Maybe it’s because it’s naturally sweet; maybe it’s because peak season coincides with the waning days of summer. Whatever the reason might be, just about everyone loves corn — which is a good thing, because this year, the USDA expects a record-high corn production of 13.8 billion bushels (that’s 772.8 billion pounds of kernels, in case you were counting). And trendy restaurants around town are ready, using the vegetable in everything from pasta to ice cream.

COOL AND CREAMY

“Corn was a first ‘wow’ food moment for me,” recalls William Cox, executive sous chef at Daniel Boulud’s casual Upper West Side bistro, Bar Boulud. Cox vividly recalls his Tennessee grandfather, a farmer, taking him out to the field to taste freshly husked raw corn when the chef was just 7 years old. “It’s the harvest timing that makes corn sweet,” Cox says. “Too late, and the sugar just turns to starch.” These days, he makes the most of that sweetness by pureeing kernels for a creamy yet light chilled soupe de maïs ($12), to which he adds a garnish of tomatillo succotash and lime popcorn.