Marc Jacobs for your Food: A Fashion-Forward Take on Summer 2008 Foodie Trends

Photo from AP, as hosted on Haute concept

Haute concept called it "a study in symmetry." In a move that shook passive watchers our of their visual lethargy, the Spring/Summer 2008 Marc by Marc line for men paired half a blazer with half a motorcycle jacket. In other pieces in the line two different tones of the same material came together as two halves of the same blazer. Fashion classics from bygone eras were reinvented and reintroduced. For men and women alike, accessories featured strong, bold colors that popped.

So what does this have to do with your food?

I have made some snarky references in the past about certain companies that allow color to dictate taste. But after stewing on my comments for a while, I decided to give it a fair shake. Perhaps fashionable colors still shouldn't dictate tastes. But that didn't mean there weren't interesting lessons we could pull from the hottest fashion designers and translate them into food trends. And if fashion trends were going to influence foodie trends, then who better than that icon of innovativeness, Marc Jacobs? But I must also confess that I was drawn to translating the Marc Jacobs line because my sister-in-law works as a designer for the Marc by Marc line, so these trends hit close to home.

Read on to see how I take the hot fashion trends put forward by the Marc by Marc Jacobs couture line, and translate them into practical, fashionable tips for serving up food with flare this summer.

Updated classics

Strive for a modern and fresh twist on recognizable vintage classics. Think 1950s cocktail meatballs updated to include ostrich meat and a tangy mango sauce. The classic lox and cucumber pairing found unexpectedly snuggled inside a whole wheat crepe served with dill creme fraiche.

(A)Symmetry

Divide the plate decisively into two parts with an intuitive connection between them. One part soft creamy polenta in a mound, the other part polenta that you have cooled, firmed, sliced and grilled. One part tuna tartar, one part sesame crusted and pan seared tuna steak.

Tone on tone

Think creamy pale magenta summer borscht with a shock of pure magenta swirled into it. Buttery yellow polenta with bright yellow sweet corn succotash. Creamy white fish with lustrous pale coconut sauce. Blue cheese on blue potatoes.

Bold Accents

For your food, the bold accents should be bold both in color and in flavor. Think shocking green wasabi, bold tart kumquat, vivid rhubarb. See colors and flavors like these featured as accents in the form of salsas, sauces, preserves, purees and more.

Check back here in the next coming weeks as I continue my exploration of fashion and food by trying to put some of these tips into action as recipes for summer entertaining.