by Jessica Wong, CBCNews.ca

On Canada Day, many will take a moment to ponder what defines our country.

The Dominion Institute — the national, charitable institute that thinks about this issue year-round — has started the ball rolling with its national survey of Canada's cultural touchstones (unsurprisingly, perhaps, finding the maple leaf to be our defining symbol).

Heading to a friend's BBQ on Sunday afternoon, I laughed as a local rock radio host riffed on the survey and asked his listeners "Who would make Canada's ideal rock 'n' roll ambassador?" (He eventually chose Neil Young).

When you think about it, this brand of patriotism can extend to every avenue, including the food world.

"There are Nova Scotia strawberries here."

These were words that lifted my heart last Saturday. The coming of Maritime strawberries is a sure sign of summer, and that it happened on the actual first full day of summer this year was just a bonus.

by Tara Kimura, CBCNews.ca

About a month ago, a friend and I were exchanging rapid-fire, chatty, one-line e-mails. At the end of one, I pasted a link to a baking blog, thereby bringing the conversation to a sharp stop.

by Andree Lau, CBCNews.ca

Vij's has added cricket to its world-renowned menu. (CBC)

Growing up in Vancouver, I was lucky enough to remember Vij's when it was a tiny place on West Broadway. Today, it's one of the world's leading Indian restaurants, attracting fawning food critics and celebrities alike.

Owners Vikram Vij (front-of-house and husband) and Meeru Dhalwala (head chef and wife) are best-selling cookbook authors, bringing their signature modern Indian dishes to kitchens around the world.

This week, the duo is pushing boundaries once more, as they add insects to their menu, right next to the infamous lamb popsicles.

by Jessica Wong, CBCNews.ca

After having missed the boat for a couple of weeks, I managed to visit the farmer's market that recently reopened across the street from work. And my first stop was the apple stand: purveyors of delicious fruit but perhaps better known for their mouth-watering apple cider doughnuts. I bought a dozen as the market opened at 8 a.m.

Though I virtually inhaled the first delectable beignet, my hand pulled back from a second one after someone asked about the fat and calorie count of each tasty morsel. Somehow, my craving for another doughnut evaporated.

by Kevin Yarr, CBCnews.ca

In my first trip ever to New York City earlier this month I was struck by a similarity to another gigantic city I am more familiar with: London. I was surprised to find, just one minute from my hotel's front door, a small fruit and vegetable stand spilling out on to the sidewalk

by Tara Kimura, CBCnews.ca

From tainted tomatoes to generous P.E.I. potato farmers, food figured prominently in the news this week. Here's a roundup of the top stories.

by Amber Hildebrandt, CBCNews.ca

Guatemala is no small player in the world of coffee. But you wouldn’t know it from the cup of Joe plopped on your table at most restaurants.

A cup of weak coffee at a restaurant in Antigua. (Amber Hildebrandt/CBC)

As I discovered on my recent trip to the Central American country, insipid watery brews abound. And I couldn’t help but wonder whether I was to blame?

by Tara Kimura, CBCnews.ca

In November 1974, at the first World Food Conference in Rome, U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger made the idealistic pledge to end world hunger within 10 years as a famine crisis worsened in India and Bangladesh.

Kissinger famously vowed that "within a decade no child will go to bed hungry, that no family will fear for its next day's bread, and that no human being's future and capacities will be stunted by malnutrition."

by Jessica Wong, CBCNews.ca

Is there a point when one becomes too old for birthday cake?

I'm a week away from a watershed birthday and age has come with a host of weighty matters on which to reflect, from eating more healthfully (whole grains and proper portion sizes) in general to the much more literal consideration of a thickening mid-section and slower metabolism.