For years now, I've been hearing about the Fancy Food Show. I'd see clips of it on the Food Network, or read about it in the New York Times, until this week, it had never been something I got to experience personally. And now that I've lived through my first one, I'm struggling to find a way to write about it.
You see, it's a big event. Thousands of people are there, selling, buying, tasting and sipping. I only sampled a fraction of the available goods and by the end of each day all I wanted was a crunchy green salad to serve as a simple foil to all the chocolate, cheese, cookies, crackers, salsas, jams and gourmet popcorn I had munched.
I discovered that herbal flavors are the New! Big! Thing! in sweets, beverages and vinaigrettes, so expect to see lots rosemary, lavender and mint in both sweet and savory items going forward. Another popular flavor combination I encountered was Pear-Ginger. It is a lovely marriage and I'm looking forward to seeing more of it on the store shelves. My gluten-free friends will be happy to hear that lots of companies are working on producing the best in gluten-free cookies, crackers and breads (I'll have more specifics in another post). And lastly, everyone is looking for a way to make their products more natural, organic and artisanal.
I'll have more on the show soon, including specific products that I loved. I'm still working my way through a lot of the samples I brought home with me (the image above is my coffee table after I unpacked my suitcase). Don't forget to check out Kat's Day One Favorites!
What Can I Get You Folks? - Eating Out for Thanksgiving
In Defense of Guy Fieri
'Top Chef Vegas' - And Then There Were Five
