Hot and Healthy Summer Food Trends

Some summer trends we’re seeing right now leave us lukewarm — like, are we honestly doing this again? But others — especially those in the health food realm — have us more like:

via GIPHY

Here are a few that have us psyched to see what other goodies summer has in store!

Yogurt That Goes Beyond the Cow

Well, if this doesn’t moo-ve you, then we don’t know what will. Yogurt is coming in so many different varieties these days! Bellwether Farms Sheep Milk Yogurt is heating up the refrigerated section with 60 percent more protein than normal yogurt and good-for-you stuff like calcium, iron, and all 10 of the essential amino acids. The flavor is a bit more like a goat product, but more mild in taste — and the consistency is rich, creamy, and quite tasty (blackberry was our fave flavor!). It’s also more easily digested than cow’s yogurt, which is certainly appealing to a lot of peeps.

And if you’re looking for a yogurt that’s vegan and/or plant-based, that’s an option and hot food trend, too. We haven’t given them a taste-test yet, but Lavva’s plant-based yogurts — made with pili nuts, young plantains, coconut, and cassava — are certainly on our radar and something we look forward to putting our berries on soon. (Which, er, doesn’t sound right … )

More Power to the Cauliflower

You’ve seen it roasted, riced, in pizza crust … and now you can add tortillas to the list of things that have been cauliflower-powered. Offered in both a regular gluten-free option and a grain-free version (oh, so, on trend) and with a few grams of protein (3 grams for the regular tortilla and 7 grams for the grain-free) per tortilla, CAULIPOWER tortillas list cauliflower as the first ingredient. In addition to being wheat-free, they’re also dairy-free, vegan, non-GMO, and preservative-free. The texture of these tortillas are surprisingly soft, and while the taste is a bit more natural than your usual tortilla (especially the grain-free ones), they work well as a veggie-upped option for soft tacos or wraps.

Chickpeas? Check!

Chickpeas, in and of themselves, aren’t anything new — but the ways in which they’re being used are. We’ve had our eye on chickpea pastas and flours for a while now, but earlier this year, Banza released a new chickpea product: rice! In addition to the rice made from chickpeas, they’re also offering rice made from legumes, and both varieties, which are gluten-free, shelf-stable and cook up in just 5 to 6 minutes, offer an impressive protein punch (10 to 11g, vs. 3g in brown rice), fiber, (5g vs. 3g in brown rice), and a lower carb count (25g vs. 32g). Most importantly, though, the flavor and texture is really good — rice-like enough to make it a good substitute in your favorite rice dishes (I’m loving it in Buddha bowls), but it’s maybe just a touch heartier, so you could experiment a bit. I think it would be awesome in a stew.

What are some of the trends you’re seeing in your supermarket these days?