The sun rises on a beautiful Oklahoma morning, where the corn is as high as an elephant's eye. Having never been to the States, I source this information second-hand, albeit from the reliable source of Rogers and Hammerstein.

This sunny crop has been popping up quite a lot in my baking recently. Though Brits are familiar with the starchy thickener we call cornflour (an invaluable gluten-free flour itself), I've been mixing things up with the golden variety. Sometimes called maize flour or fine cornmeal (think crushed polenta), bags are cropping up in major supermarkets and health food stores. An impressively versatile flour, I've tipped my stetson at its culinary heritage to produce chocolate chip cookies and cornbread muffins - the latter studded with nuggets of frazzled bacon and laced with maple syrup. Not forgetting Golden Hummingbird Cake - a southern belle that really needs to be sliced and proffered with a tray of mint juleps and a hospitable drawl.

If your corn experience is limited to a liaison with a jolly green giant, then prepare to be a-maized.