The Food Trend We’ve All Been Waiting For

Kale has been and gone, coconut oil has pretty much had its day and dessert humous never really took off. But there's one burgeoning food trend we can definitely get behind. We'll all be eating chocolate cake for breakfast in 2017, according to a food trend expert. Could there be any better news to mark National Chocolate Week? Liz Moskow, culinary director at the advertising firm Sterling-Rice Group, said more of us will be eating chocolate earlier in the day, thanks to a string of recent studies lauding dark chocolate for its health benefits. Chocolate cake, in particular, could become more common on menus as an amuse-bouche and restaurants selling breakfast or brunch may introduce dessert menus, Moskow told Food Business News. “There was a study that recently came out from Syracuse University re-touting the benefits of dark chocolate, specifically on cognitive function — abstract reasoning, memory, focus,” she said, referring to the Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study (MSLS) study published earlier this year. “The thought was eating chocolate prepares you more for your workday, so what better day part to incorporate dark chocolate into your meal than breakfast?” Another study also linked chocolate consumption to weight loss because it can reduce cravings. Researchers from Tel Aviv University recommended eating chocolate cake for breakfast because our metabolism is most active in the morning. “Combining those two studies and the likeability of having dessert for breakfast, we predict that breakfast might start seeing brunch amuse-bouche chocolate cakes or brunch and breakfast restaurants incorporating a robust dessert menu,” added Moskow. However, this sadly doesn't mean we should necessarily go full-on Bruce Bogtrotter. Eating chocolate cake high in sugar and fat will cancel out the health benefits of cocoa. Alison Hornby, a dietitian and spokesperson for the British Dietetic Association said it's worth remembering that studies espousing the health benefits of chocolate have focused on cocoa extracts, not chocolate. "As an occasional treat, chocolate can be part of a healthy diet. Eaten too frequently, it is an unhealthy choice," she told NHS Choices.