We already know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but it looks like 2016 is going to be the year of the morning meal. Last year, we saw brunch become the latest and greatest fad, and now breakfast will be taking over as the trendiest meal of the day.
Restaurants are looking to emphasize more on getting breakfast on their menus, if they have not done so already, according to The Wall Street Journal. Even Wolfgang Puck is looking to bring the idea of serving breakfast to his steakhouse, which is something you don't typically see, and if he's on board, that means most people will be. While steak and eggs is a classic, and will probably be the star of that menu, there are so many other new breakfast trends emerging now that the meal is becoming such a star.
We started to see popular breakfast items like bacon, donuts and avocado toast take the world by storm in 2015, and there's so much more where that came from in store for 2016. There are over 40 million mentions of the hashtags #breakfast and #brunch on Instagram than there is #lunch and #dinner, and it's proof that people are all of a sudden more willing to indulge on the first meal of the day, according to Elle. Foodie Instagram expert Liz Lyons, who runs the accounts @breakfastinsydney, @breakfastinperth and @breakfastinmelbourne and has a combined 230,000 followers, says it has become the new lunch and that several cafes and restaurants around the world are expanding their menus to bring more inventive, creative and appealing breakfast items. It also doesn't hurt that breakfast can be a lot lighter of a meal than most lunches and dinners.
With morning meals becoming the most popular of the day, here are some of the biggest and most interesting breakfast trends to keep an eye out for, and definitely try, in 2016...
Spicy Yogurt
While savory yogurt isn't completely new in the culinary world, it may still be foreign to some people, but Chobani just took things to an entirely new level with their latest savory flips. The two new flips in their 2016 lineup are classic sweet and savory pairings. The first new flavor is Sriracha Mango, which is low-fan mango yogurt with sriracha-coated rice crisps, mini sesame sticks and roasted and salted cashew pieces. The second new addition is Chipotle Pineapple, which is low-fat pineapple yogurt with chipotle granola, smoked almonds and pumpkin seeds.
"This whole sweet and spicy thing, it's a really exciting direction for yogurt. Yes, it's a risk, but I've lobbied really hard for this," Chobani's chief marketing and brand officer Peter McGuinness said, according to Food Navigator. "It's highly curated, culinary, with lots of nuts and spices and fruits, and interesting flavor combinations. Consumers are bored beyond belief by current flavors, they want flavor and texture, sweet, spicy, nuts, seeds, grains, coconut, chocolate...Yogurt is low interest, let's make it high interest."
Savory French Toast
Savory yogurt is one thing, but savory French toast is something we've never seen before, and something we're going to start seeing a whole lot of in 2016. Pinterest even says it will be one of the biggest food trends of the year, according to Buzzfeed. The featured recipe they used to show off the brilliant idea is Savory Parmesan French Toast with Hollandaise Sauce, which sounds absolutely delicious. If you search savory French toast on Pinterest, there are several other recipes to try like Everything Bagel French Toast Casserole, Pizza French Toast and Bacon and Cream-Cheese Stuffed French Toast. We have a feeling this trend is going to be HUGE.
Breakfast Salad
It's completely normal to put a breakfast item like a hardboiled egg in your salad, but eating a salad for breakfast has never really seemed like a logical option, until now. Breakfast salads are the new thing and will quickly become the healthy option of choice to get your day started on the right note. Food Network has created five delicious and creative salad twists on classic morning options, including bacon-and-egg Caesar salad, eggs benedict salad, avocado-toast salad, grapes and granola salad, and even one that's a twist on a Western omelet with quinoa! The possibilities are endless, and genius, and it's kind of mindboggling that this idea didn't start to trend sooner.
Breakfast Sandwiches
These are a classic and will probably never go out of style, but it's a trend we're going to be seeing a lot more of this year because there will now be entire restaurants devoted strictly to the all mighty breakfast sandwich. Back in May, BEC, an all-day, bacon, egg and cheese sandwich shop, opened in NYC and became an instant hit. Between this and McDonald's all-day breakfast, breakfast sandwiches will become bigger and better in 2016, according to People. Plus, they'll start to be served at all hours of the day more often, so it'll be much easier to satisfy your craving whenever you please.
Smoothie Bowls
Smoothies definitely made a comeback last year, and then smoothie bowls became a thing. Basically, you make any smoothie you want and then put even more delicious stuff, like fruit, granola, nuts, seeds, grains or cereal, on top of it. Not only are these beautiful, but it's much more satisfying to enjoy your smoothie with a spoon rather than through a straw. Check out the Smoothie Bowl Instagram account to see just how pretty these delicious and healthy breakfast options really are.
