Winter Fancy Food Show Day 1

Day One of the 36th annual Winter Fancy Food Show kicked off a three-day festival of food: from familiar flavors to innovative combinations, and savory to sweet, not a taste bud went untickled. Mom-and-pop operations stand alongside household brands; passion and innovation abound from every booth.

Classic snacks, from chips to candy, have gotten face lifts with classy packaging and bold flavor infusions. Wine-flavored cheeses, a growing trend, were as vibrant in taste as they were in color. Goat cheese pros Cypress Grove Chevre displayed a literal cheesecake (pictured right), made of tiered wheels of their assorted cheeses. According to one of their reps, these “cakes” are tapping into the wedding industry, letting foodies make a statement with their wedding cake.

In other creative confection updates, lollipops are no longer just for kids thanks to Das Caramelini, who have concocted sophisticated suckers with such flavors as Maple Bacon, Orange Pomegranate, and Lemon Ginger, each with its own catchy name and colorful packaging (Maple Bacon, for example, goes by “Man Bait”).

Drawing the most bustling crowd of the day was cake master Duff Goldman and his team of cake artists from Charm City Bakery in Baltimore, made famous for the Food Network show Ace of Cakes, which follows the bakery’s quirky, charming, and supremely talented team in the creation of daring and visually stunning desserts. The team demonstrated their artistic inclinations throughout the day, and for an afternoon presentation, Duff showed off his fondant-making skills, chatting away with the enthusiastic audience.
Check in tomorrow for more trends, treats, and surprises as foodspring.com continues its coverage of the Winter Fancy Food Show.—Eva Meszaros

Eva Meszaros is the associate editor of foodspring.com
 and author of foodspring’s food for thought blog.

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