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These are the 'it' foods of 2017

Sean Rossman
USA TODAY
Hawaiian tuna poke

It's a new year and foodies, like everyone, become restless with last year's must-haves.

Each year, new food trends force us to get out of our comfort zone, deconstructing what we thought was tasty or healthy.

Christine Couvelier, a food trendologist and chef, has presented what she believes will be the foods to break into the mainstream this year. A food trend, she said, usually starts with a chef's invention, which is picked up by eager home cooks and foodies, which is then followed by food manufacturers adapting to tastes.

This centuries-old spice is the superfood of 2017

Many of this year's trends touch on "vegetable butchery," the idea of treating a vegetable like a fine cut of meat. Diehards, Couvelier said, will start to bulk up on veggie knowledge, will pay close attention to when to purchase certain vegetables and will get specific in how to prepare them.

Here's what you'll want to be eating in 2017:

Roasted radishes

A bowl of butter-roasted radishes

Sharp and peppery, raw radishes often are salad toppers or a garnish.

But they take on a more mild, earthy flavor and peppery bite when you roast them. They go well as a simple side dish, with roast chicken, or you can chop them up into a roast radish salsa.

Smoked carrots

Fresh carrots.

I mean, why not? These, of course, work well with an actual smoker, where they'll take on the taste of the wood chips.

But carrots, Couvelier said, also could go well over the grill if drizzled with olive oil and dusted with salt and pepper.

In both cases, once the carrots are off the heat, drizzle balsamic vinegar over top, toss them with herbs or sprinkle them with feta cheese.

Purple cauliflower

Purple cauliflower is primed to make a splash in 2017.

It doesn't taste any different than normal cauliflower, Couvelier said, but it does offer that stunning color.

Purple cauliflower, Couvelier said, would look good in a veggie tray or mixed with pasta. She suggests making a head of cauliflower into steaks, by cutting them into slices, drizzling them with olive oil and then grilling or pan cooking them like steaks.

Veggie charcuterie platters

Christine Couvelier said meatless charcuterie trays 0 unlike the one seen here - will be all the rage in 2017.

But how? Charcuterie is defined as meat, not vegetables.

Couvelier described it as "just a new way of looking at a charcuterie platter." A meatless charcuterie tray could include the previously mentioned carrots and radishes as well as things like pickled mushrooms and Brussels sprouts or heirloom tomatoes with basil. On the side could be chutney, red pepper jelly, pesto, antipasto, pickles, crackers and baguette slices brushed with olive oil.

Despite your judgments, it's happening at restaurants in New York City and Canada.

Kelp is the new kale

Seaweed wafer snacks on a wooden board

Well, seaweed specifically. You'll see more of it and its long list of nutritional benefits in snack form.

Seaweed chips already adorn many store shelves, but Couvelier said we'll see crispy seaweed topping more salads, soups and stir-fries.

"There are so many varieties of seaweed," she said. "That's an interesting food investigation for people."

Mason jars are the new bowls

A healthy salad in a mason jar.

It's not really a food, but mason jars are expected to make another fashionable comeback in 2017.

The mason jar, Couvelier predicts, will replace Tupperware, Rubbermaid and Pyrex as the trendy way to transport food.

Its appeal is its clear glass, which allows people to show off their neatly prepared meals. People already layer salads in them, boasting colorful greens, carrots, tomatoes and cheeses. However, we'll see soups, parfaits, oatmeal and juice filling mason jars. The same goes for ice cream and pudding.

Poke bowls are the new sushi

Hawaiian tuna poke bowl with seaweed, avocado, red cabbage, radishes and black sesame seeds

Poke bowls — pronounced like "OK" — are, put simply, deconstructed sushi rolls.

Couvelier said poke bowls, which come from Hawaii, come in a variety of different combinations. But mostly, they are filled with rice, cubed raw tuna, sesame seeds, ginger, garlic, tamari or soy sauce. Couvelier suggests adding avocado, mangoes and topping poke bowls with wonton strips.

Considered healthy and quick, poke bowls, Couvelier said, offer some of the same benefits as sushi without having to bust out the rolling mats.

"Sushi is not new to people," she said, "but poke is a new way of sushi."

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