This past weekend in San Francisco, Winter Fancy Food Show attendees discovered more than 80,000 products — from cheeses to teas to olive oils and meats, there’s no shortage of food and beverages to captivate industry insiders, food-lovers, restaurateurs and the media.

The show also predicts upcoming trends for the industry. Last year we saw lots of pickling (which made its way into many restaurants), ancient grains (quinoa and chia), coconut in ice cream, pudding and jam, and gluten-free products that people can rely on.

This year’s top food trends have just been picked by a panel of trendspotters, and bananas will now have their time in the spotlight. Still staying in the sweets bucket, the trendspotters loved the banana within Vosges Haut-Chocolat’s Wild Ophelia Peanut Butter & Banana Milk Chocolate Bar, PB Crave’s CoCo Bananas Peanut Butter and GoodPop’s Banana Cinnamon Frozen Pop.

Bring this trend into your kitchen by trying these recipes

January may be almost over, but the year’s newest food trends are just starting to heat up. Trendspotters at the 37th annual Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco, Calif., spent three days combing 80,000 products from 1,300 booths to find the next “it” thing in food.

At the top of the must-have ingredient list: coconut. A surprisingly versatile ingredient, coconut can instantly transform a dish. Whether you’re using the juice or the meaty white flesh, using this tropical fruit to infuse any meal puts you ahead of the curve.

Start with something traditional and easy like Sandra Lee’s Lemon Filled Coconut Cupcakes (pictured above). Light and moist, these cupcakes will turn any skeptic into a full-on coconut fan.

More coconut recipes and food trends »