Cuisine Canada Scene

By Dana McCauley

As the end of the decade advances, I find myself looking back, taking stock of the trend landscape and wondering about what we can expect to see in 2010 and beyond.

During the last ten years products that offer a wellness advantage that promote either longevity or enhance our beauty have become mainstream. Likewise, blending sweet and savoury ingredients in desserts and main meal components continues to be a popular way to add flavour and interest to Canadian recipes and restaurant meals. We’ve also seen a plethora of more convenient food packaging concepts at the grocery store from skinless, boneless chicken thighs, to authentically ethnic meal kits to pre-washed, ready to eat and cook fresh veggie options.

Although they’ll manifest themselves in new ways, the trends of wellness, natural and convenient will influence our eating as we start the second decade of the century. too. Here’s a snap shot of some of the specific things you should expect to see more of in 2010:

• Humble Gourmet | On the heels of the success enjoyed by gourmet burger chains and mac and cheese restaurants in the US, more simple foods done well will continue to pop up on restaurant menus. Look for gourmet meatloaf, braises, stews and hot dogs made with artisan care and quality on even highend menus. Also likely to be appearing in Canada soon: macaroni and cheese restaurants!

• Artisan Cocktails | Expect to see more bartenders like Lauren Mote of Vancouver’s The Refinery who make not only their own bitters but also their own fruit infusions for signature cocktails such as The Charred Bourbon Sour. Made with a lengthy ingredient list that http://www.homemakers.com/blog/danasblog/ includes house bitters (made with licorice root, fresh thyme, ginger, vanilla, lemon/lime/grapefruit/orange peels, cloves, caraway seeds, white pepper, fennel) charred oak and caramelized coconut syrup, bourbon, lemon juice and egg white, this trend turns every toast into a gourmet experience. At home, this trend will manifest itself in more consumers buying premium mixers such as Fever Tree and Q Tonic to make premium quality cocktails.

• The New Shake and Bake | Products such as Batter Blaster and Dr. Oetker shaker batters eliminate the mess of baking and make it an anytime activity. Pancakes, waffles, cupcakes and muffins can all be made with no special tools or ingredients beyond milk.

• Assembly Line Cooking | Although the recession may have trained us to eat more dinners at home and to carry our lunches, economic stress hasn’t turned Canadians into cooks. Pick-and-pack lunches that feature a collection of pre-packaged foods and dinners made from kits and semi-prepared ingredients have become even more popular and will continue to intrigue consumers.

• Recognition of Local Super Foods | Instead of turning to the fruits of the Amazon, Canadian grown nutrient power house foods such as blueberries, raspberries, kale and sweet potatoes will get the respect they deserve. This off-shoot of the local trend will bring nutrition messaging home where it belongs as consumers learn to keep the planet and themselves healthier simultaneously.

• Exotic meets Everyday | Flavours from afar are being used to add new twists to common foods. For instance cardamom in apple cake or chocolates; rosewater in trifle and other creamy desserts, hibiscus in vodka martinis, smoothies and soft drinks.

• Macarons Madness | Already very popular in Montreal and Vancouver and trending up in Toronto, expect to see macarons become mainstream, ousting cupcakes from fashionable baby showers, wedding receptions and birthday parties.

• Butterscotch Bliss | Fancier. Butterier. As yummy as ever before but just more (deservingly) popular. Butterscotch is trending up and that can’t help but be good! From butterscotch desserts appearing on more fine dining restaurant menus to twitter chat and TV mentions, butterscotch is on everyone’s lips. Interesting is that this flavour is being called ‘Canadian’ on US network TV shows like How I Met Your Mother.

• Bare Minimum | As an offshoot of the natural trend that gives consumers peace of mind on both sides of the border, more Canadians will look for simple, honest to goodness foods that they can trust. To communicate this quality, food companies will embrace the word “bare” to communicate this virtue. Following the lead of US company Just Bare chicken (their tagline is “choose simplicity”) and Bear Naked granola snacks.

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