As we close out the year it’s time to take a look at a “greatest hits” list of food fads, weird and wacky foods and a few that are on the scene now. Here’s the list below.
- Jell-O Salads – Jell-O was introduced in the early 20th century and was used in all kinds of meats, vegetables and condiments as it became more popular. Jell-O salads hit their peak in the 1950s with dishes like Cottage Cheese and Salmon Mold and lemon-gelled Ring-Around-the-Tuna. Can’t say we miss these at all.
- E-Z Canned Soup Casseroles – from Tuna Noodle Casserole to Green Bean Casserole (still popular today as a holiday standard) these basically are a can of soup, with added canned meat or fish and frozen or canned veggies, baked until bubbly. You could always add potato chips for a little extra crunch.
- Cereal-Coated, Oven-Fried Anything – brush your food with anything sticky, like ketchup, roll in cornflakes and bake until crunchy and dry. This one became popular in the 1960s and worked with anything from chicken drumsticks to hot dogs.
- Instant and Fake Foods – these really got popular in the 1950s and 1960s food-tech boom with everything from instant mashed potates to freeze-dried coffee and such items as Carnation Instant Breakfast and artificial flavor products like Tang, Pringles, Bac-Os and Cheez Whiz.
- Chocolately Chocolate – foodies in the 80s wanted more chocolate than they got in candy bars, so pastry chefs came up with some classics like “Death by Chocolate,” “Chocolate Sin” and “Chocolate Fantasy.” These were so good they are still around today.
- The Bacon Boom – during the early 2000s bacon began showing up in chocolate and maple cupcakes, hot fudge sundaes, chocolate chip cookies and glazed donuts. This is another one that is here to stay and it’s not just for breakfast anymore.
- Fried Everything – credit the state fairs around the nation for frying up ice cream, Oreos and even butter. To top it off, fried Twinkies are now available in your local supermarket freezer.
- Wacky Flavored Potato Chips – in around 2010 chip companies began going outside the box with Cheddar-Bacon-Mac-and-Cheese, Southern Biscuit and Gravy, Smoky Bacon and Sunday Roast and Sweet Chili Chicken potato chips. That’s just the tip of the iceberg with all of the varieties you can find on the shelves to this day.
- From Chia Pet to Chia Pudding – chia seeds used to grow “hair” on clay pets, but today they are a superfood high in protein with other beneficial nutrients. These days you can find chia seeds in all kinds of snack foods, baked goods, drinks and finally some very popular gooey puddings.
- Over The Rainbow and Into the Galaxy– the rainbow obsession with food was fueled by social media and YouTubers, Pinterest pinner and Instagrammers are adding food coloring and rainbow sprinkles to everything from layer cakes to bagels. The sky’s the limit on these concoctions.
Photo: Jell-o