As the 2011 slowly draws to a close, we can look back and think… hey, what happened this past year? For those of you who forgot there were a TON of “epic” events & some that didn’t even include any bacon at all!
2011's out and 2012 in
This year was full of excitement, change/back-to-basics, and more food blogging then ever! Food seemed to be everywhere this year. There were books based on blogs, TV shows with food blogging characters (yes I’m talking about Marg Simpson) and online videos of extreme gastronomy. Sure we’ve heard of a Turducken, a bird in a bird in a bird, but then the boys from Epic Meal Time took it a step further. In 2011, they introduced us to TurBacon, a bird in a bird in a bird in a bird in a bird in a PIG. They took 5 different birds, turkey, duck, chicken, cornish hen and quail, plus more varieties of meat (including bacon strips) and put it all in a pig. In case you’ve never watched it click HERE – and yes, it IS just as gross as it sounds.
In the news we learned about shark fins, and the cruelty of catching and then releasing an animal devoid of any ability to swim back into the water. In Toronto. the proposal to ban the traditional Chinese ingredient easily passed by a vote of 38 to 4. As the fourth city in Ontario to enact a shark fin ban, it’s only a start. In other news, the USDA’s food pyramid became a plate…? 
We learned that you can make ice cream out of human breastmilk. At £14 per serving, Baby Gaga, became a hot topic item, but it may be too steep a cost to pay for just 1 scoop. Even pizza became a vegetable! Well not exactly… but the US congress did declare that the 2 tbsp of tomato sauce in a slice of pizza counts as a vegetable serving. 
The creepy Burger King “King” mascot got the boot, and the company decided to focus more on the food. San Fransisco tried to ban McDonald’s from selling a free toy in an effort to stop attracting children into eating unhealthy Happy Meals.But by adding an addition 10 cents to include a toy with a meal McDonald’s outsmarted San Fransisco & dodged the ban.
On the food trend circuit we learned that cupcakes are here to stay! With plenty of cupcake based shows to go around, like Cupcake Wars and DC Cupcakes. Ultimately, these bite-sized treates have cemented a place in our hearts & tummy boxes. But the new thing this year was the macarons. With their bright colours and decadent style, these fine french confectioneries were all most foodies could talk about.
Everyone was either vegan, going local, gluten-free or only eating like a caveman. Thus, it was no surprise when we began to see a large increase in these types of foods for sale! Decadent, indulgent & artisan became favorite marketing words. Handcrafted & farm fresh products were idealized. In 2011, everyone was trying to make each meal special and who could blame them?
But alas, all good things must come to an end. Therefore, it is with hope & a little bit of nostagia that I say farewell 2011 & hello to 2011! May it bring bigger and brighter things on the foodie horizon!
Don’t agree? Let me know what were your favorite foodie finds of the past year!
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