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LONDON, Ont. - There may be no signature ingredient more identified with Canadian cuisine than maple syrup, and with good reason. ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ produces about 85 per cent of the world's maple syrup.

FIVE POINTS, Calif. - Amid the vast almond orchards and grape fields that surround Five Points in California's Central Valley, a once-dominant crop that has nearly disappeared from the state's farms is making a comeback: sugar beets.

What I wanted? A simple recipe — any recipe, any trick, any technique — that would entice my 8-year-old son to embrace broccoli.

Who says the traditional Easter ham has to be traditional? We understand that there is good reason for many traditions, particularly when it comes to food. After all, many food traditions earned their place because they are simply delicious.

A little retro and a whole lot of fun, cream cheese mints are the perfect way to keep little hands busy during Easter dinner preparations.

How do you make pound cake even more buttery and delicious? Easy! Pan-sear slices of it with butter and sugar. If you know how to make a grilled cheese, you can make this dessert, which is a perfect ending to an Easter — or any springtime — dinner.

JACKSON, Miss. - The most obese state in the U.S. now says local governments can't restrict the sizes of food or drink portions.

Foxglove Farm on Saltspring Island has been selected as one of the top cooking schools in the world by Travel and Leisure magazine in its April edition.

The classic Easter or spring lamb often is served with mint jelly. And that's fine, assuming you want to play it safe. We decided to flip things around. Actually, we didn't so much as flip the dish as turn it inside out.

I love lamb, in every way and every cut. But I don't eat it very often because of the same thing that tends to make it so very delicious — its fattiness. Still, all bets are off during Easter, when I happily bow to tradition.