Look for CBD-infused food, a veggie called celtuce and aloe vera juice for your coffee
What’s going to be hot in 2019? Trend spotters and prognosticators look to the previous year’s upticks in searches and purchases to name the next big things in style, home and food.
Pantone’s 2019 color of the year is “Living Coral,” a cheery pink with orange undertones.
Pinterest is predicting that baby bangs (very short bangs) and growing out natural gray hair will be hot for beauty, while building your own boat is the next big hobby.
In fashion, it’s all about snake prints, corduroy and statement sneakers. Who knew?
And for food, Whole Foods touts fancy snacks, lots of healthy fats, Pacific Rim flavors and all kinds of hemp. Yes, hemp.
This past December, the new Farm Bill made hemp and its derivatives (like CBD — cannabidiol) no longer a controlled substance. They can be regulated by state and tribal governments and used in commercial food products — and you will be seeing it everywhere.
Madison-based jam producer Quince & Apple is launching a CBD candy line in the next month. Look for tart cherry and citrus hard candies, along with negroni and lemon pâte de fruit (a French-style gummy candy, made with pectin instead of gelatin). The company’s website, themoderncandycompany.com, will have products for sale in the next few weeks.
On the produce side of things, brussels sprouts are descending from their reign as the “hot” vegetable. Cabbage is coming up and also a Chinese vegetable called celtuce, or “stem lettuce” (just ask New York celebrity chefs Dan Barber and April Bloomfield, who have featured it at their restaurants). The top leaves are edible, but a little bitter. But the thick stem can be peeled to reveal a crisp interior that can be enjoyed raw, pickled, grilled or stir-fried.
Then, there are lots of new things to add to your morning coffee, tea or smoothie, purporting all sorts of benefits. Dried mushrooms, collagen, moringa and maca powder are just a few. Aloe vera juice is the new coconut water.
Some newer trends are still gaining popularity, among them oat milk, lots of probiotics and “grazing boards” (like cheeseboards, but bigger — with lots more veggies and fruit). And as far as diets are concerned, paleo is still hot, the ketogenic diet is soaring, plant-based eating continues to gain momentum, and some interesting combinations are emerging, like eating “pegan” (paleo and vegan).
These predictions may fuel themselves, because as we write about them, more people search for them. But the truly delicious will have staying power (like sourdough bread), while fads like “unicorn food” (all manner of foods with copious colors, sparkles and sprinkles) will have their Instagram moment and then fade from memory.
In the meantime, fuel yourself with this vegan protein bar — it’s plant-based, high in healthy fat and makes a great snack.