Amy Atlas dessert buffet on Flickr
Now that I’ve done the obligatory December roundup, it’s January prediction time. Yes yes, I realize I’m no authority on food or baking or trends of any kind, but that doesn’t stop me from having too many opinions for my own good. Here’s what I think will be hot in baking and desserts this year.
Individual. In the individual serving stakes the cupcake is still king (or queen? I think of cupcakes as feminine creatures) but there are other little morsels nipping at her heels. Take the rustic hand pies which we saw all over blogs and magazines this summer. Given this penchant for bitesize and portable, I bet we’ll start to see more mini bundt cakes, mini whoopie pies and mini loaf cakes replace the full-sized versions. One is fun!
Dessert bar. Anyone else think the dessert bar is the new cupcake bakery? This was a pretty revolutionary concept when New York’s ChikaLicious opened in 2003 – an upscale eatery serving nothing but drinks and desserts! Now they’re popping up in all the coolest cities and the effect is bound to filter down – watch for one opening in a town near you.
Sharing. When I’m out for a nice dinner my very favourite pudding is a dessert sharing plate. I love to have a bite of this and that and feel just-a-bit-too-full instead of I’m-going-to-be-sick-full. This trend goes hand in hand with dessert bars, many of which serve large puddings for sharing or mini selection plates for couples or groups.
Buffet. I’ve greedily helped myself to a few fabulous dessert buffets at weddings over the past two years. Cupcakes, French macarons, croquembouche, pies and candy, often with a fabulous cake as its centrepiece – the dessert buffet is one of the hottest nuptial trends. This concept translates well to any party, though – I love this Amy Atlas Halloween treats buffet and this quirky, real life baby shower version.
Nostalgia. The trend that keeps on giving. We’ve been loving retro desserts for several years now, with places like Magnolia Bakery and Hummingbird Bakery serving up comforting classics. Ice cream, doughnuts, whoopie pies, milkshakes, homemade Oreos – I’ve seen so many of these old fashioned treats on blogs in the last year, and their popularity is still on the upswing. Watch for more mid century nostalgia.
And the 2009 trend that I would most like to say goodbye to…
Bacon in sweets. Enough said.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on sweet trends for the coming year!
