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Cake lovers, rejoice! Tucking into a slice at breakfast will be totally acceptable next year, according to a top food trend expert..
In 2017, chocolate cake in particular will be popping up on menus as an amuse-bouche - or a small serving to you and me – according to Liz Moskow, the culinary director at the advertising firm Sterling-Rice Group.
Moskow, whose firm creates advertising strategies for food giants including Kellogg’s and Heinz, also told Food Business News that restaurants that serving brunch and breakfast will soon introduce dessert menus.
Two recent studies have highlighted the health benefits of cocoa, which coupled with the fact that people will accept any excuse to eat pudding - adds up to a winning formula for a food trend.
Eating chocolate regularly was linked with cognitive function in a Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study (MSLS) published in the journal 'Appetite' earlier this year. A separate study at Tel Aviv University suggested that eating dessert for breakfast can aid weight-loss because it reduces cravings.
But, of course, the benefits are quickly outweighed if the cocoa – which such studies generally use – is combined with a lot of sugar and fat. (Sorry).
Food trends in 2016
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Alison Hornby, a dietitian and BDA spokesperson, told the NHS Choices website that while cocoa has a range of health benefits, eating chocolate that is high in fat and sugar too frequently is an “unhealthy choice.”
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