Maple syrup from the deep, snowy woods is a sure sign of spring, and a sweet promise of fresh food to come.

This year's harvest is off to a slow start, according to Rebecca Yoshino, director of the Wozupi Tribal Gardens in Prior Lake. The grove of maple trees she monitors, surrounded by newly built suburban homes, is tapped with bright blue plastic tubes that pipe sap down the slope and into a huge stainless collection barrel for delivery to the sugarhouse.

Last year by this time, the 650-plus taps yielded enough sap to process into 200 gallons of syrup. But this year production is down to about 30 gallons.

"We need colder nights as well as warm days to help the sap run," she told me, as we stood amid the web of taps. During the day, the starch stored in the trees' roots for the winter rises through the trunk and is tapped as sap. At night, when the temperatures drop, the tap stops. But it flows again in the heat of the day.

Back at the new, mechanized sugar shack, the syrup is boiled in an enormous tank, filtered and bottled. In this quiet spot, Yoshino's work is a reminder of how much good food can be harvested close to the city.

I've helped harvest maple syrup at a friend's cabin Up North, using the old-fashioned methods, collecting the buckets and schlepping them through the snow to a big cauldron set over a wood fire.

Maple Frango topped with chopped nuts.

As the sap simmered through the night, we took turns stirring and sipping whiskey-spiked maple tea and coffee, maple cocoa and, toward the end, we drizzled syrup in the snow, where it hardened into maple candy. Although the new systems make "sugaring" far more efficient and much less romantic, the whole process will always rely on Mother Nature's whims.

Maple syrup is classified by color and flavor: golden, amber, dark and very dark. The lighter the color, the more delicate the taste. Each offers a range of possibilities. I prefer the golden for pancakes and waffles; the amber to drizzle over vanilla ice cream or stir into coffee.

The darker syrups are well-suited to savory sauces, dressings and glazes where the maple taste can stand up to competing flavors: maple-mustard to glaze a ham; maple-horseradish for pork; chile-spiked syrup on roasted chicken.

Spring's first food is sweetened with history and possibility and hopes for a bountiful year.

Maple Frango

Serves 4 to 6.

Note: Frango is one of those fanciful names, like flip or fool, describing a lighthearted dessert. This simple whisk of maple-spiked whipped cream and yogurt showcases the sweet, lush flavor of maple balanced with yogurt's tang. This may be prepared ahead and held in the freezer. Remove and allow to soften before serving. It can be garnished with shaved chocolate, chopped nuts, maple sugar. From Beth Dooley.

• 1/2 c. dark maple syrup

• 1/2 c. heavy cream

• 1 c. plain Greek-style whole milk yogurt

Directions

In a small saucepan, bring the maple syrup to a boil, then reduce the heat to very, very low and gently simmer, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes to reduce and thicken. Set aside to cool.

In a medium bowl, beat the cream to form stiff peaks. Gently beat in the yogurt. Carefully fold in the maple syrup.

Spoon the frango into serving glasses or a large serving bowl. Place in the freezer until it stiffens to become slightly frozen, but not hard.

Nutrition information per serving of 6:

Calories180Fat10 gSodium35 mgSat. fat6 g

Carbs20 gTot. sugars18 g

Protein2 gChol35 mgDietary fiber0 g

Exchanges per serving: 1½ carbs, 2 fat.

Beth Dooley is the author of "In Winter's Kitchen." Find her at bethdooleyskitchen.com.