sengWare’s Top Five Food Trends for 2011

As we start another decade, people are still wondering “What is going on in the world?  And how do I fit into all this chaos and uncertainty?” I ask, “What happened to the last ten years?  How have things changed?  Or not?”  From my perspective, I believe that the world is a better place compared to 10 years ago.  People are more mindful and respectful of people and aware of the environment. And more people are taking action to make changes that impact them directly or indirectly - financially, socially and spiritually. But we all still wonder what the future holds.

With that in mind, here’s what I see as the food trends for the beginning of this new decade.

1. Social Cooking:  I have been hosting and attending social cooking events with friends, neighbors and family for quite a few years. The trend is catching on, and I predict that it will keep growing.  As more people stay home and invest time in their home and families, they will start to be more aware of their neighborhoods and have more get-togethers with their neighbors. Try reaching out and organizing an event with your neighbors – you’ll be surprised how receptive they are to the idea. Just remember to keep it participatory, enjoyable and relaxing. Social cooking is also a great way to save money and learn new recipes! Check our previous posts on social cooking for tips on how to host these fun, casual events.
2. Bright Colors: There’s no question that color will continue to drive the home décor trend for the upcoming years. Bright colors like our Pimento and Tangerina can put some punch in your home dining experience. Why? Well first of all I love these colors, but I also know that people are still looking for simple luxuries that can bring a touch of staycation to their homes. Bright colors remind us of carefree childhood memories, wild and crazy holidays of the past, warm sunny beaches and fantasy destinations that we want to be in right now. So let your worry-free side take you on a shopping trip and find some bright colors to complement the whites and neutrals you have at home.
3. Cooking with Kids: As both obesity and food safety awareness reach new heights, cash- and time-starved parents are learning new ways to put the best ingredients on the dining table instead of microwave dinners, canned foods and frozen entrees. To get the whole family more involved, sit down as a family and teach your children how to cook. Studies have shown that children in families that regularly dine together are more likely to stay out of trouble in their teen years. Kids that participate in preparing their own food often make healthier food choices. Try involving your kids in our social cooking techniques. You’ll see how quickly they learn the value of nutrition and the joy of a home cooked meal. You’ll also be able to spend quality time with your kids, and get some much-needed help in the kitchen!
4. Home Vegetable Gardens: I noticed this trend in Seattle a few years ago and started growing vegetables in my own garden. Now vegetable gardens are everywhere, from Miami to Los Angeles. And we’re not just talking AeroGardens here – even with space constraints, you can get some good planting in. Beyond the environmental benefits, planting your own vegetables can be beneficial to you personally. Just imagine avoiding the after-work crowds at your grocery stores, changing out of your work clothes, getting a pair of scissors and vegetable basket, going to yard and cutting the fresh, crisp, sweet produce. One of my biggest joys is seeing the amazing colors of fresh, home-grown produce, smelling the freshness, and knowing that I can pick anything and feel safe about eating it right then and there.
5. Back to Basics and Nature: Since people are spending more time at home these days, they are doing more to create an enjoyable home environment. They’re looking for functional designs that still have fun, playful elements. Instead of a set of dishes for every holiday, families are looking for one set that can do everything. People are also gravitating toward safer, more sustainable products with natural elements like clay, bamboo, wood and stone. Natural foods like goji berries, agave nectar and raw chocolate are becoming more popular as well. As people learn more about natural ingredients, more will discover and introduce raw or vegetarian meals to their regular plan. I’m not talking about everyone going vegan, but I can see people serving a healthy, simple raw meal once a week using fresh ingredients from their yard or the local farmers market.

Despite the chaos, conflict and politics, I do believe we are living in a better world today.  We just have to search for our better part of the world, be it simply enjoying a cup of tea in our own backyards or traveling abroad. It’s all yours for the taking.

The sengWare Social Cooking Party Soundtrack

Music is an essential ingredient of a social cooking party, or just about any party period, and definitely an element of my social cooking that I can’t do without! So here’s the very first sengWare compilation for summer 2010! As with your social cooking adventures, this soundtrack is specially compiled to mix and match perfectly with all your sengWare dishes, and all the different flavors and recipes that you will be discovering. The tracks are also arranged to flow as a 2-hour plus soundtrack (to keep your party grooving from start to end!) but feel free to shuffle the entire playlist. Just find the music, turn it up and heat things up!

The sengWare Social Cooking Party Soundtrack – Summer 2010

1. Brown Eyed Girl – Jimmy Buffett
2. Too Darn Hot – Ella Fitzgerald
3. Demasiado Corazon (Live Version) – Willy DeVille
4. Maybe – Emma Bunton
5. The Look of Love – Sergio Mendes featuring Fergie
6. Have You Ever Seen The Rain? – Credence Clearwater Revival
7. Felicidade – Suba
8. Shake Your Body (Down To The Ground) – The Jacksons
9. Bandolera – Johnny Ray Y Salsa Con Clase
10. Don’t Leave Me This Way (Dimitri’s Re-Edit) – Harold Melvin and The Blue Notes
11. Betece – Africando featuring Amadou Balake
12. Crazy Little Thing Called Love – Dwight Yoakam
13. Venga Venga – Carlos Campos
14. Let The Good Times Roll – Buckwheat Zydeco
15. Africa (Quicksound / Alain Vinet Remix) – Cirque Du Soleil
16. Dancing Shoes – Arctic Monkeys & Buena Vista Social Club
17. Bring Me Sunshine – Willie Nelson
18. Guantanamera – Wyclef Jean featuring Refugee Allstars
19. Lay Down Sally – Eric Clapton
20. Yo Vivire (I Will Survive) (Azucar Para Ti Remix) – Celia Cruz
21. No Woman No Cry – Boney M
22. Amarian – Amr Diab
23. You’re The First, The Last, My Everything – Barry White
24. Es Solo Musica - Mamborama

Social Cooking Part II – Three Easy Steps to Planning a Social Cooking Dinner Party

Ok…let’s begin where we left off. As I mentioned before, many of us would love to entertain and wish we could host more dinner parties at home, but other priorities get in the way. That's where social cooking comes in. It can spare your budget and bring more fun to your crazy “I-have-no-time”schedule. Besides, being social is a sure way to reduce stress and break up your not-so-fun routine…even if it’s just for an evening!

Step 1 – The Date

Don’t plan too far out. Depending on your schedule, choose a date that is about two weeks out. You want to give guests a sense that this is a no frill, no big deal event. Tell them to leave their Manolo Blahniks at home and just come in their favorite t-shirt. Avoid coinciding with bigger life events like birthdays, graduations and anniversaries.

I prefer to plan casual dinner parties on a Thursday or even Monday. Fridays could be good too. Choose a day where you think your friends might be sitting at home trying to forget about work (or the work week ahead…yikes!) or wanting to break up a stressful (or uneventful!) week. Weekends people tend to have other priorities like movies, shows, other parties or weekend trips. Remember you want to make this as casual, simple and fun as possible.

Step 2 – The Guest List

Start with your closest circle of friends, neighbors and family. Definitely not someone whom you haven’t spoken to in awhile and want to catch up with. This is not the time for that! If you make your dinner parties a regular event, word will spread, more people will ask for invites, and you may eventually even have to cut your guest list.

But to start with, people in your inner circle are the easiest to get a hold of, have flexible schedules, know your kitchen and are normally the most at ease at your home without having to be entertained constantly. Keep it simple at first, or maybe for good, and invite around eight people. Forget about that fancy e-vite, and just follow up a quick email with a phone call to firm up the date, time, menu and tasks. (Yes, tasks – more about that later!)

Step 3 – The Menu…And the Drinks!

Food first – stick with one dish for each of the basic courses: appetizer, salad, meat, starch, veggie, dessert. That’s it. To avoid that awkward “everyone brought an appetizer!” situation, try assigning courses in advance. As the host, you get to do the meat. Your best friend, the appetizer (and please no chips and salsa as the easy out!). Your crazy neighbor, the salad (that way you can’t go wrong and still be able to wave and smile tomorrow). Your most passionate and excitable friend, dessert (this can be a treat!). Your big eater hunk of a friend, the starch. And your vegetarian/vegan friend , the veggie(what else?).

Now for the drinks. For your first party, suggest everyone bring a bottle of wine or some beer. For the non-alcohol drinkers, San Pellegrino or any lightly flavored carbonated water drinks should be perfect! Seattle beverage company DRY Soda makes lightly sweetened sodas in flavors like cucumber, lavender, juniper berry and lemongrass. These types of drinks will pair better with your food and complement your table (and your waistline) better than sugary soft drinks.  For the wine, recommend reds or whites in the $9.99 range. For the beer, I prefer a good local or regional microbrew rather than the King of Beers (or any of his minions: PBR, Rainier, etc.)

Step 4 – Take a Deep Breath

Yes, I did say there were only three, so for now let's digest the first three steps, take notes and field the idea of a casual, social cooking dinner party with eight potential guests.

Next time, we'll get into the particulars of your social cooking event, including those tasks I mentioned...

Social Cooking - Part 1

Many of us would love to entertain and wish we could host more dinner parties at home. But we’re all constantly fighting our schedules to find time for that. Finding room in our budgets is often difficult as well.

That’s where social cooking comes in. sengWare was born out of social cooking at my home. It was the rich experience of people with different styles of cooking and casual, fun food presentation that, one fine day, led to a conversation about why I still have mismatched white dishes at home (not to mention a few chipped ones!) The conversation turned to how to build a mix-and-match solution that would work together and at the same time create a unique experience that represents the energy, passion and different styles of food presented on the dining table.

Thus the hunt to satisfy my social cooking cohorts began. I was disappointed that after several trips to both independent and chain stores I still came up empty handed.

I wanted to bring fun back to the marketplace, so the vision for sengWare started taking shape. My inspiration came from these ideas:

1. Develop a complete matching line, everything from basics to accessories.
2. Use fun shapes and designs to communicate a sense of casualness and relaxed mood.
3. Introduce a colorful and vibrant palette to allow individuals to customize, mix and match.

Now back to social cooking…where was I? Oh, gosh, let’s do this on the next blog post. I will show you how you can create time saving and budget friendly dinner parties that are also the most fun!