2010 Food Trends Revisited

Now that we are deeper into our new year let's look at some of the food trends that are emerging, and that carried over from 2009.  Bacon and macaroons remain culinary sweethearts, and their popularity will likely carry them into next year.   And for some reason which I cannot decode and which was mentioned here last month, cauliflower is everywhere.  (After the aforementioned experiment I tossed the uneaten remains of the cauliflower puree.  The next morning the stench in our kitchen overwhelmed us.  Anything that smells that bad after a few hours at room temperature cannot be good for us!)

The real surprise of 2010 has been Greek yogurt.  Anyone else as obsessed with this stuff as I am?  I get the full-fat variety, and stick to one serving.  It contains enough protein to fill me up, and combined with some berries or banana and cinnamon I can sneak in a daily fruit serving and some antioxidants.  Greek yogurt is also great in dips and salad dressings.

I'm also hearing a lot of talk about goat meat.  I haven't seen those discussions translate to local menus, except in ethnic circles where goat is and always has been king.  Last fall at the State Fair my mom and I chatted with a Minnesota goat farmer about her experiences.  She fell into goats relatively recently, hoping to ride the wave of new immigrant demands.  After five years, she was still barely breaking even, and had yet to quit her day job.

Happy Groundhog's Day!  Six more weeks of winter never really seems that long in Minnesota.