Crazy for Corn: More Than 170 Recipes for America's Favorite Grain

``I'd say corn's got the edge,'' concludes veteran food writer Fussell (The Story of Corn). Over what? Oh, just sex. Certain that she could plan all-corn dinners for a year and not once repeat a dish, she dazzles with the variety and depth of her recipes: Corn and Goat Cheese Flan; Hominy and Broccoli Rabe, Sole Smoked in Silks and Husks; Sun-Dried Corn and Tomato Bread; Chocolate Popcorn Pudding (a kind of dense souffle with a 19th-century origin); Popcorn Piecrust made from toasted and ground popcorn flour; and a must-try Native Indian Pudding whipped together from cornmeal, cranberries and maple syrup. A historian as well as a fanatic, Fussell begins with an anatomy of corn varieties and a discussion about the best cooking procedures. Recipes are generously introduced with pertinent history, lore and culinary variations. Appendixes include a source list for seeds, colored cornmeals, dried husks and corn mushrooms; a bibliography of books on corn; and a glossary of corn terms, including grits, hominy, masa harina, polenta and posole. A loopy ``Crazy for Corn'' logo tops each page, adding to the book's overall delight. (June)