The future of food

"Progress is not an illusion," George Orwell observed. "But it is slow and invariably disappointing." Still, you can't stop progress. And on the culinary front, at least, while not every trend that emerged last year was worth celebrating, a lot of them were.

2003: The Year in Food

According to Timothy Willard of the National Food Processors Association, the same fundamental principles underlie culinary trends from year to year: taste, convenience, and cost. Last year that triumvirate of factors resulted in the following developments.

Retro Food: If there ever was a year when the old became new, last year was it. As food writers Fran McCullough and Molly Stevens note, this trend goes beyond a mere craving for comfort food. Now even diner food and kitsch food from the 1950s are in demand. No wonder the editors of Bon Appetit Magazine identified the hamburger, albeit deluxe versions like the $50 one laced with truffles and foie gras at Daniel Boulud's DB Bistro in New York, as the dish of the year.

Slow Food: More than a cooking method, slow food is an official movement started in Italy and rapidly gaining acceptance in this country. The antithesis of fast food -- slow, not fast; fresh, not processed; and relying on ingredients from neighborhood farms, not industrial growers -- it involves techniques like braising which bring out flavor through long-drawn-out cooking.

Frugal Food: Given the soft state of the economy in 2003, there was increasing interest in what some call "poor food," as opposed to luxurious fare like caviar, lobster, and Champagne. Beans, rice (even leftover rice), grains and cabbage are among the stars of this food trend as are eggs, which have experienced a renaissance. In 2003 they were as apt to be served for dinner as for breakfast and deviled eggs became the year's most homey food.

Low Carb Food: Though Dr. Atkins is no longer around, his diet was embraced by record numbers last year, even though American waistlines continued to expand. As a result Hardee's is throwing away its buns and wrapping its burgers in lettuce, pasta is out, Hellmann's mayonnaise is once again in, eggs, though still economical, are selling at their highest price in 20 years (due to Atkins-induced demand), and even brewers are touting low-carb beer.

Spanish Food: The foods of Spain were the height of fashion in 2003. After two trips to Barcelona last year, I understand why. Chef Rob Feenie even goes so far as to claim that the Spanish now outdo the French in culinary innovation. Not only are Spanish ingredients and dishes popular, but what Bon Appetit calls the restaurant trend of the year -- tasting menus featuring small plates of numerous appetizers in lieu of the main course -- was undoubtedly inspired by Spanish tapas bars.

2004: The Future of Food

Surveying the top trends of last year leads inevitably to the question of what lies ahead. Food prognosticators offer a number of what Christ Knight calls "Noshtrodamian" predictions.

Pomegranate Molasses: As the "Oxford Companion to Food"notes, the pomegranate has not been that popular in this country because of its seeds and the fact that it is laborious to consume. But now that its juice is available year round, boiled down into a syrup called pomegranate molasses, it's destined to become the balsamic vinegar of the future.

Smoked Spanish Paprika: Made from peppers that are dried slowly for several weeks over an oak fire, this special seasoning can bring the distinctive flavor usually associated with smoked meats to vegetarian dishes. The best variety comes from La Vera in Extremadura in the west of Spain.

Power-Packed Flavors: Ginger and wasabi will be the flavors of 2004 and will show up everywhere. The latter, a sinus-clearing horseradish normally reserved as a sushi condiment, is already a popular coating for snacks like peanuts and dried green peas.

Salad with Dates, Apples, Caramelized Walnuts, and Manchego Cheese

This stylish salad, reminiscent of one I fell in love with while sailing around the coast of Spain last year, features the nutty taste of the Cheese of the Year, Spanish manchego, and the up and coming salad green, butter lettuce. The recipe is adapted from Bon Appetit.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2 cups walnuts

1/2 cup walnut oil

3 tablespoons white wine vinegar

8 cups torn butter lettuce

2 Fuji apples, cored and thinly sliced

6 ounces Spanish Manchego cheese, shaved

1 1/2 cups pitted dates, sliced

4 large shallots, minced

Directions:

Combine 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar and sugar and stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Add nuts, toss to coat, and bake on a foil-lined baking sheet which has been sprayed with nonstick spray at 325 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes until nuts are deep brown, stirring occasionally. Cool. Boil remaining 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar until syrupy and reduced by half. Whisk together oil and wine vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Toss lettuce, apples, half of cheese, dates, walnuts, and shallots with enough vinaigrette to coat. Mound salad in center of each plate, drizzle balsamic syrup around, and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Makes 6 servings.

Eggs with Crunchy Bread Crumbs

This frugal dish, adapted from the Zuni Café Cookbook, showcases the increasingly popular egg. With its dash of trendy smoked paprika it's so good you'll want to serve it for lunch or supper as well as breakfast. Use good chewy peasant bread to make the bread crumbs.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons packed stale bread crumbs

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 eggs

1/8 teaspoon smoked Spanish paprika

Directions:

Sprinkle bread crumbs with salt to taste and add enough oil to saturate them. Cook crumbs over medium heat, stirring as they dry out, until they just begin to brown. Add remaining oil and crack eggs directly onto crumbs. Sprinkle with paprika and cook eggs until desired stage of doneness. If cooking eggs over easy, reserve some of the crumbs to sprinkle over eggs just before you flip them. Slide eggs onto warm plate and serve. Makes one serving.

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