Discover how incorporating trending flavours like yuzu, cactus, and botanicals can elevate your sweet bakery products this summer, blending indulgence with innovation. Lyndsey Hall, Marketing Executive of Keylink Limited tells us more.
As the summer months roll on, we’re seeing an explosion of fresh, exotic flavours in sweet bakery – a perfect counterweight to the nostalgia trend that grew out of the pandemic years. With lockdowns an increasingly distant memory, many bakery customers are looking for a more adventurous experience when they step outside of their homes to enjoy a little indulgence.
Consumers no longer see their daily bakery visit as something to feel guilty about. Nowadays, it’s considered a small, permissible indulgence that makes us feel good, boosts our mental health and contributes to a balanced lifestyle. With a focus on cleaner label, better for you and the planet products; sustainable and local ingredients; and on-the-go, bitesize treats, demand for delicious and healthful sweet bakery products continues to grow.
With many customers being influenced by social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok, there are some interesting new flavour trends coming through in the industry that bakers can take advantage of with small tweaks to their existing products and exclusive seasonal ranges.
A Pinch of zest
Citrus fruits are having a moment, in particular the Japanese hybrid fruit yuzu. With its bold and bright acidic flavour (something between a mandarin and a grapefruit) and subtle floral and herbal notes, it’s a great way to update your existing lemon and orange flavoured products for summer. Adding a couple of drops of yuzu flavouring to your usual recipes, or decorating traybakes and loaf cakes with white chocolate coating, a sprinkle of freeze-dried yuzu powder and a candied lemon slice is a cost-effective way to premiumise your products and effortlessly tap into the trend.
Other fresh and zesty flavours that are growing in popularity include lemongrass, which adds a warming ginger note to the lemon aroma, and orange blossom; a floral flavour with citrus notes. Both of which are ideal for creating a fun and unique citrus-flavoured summer range that (if visually appealing as well as delicious) will be popular with social media natives!
Cactus is also trending, with its subtle melon taste and refreshing, fruity flavour with a hint of aloe. There’s an increasing appetite for global flavours, as well as sweet and savoury flavour combinations, and cactus ticks all the boxes.
All of these can easily be used to update your existing product range for the warmer months, or create a range of seasonal, limited-edition products, giving your customers a new and exciting experience they’ll be willing to pay a premium for.
Blooming lovely florals
Botanicals and florals are evergreen in sweet bakery, from classic mint to earthy matcha and elegant rose. They add a layer of sophistication to your bakes, as well as a delicate aroma and flavour. Paired with fruits, such as raspberry and rose, or lemon and basil, they’re a perfect balance of sweet and savoury; fruity and vegetal.
Social media has driven the demand for florals in the bakery industry, with elegantly decorated cakes and beautiful floral desserts regularly going viral. One way to embrace this trend is to incorporate crystallised flower petals and mint leaves into your cake decoration, complementing the floral flavours in your bakes. Fresh flowers also look great, and many are edible – although some are poisonous, so it’s essential to check first!
Jasmine tea is another on trend flavour that would be the perfect addition to an Asian-inspired range, alongside your yuzu and matcha flavoured products. Delicate sponge cakes with jasmine tea-infused buttercream would be a simple way to incorporate this flavour into your product range, hitting on both the floral and global flavour trends at once. Add in some local honey and you’ll also meet the demand for local and sustainable ingredients.
Turn up the temperature
As the heat dies down towards the end of summer, consumers start looking forward to more warming, fragrant flavours – as proven by the annual influx of pumpkin spice flavoured products. This year, we’re seeing an increase in demand for other sweet and savoury combinations, such as black sesame, tonka bean or even chilli with your caramels, fruits and dark chocolate products.
Ginger is a classic spice in bakery throughout the cooler months, but saffron, turmeric and cardamom are growing in popularity for their subtler, earthy and aromatic flavours. Try orange and cardamom, yuzu and turmeric, or saffron and rhubarb for a warming, sweet and comforting treat come autumn.
Top of the trends
Coming out of the desire for a simpler, less complicated lifestyle, there’s a slowly building appetite for single flavour recipes. Rather than pairing your ingredients for a balanced yet surprising blend of tastes, choose one hero flavour and really shine a spotlight on it. Ideal choices for this trend are pistachio, cherry, vanilla and yuzu.
Across the entire bakery industry, there’s a focus on eating well for both your health and the good of the planet, and what’s more natural and healthful than fruit? Prioritising real fruit products rather than synthetic flavours is key to both the wellness and sustainability movements, but with the availability of freeze-dried and spray-dried fruits, fruit purees and compounds with all natural ingredients, there’s nothing stopping bakers from adding these flavours to their ranges all year-round.
The main thing to remember when planning your product ranges is that whilst trends are fun and will catch the eye of new and existing customers, they’re also fleeting and can change in an instant. As long as your standard range features your most popular flavours and products – the ones that pull customers in off the street and keep them coming back – then adding in a new item to tap into your favourite trend of the moment doesn’t have to be time-consuming or expensive. Small tweaks to your existing recipes are more sustainable and give you the opportunity to experiment with new and exciting flavours and ingredients on a regular basis. And who knows, you might just discover your next biggest seller!
Editorial contact:
Editor: Kiran Grewal kgrewal@kennedys.co.uk
