desired. 

If company's coming and you're scrambling to make snacks, whip up this easy, crowd-pleasing onion dip. 

This dip will be a hit with snackers at any party -- and everyone will be begging you for the recipe!