Each week, I will contribute an article to my food column: College Cooking, where I will share recipes and opinions on food trends and culture. To see more of what I like to cook and bake, check out my personal food Instagram at @healthy_eclair.
I don’t know about you, but the 2000s were a cringe-worthy blip in my adolescence, but that doesn’t mean the snacks and drinks popular of this decade were not worthy of delight. Perhaps these food trends were what got us through middle and high school. I know I looked forward to weekly Starbucks runs and “snacktime” after school when I would watch Youtube videos and pine after my crush.
So, if you are feeling nostalgic or genuinely don’t remember what you and your friends may have eaten way back when because like me you have blocked out this time period, then read on for a little trip down memory lane.
- Starbucks Runs for a Frapucciono & Cake pop
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I am fortunate enough to have a variety of coffee spots in my hometown. A particular favorite of my friends and me is Starbucks, which we still frequent to this day. But in middle and high school, we swapped our current go-to orders of a Nitro Cold Brew or Almond Cinnamon Flat White for a Mocha Chip Frappuccino. Personally, I am not a fan of cake pops but this was the perfect treat on a half-school day for anyone who needed an extra boost of sugar.
- Rainbow Cake
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I distinctly remember baking a multi-layer rainbow cake with my neighbors a particular Friday night. We had bowls upon bowls of cake batter, all with different colored dyes. It was quite the process, but all worth it in the end for a beautiful slice of rainbow cake with white frosting.
- Snacks, snacks, snacks!
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So, snacktime may have been left behind along with elementary school, but that didn’t mean post-school snacks suddenly became “mature” and “adult.” While I was a Goldfish stan all through elementary school, I began to branch out in my later years, indulging on Gritz, Gushers, Stacy’s pita chips, and Pretzel Sticks.
- Allergen Friendly Bread & Milk
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Two of my best friends from home are gluten-free and vegan respectively, so I have watched their growing excitement over the year as more gluten-free bread and dairy-free alternatives have become available. The 2000s saw the rise of your basic gluten-free bread and almond milk, but from there, things have continued to improve for those who have dietary restrictions.
- Millennial Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner
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While I am not a millennial, I am certainly guilty of prescribing to millennial food trends which became popular during the 2000s. That’s right, I am looking at you kale chips, avocado toast, and mason jar overnight oats and salads. No shame, though, because these trends are still around today and I have a feeling there aren’t going anywhere.
Maybe the 2000s weren’t all that bad when it came to our taste buds, but as for my fashion taste…not sure I can say the same.