Top 10 Food Trends of 2014

Let me start off by wishing everyone a Happy New Year!

This year treated me very well with the arrival of my first child, another amazing year with my beautiful wife, a growing business, and a new home with a MASSIVE kitchen!!

All-in-all, 2014 left me feeling very blessed; so before I go full speed ahead in 2015, I’d like to pay homage to the “Top 10 Food Trends of 2014!”

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Reinvented Classics:

In 2014, I saw a ton of popular dishes re-imagined with a contemporary twist! I got to experience Buffalo Chicken Fried Cauliflower, Fried Green Tomato BLT’s, a Deconstructed Salt and Vinegar Potato Chip (self explanatory) and I made Sloppy Joe SLIDERS!

This is a trend that I truly appreciated.

 Classics are popular for a reason. They tend to be simple to make and are timelessly delicious; but like any good thing, the same dish over and over again can lose its charm.  Re-imagining the classics is a great way to keep culinary enthusiasts excited about a dish they’ve had many times before.

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Food Fusions: 

Some chefs, myself included, chose not only to reimagine one classic dish at a time, but to combine multiple favorites into a single conglomerate of TASTY goodness!

And why not?? Who can resist Bacon Pancakes, or Grilled Cheese Pizza??

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 Umami:

Also known as the “fifth taste, was also a HUGE hit in 2014.

Taste is made up of certain components: Sweet, Salty, Sour, Bitter, and now Umami; which is the savory aspect of taste (found in food like olives, tomatoes, parmesan, anchovies, ect.).

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#FoodPorn:

It was everywhere! Thanks to Instagram, we all know what’s for dinner tonight and I love it. It has been a great way to get everyone excited about food, and really invested in what they’re eating.

I also think food can be quite stunning, so why not share your visual experience with the world??

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 VeggieMania:

Veggies made a MEGA comeback in 2014! This has to do a lot with the growing popularity of vegan and vegetarian diets, which have restaurants serving more veggie based dishes, as well as the growth of societies’ consciousness of what they’re consuming.  Everything has nutrition labels now days and I believe that makes people think twice about what they’re eating; hence 2014’s veggie rich diets.

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 Kale:

Of all the vegetables that graced our plates this year, Kale was probably the biggest fad of them all.  Kale salad, kale chips, kale smoothies, kale in omelettes, kale with lunch, kale with dinner, kale, Kale, KALE! It was everywhere in 2014.

Do we think it will remain a fad in 2015, or will we find a new Super Food to take its place?

Regardless, kale is certainly good for you.  Of all the greens it packs one of the mightiest nutritional-punches, but I have to tip my hat to marketing teams around the world.  They took something that has been under our noses for generations, shined a spot light on it, and made it the hottest trend of 2014!

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Acaí Bowls:

They’re light, energizing, healthy and above all delicious.  I became a big fan of the Acaí Bowl this year after my wife asked me to make her one.  I’ve been hooked since. It’s the perfect way to wake up, fuel your body, and get the day going without too much fuss.

And the best part of them being a trend, is that you can find them anywhere and everywhere.

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 Cold Pressed Juice:

Another 2014 discovery that my wife introduced me to, was Cold Pressed Juice. Traditional juices are certainly still packed with nutrients, however, by cold pressing vegetables or fruits into juice, the juice is never allowed to reach room temperature.  This does two great things: Its prevents the juice from oxidizing and protects live nutrients from dying off.  So by cold pressing you’re ensuring the maximum about of nutrients remain in the juice, for our consumption. I’m a fan.

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 Nutella:

If raw fruits and veggies are NOT your thing, you can always sweeten some apple slices with a heap of Nutella.

I’m such a Nutella fan that I did an entire #NutellaWeek where I made: Nutella (from scratch), Nutella Lava Cake and Nutella Ice Cream!

I’m certainly not alone in this obsession.  Not only were those videos some of my most popular uploads, but I’ve seen Nutella based desserts all over restaurant menus in 2014, and it makes perfect sense. Nutella has set a new precedent for chocolaty-goodness. Lets see if 2015 can top it!

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 The Cookie Cup:

Dominique Ansel, the creator of Cronuts, unveiled his 2014 creation, The Cookie Shot, and had an overnight hit.  It’s simply genius. Take two components that are famously good together, cookies and milk, and make them into one self-contained dish.

It’s one of those things that you ask yourself “Why didn’t I think of that?” Hats off to Ansel. He did it again.

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That wraps up the trends that I noticed in 2014, but I’m really curious to see what trends you took note of this past year.

Let me know in the comment section, and HAPPY NEW YEAR!