9 years ago

7 bakery trends for 2015

What’s hot in bakeries this year? Amy Fouks, our bakery category manager, shares the top trends for the new year.

I can’t believe it’s 2015 already! We had a fantastic and crazy year in 2014 – it seems the years just go by faster and faster.

Looking to 2015 is exciting as we evaluate all the new trends in bakeries around the world and incorporate what we feel are the best for our own bakeries. Some trends make sense for our Midwestern market and some are just fun to talk about and keep an eye on to see if they grow and make their way to the middle of the country!

Here’s what we’re watching for 2015:

  1. Hummingbird cake: A flavor combination that seems to be creeping north is the Hummingbird cake. This trend reminds me of how the Red Velvet craze started in the south and moved its way northward. A Hummingbird cake is made with pineapple, bananas and pecans and topped with cream cheese icing and pecans. Originally popular in southern United States, I see it popping up on menus on the east coast and Midwest. This is a great flavor that’s going to gain in popularity because it’s scrumptious – a fun sweet pairing that’s not too scary or different.  
  2. Coconut sugar: I’m hearing a lot about coconut sugar lately as an alternative to regular sugar. Coconut sugar is derived from the coconut palm tree, and can be substituted on a 1:1 basis with regular table sugar. Alternative sweeteners of all varieties are popping up everywhere to market to this trend. We’ll have to look into this more and see which of these makes sense for us to try, if any. (Although sugar is still sugar, so we take this all with a grain of salt!)
  3. Pistachios: They’re already being heralded as the new super-food in a few magazines so they’re sure to make more appearances in baked goods, as they’re a natural tie-in. Their salty flavor and wonderful crunch go really well in desserts. And a hint of green color is fun and different. 
  4. The resurgence of peaches: This juicy late-summer fruit is gaining in popularity again and you’ll see more and more of it once this winter air moves along: Peach tarts, peach pies, peach muffins and cupcakes with peach toppings and fillings. The pretty orange color gives it a leg up on apples and the smell of a peach pie baking just makes your mouth water.
  5. Demographic trends: These are just fun to look at. The Millennial generation is advanced in age enough now to impact our development decisions. They’ve grown up with endless options, from website resources to clothing stores, and they want the same for their food purchases. So, we’ll continue to develop single-serving sizes of individual desserts with many different flavor combinations to choose from. The Baby-Boomer generation is also looking for those smaller-sized, single-serving desserts, so this entire category is going to be an area of growth for us for many years to come!
  6. Locally grown: We’ll continue to flourish as we all realize how important it is to keep our dollars local. Small farmers and growers are better able to meet the needs of nearby companies as they perfect their business practices and distribution models.  We’ll continue to look for more opportunities to partner with local growers and suppliers.
  7. Kosher foods: Keeping kosher seems to be becoming more popular. Even those who are not of Jewish faith can appreciate the kosher practices. The folks from Kosher Organics explain how the religious practices of keeping kosher and the increased awareness of sustainability come together in their business:

“Our consciousness in merging Jewish kosher dietary laws with natural and organic food is a logical extension of Jewish philosophy. Many topics in the Torah (The Five Books of Moses) deal with these subjects. The agricultural practices such as Kila’im (crops may be grown in close proximity), Pei’ah (leaving the corner of the field for the poor), Bikurim (bringing the first fruit to the temple), and Shmita, or sabbatical year (leaving the land fallow every seven years), reflect the responsibility of every generation to receive the earth from our ancestors and to pass it to future generations.”

We’re already on top of this philosophy as we have a great kosher bakery based out of Byerly’s St. Louis Park that supplies fresh-baked kosher baked goods to our other stores. We’ll continue to expand our offerings in this category in the coming year. Let us know if there’s something you’ve been looking for on the kosher side of our bakery.

It’s going to be another busy year, and I’m excited to see how we can incorporate some of these trends into our bakeries for you throughout 2015!