Trends come and go, with fashion and with food, of course. With Houston’s culinary scene finally receiving national respect, look for the city's chefs to lead the way with their own interpretations of some projected trends for the New Year.

Researching while considering things I’ve seen and/or hope for, my list might actually be a wish-list as much as anything else, but these are the ones that resonated with me and one that I see already emerging or easily taking hold in Houston.

Food Trucks

Not to be deterred by the challenges of operating a food truck in our fair city (which is extremely difficult compared to other cities), a seemingly endless number of new food trucks continue to show up to the delight of Houstonians who love the often clever, delicious and reasonably-priced fare created by entrepreneurial chefs. Serving everything from Filipino, Korean, PB&J, waffles, burgers, grilled cheese and everything in between, there’s no stopping this trend.

Meatless

Even hard-core carnivores are becoming hip to “meatless Monday,” not to mention eating kale. Chef Anita Jaisinghani’s Pondicheri brought the concept home in 2012.

Expect veggies to continue to move front and center with interesting new preparations for everything from root vegetables to the leafy green spigarello. And more vegetarian menu items in general — for everyone.

Game Meats

Seen as both a national and a local trend, we will see more farm-raised and wild game like alligator, venison, boar, rabbit, bison, elk on Houston menus, as Rainbow Lodge has done so well for years.

Donuts

Yes, we love our Shipleys, but I can’t help but think Houston is ripe for a donut shop the likes of Voodoo Doughnut in Portland, Doughnut Plant in Manhattan or Dough in Brooklyn (not that I’m obsessed with donuts when I’m traveling). Until then, look for donuts to appear on menus everywhere and watch for the Lance Fegan/Lee Ellis team to open their drive-thru donut/fried chicken shop in the Heights near Liberty Kitchen in 2013.

Popcorn

Popping up everywhere (pardon the pun), popcorn is at the top of numerous trend lists, for both savory and sweet applications. Apparently popcorn is the new crouton — how bad could that be?

Smoke

Used to preserve and as a flavor element beyond the way we typically think of it (i.e., brisket or ribs). Consider vegetables, ice cream and even cocktails to include a smoky element in the coming year.

Pickling/Fermenting

Pickling is the baby-step of fermenting, which grows living bacteria. Pickled vegetables have shown up as a stand-alone dish on menus like Down House in the Heights. Foods like kimchi and sauerkraut will continue to expand in popularity due to their unusual meld of umami and sour tastes.

Bread

Look for more attention to be paid to bread, including housemade bread and bread service like what Kevin Naderi offers at Roost, with bread especially created by Slow Dough Bread Co. and featuring a choice of spreads. Gluten-free breads should also become more available.

Smaller Portions/Family-Style Plates

Diners are seeking ways to try a variety of dishes and share their food while decreasing waste. While some Texans might wince at the thought of smaller portions, I’d encourage an open mind and thusly an appreciative palate.

Beer

Craft beers are all the rage, nationally as well as locally, with Houston brewers Saint Arnold, Karbach, Buffalo Bayou and Eatsie Boys 8th Wonder Brewery. The momentum should continue with beer showing up all over menus, including dessert.

I already exercise daily and eat lots of veggies, so when it comes to New Year's resolutions, I'm resolving in 2013 to get my home into shape — starting with replacing my tiled kitchen countertop.

This would seem like a an easy promise to myself to keep, but it turns out just selecting a new surface on which to cut those vegetables and place a toaster has become a maze of aesthetic, ecological and sometimes even political choices for a homeowner.

So after speaking with many a kitchen expert at some of the chain home improvement stores and getting a green building perspective from Jeff Kaplan and Fina Reisinger of the local green home store, New Living, I compiled a brief overview of the multitude of surfaces to choose from, if your own resolution involves a more beautiful kitchen.

Granite

Anyone who has watched more than 10 minutes of HGTV knows that whether it's buying an ice fishing shack in Siberia or allowing identical twins to find and renovate your new home, the kitchen has got to have granite countertops.

Pros: Granite is pretty, strong and heat resistant, and since it's essentially a chunk of polished rock, every finished countertop will be one of a kind. There are an abundance of fabricators and kitchen showrooms in town, including the big home improvement stores, that sell and install granite. It's the counter king when it comes to resale value.

Cons: Natural stone countertops come in almost as many prices as colors, and you practically have to earn a doctorate in geology to appraise what that chosen slab of earth is worth. Since granite is mined throughout the world, it can be difficult for a socially or environmentally conscious buyer to know the labor and ecological practices of the place of origin. Granite is porous, so the surface has to be resealed every year. There's also the remote possibility that your beautiful kitchen rock is radioactive.

Engineered quartz

The pretty, pre-manufactured step-sister to granite, these countertops are created by mixing crushed quartz into a polymer resin. Since the products are manmade, they tend to look somewhat more uniform than granite, but do come in many colors and patterns.

Pros: The non-porous surface does not need to be resealed every year and it keeps bacteria from growing. Several brands like Caesarstone and Silestone tout their green credentials. Quartz surfaces are becoming much more prevalent and can be found at chain and independent home stores.

Cons: Depending on the brand and installer, quartz can be more expensive than granite and many not come in as many colors and patterns. Granite appears to be winning the beauty contest against quartz when home buyers are the judge.

Recycled glass

There are several different products that combine recycled materials, especially glass, with a resin or cement base. Eco countertops, one of the most readily available and therefore relatively affordable products, are created from recycled mirror, porcelain, glass, vitrified ash and resin.

If you're looking to buy locally and show that state pride with your choice of a countertop, Elements is a new brand out of Taylor, Tex., that mixes quartz with recycled glass. Unlike Eco, you're probably not going to be able to order this brand from Home Depot, but like all the resin surfaces, it never needs to be resealed.

There are also several U.S. brands that mix recycled glass and cement to produce their surfaces. New Living's in-house brand, TexStone, is made in Houston with recycled Houston glass. Jeff Kaplan tells of one New Living client who went so far as to bring in his own saved beer bottles to be used in the creation of an extremely custom countertop.

Cons: These glass and cement mixed countertops can even beat the most exotic granite when it comes to pricing and it might be difficult to find local fabricators and installers. Cement is porous and so must be resealed regularly, much like natural stone. Some of the surfaces, like the ones by Vetrazzo, are so sparkling with color, you might feel the need to put a velvet rope around the perimeter, hang a "No Touching" sign and then build a completely new kitchen to do your actual cooking in.

Stainless steel

Since everyone already wants stainless steel appliances, why not go for that extreme industrial look? Many of these counters are created from recycled steel, and it's certainly durable, though it will scratch. They're great for helping to create the professional chef fantasy every time you cook.

Wood

For that most basic and beautiful of the natural looks, reclaimed wood and butcher block countertops are becoming more fashionable. They, of course, can be burned and stained and require regular sealing, but are arguably the most environmentally friendly surface of all.

And the rest

This list just scratches the scratch-resistant surface of kitchen possibilities. Recycled plastics, bamboo and even recycled paper can make functional, yet beautiful and unusual countertops. The biggest challenge is deciding which kind of surface is right for you and your kitchen — and the toaster.

Exercise for an hour each day, limit reality TV time and cut alcohol intake in half? Let's not kid ourselves — it's less than two weeks in to the new year and we've already broken those lofty resolutions.

But the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association have come up with one that we can get behind: The Sodium Swap Challenge, a program for reducing your salty habits for good in just 21 days.

Though it may seem like just a fleeting commitment, the organizations say that participants should be able to notice a difference in the taste of their food and in their overall health by the end of the month.

"To get started with the association's challenge, we ask that consumers get familiar with the food labels and nutrition facts for the foods they eat and track their sodium consumption over the first two days to get an idea of how much they are eating, which I'm sure will be surprising to many people," said Nathalie Sessions-Fye, registered and licensed dietitian and AHA volunteer.

Find more information here, and check out the chart below for fast facts on sodium.

The start of a new year often inspires a renewed interest in wellness. And because we also value convenience, we turn to online resources that we can explore from the confines of our cozy home. From eco-friendly home and bath products to gluten-free meal plans, these five websites help us satisfy the the need for a healthier and more sustainable lifestyle.

The Honest Company
Co-founders Jessica Alba and Christopher Gavigan started the Honest Company to provide parents with eco-friendly, affordable and safe home and baby products. Sign up for a Discovery Kit (free plus shipping) to give the goods a trial run, or shop the store for things like biodegradable and plant-based disposable diapers and organic bug spray. The Honest Company manufactures all of its own products and promises the highest health and sustainability standards.

Greenling
Greenling supports local and sustainable farming and provides Texas residents with the highest quality foods, delivered straight to their homes. Here's how it works:

1. Choose your products online.
2. Greenling picks up the goods from local producers.
3. Your box arrives on your doorstep.

Opt for the local box, which includes an assortment of produce, or a recipe kit tailored to diet meal plans and juices. The website also has recipes and information about the "farmer heroes."

YumUniverse
This is more than a website for free recipes focused on delicious meat-free, gluten-free and dairy-free meals. Founder and recipe developer Heather Crosby sells eBooks — including meal plans, a holiday survival guide and a dairy-replacement guide — a three-month meal plan subscription and a lifetime subscription. When you sign up for life, you get access to the YU library of eBooks, and you receive meal plans, members-only discounts and more. Joining Crosby are other food and fitness experts, from trainers to chefs and drink enthusiasts.

KLUTCHclub
Klutchclub is like the Birchbox of the health world. Subscribe for one, three or 12 months and receive a box filled with a variety of health and fitness products. There are different packages for men and women, but if you sign up for the Best of Box, items are gender-neutral. What's inside? Fitness DVDs, health bars, body butter, acai energy chews, blueberry juice and more.

Element Bars
On this website, you can build your own nutrition bar or granola. Select the core (chewy, crispy, oaty, datey, fruit and nut), then add fruit, nuts, sweets and boosts. As you pick the additions — from whey protein to apricots and almonds — the nutrition facts get tallied. For the cereal, choose from regular granola or gluten-free granola and add fruit, nuts and sweets. Once you customize your bar, create a name, order a box of 12 and wait for the goodness to arrive.

Here we go again. Another New Year, another slew of resolutions spanning food choices, exercise regimes, and various other valiant self-improvement initiatives. Tackling the weight loss front always tops my list of "to dos," and given this challenge appears annually, I gladly welcome any propaganda or accessory that tricks my brain into thinking this will be fun.

On that note, here's a list of three tiny trinkets to help jumpstart your newly found 2013 gym rat lifestyle.

Anastasia Lash Genius Clear Waterproof TopCoat

I fervently refuse to RSVP yes to the "wearing makeup to workout party," but for those rushing from work and without time to fully defragment, I understand that sometimes you cannot avoid it. Full disclosure, I've been there myself: Cue raccoon eyes during a heated Vinyasa class.

For my fellow ladies who wish to abolish the trails of mascara running down your face during sweat sessions, check out Anastasia Lash Genius Clear Waterproof TopCoat. Instantly making any mascara waterproof, brush this wondrous little wand over your previously coated lashes and enjoy clump-free eyelashes devoid of the terror from mid-class blackout eyes.

Sport + Store Water Bottle

Stop carrying plastic water bottles around and refilling them time after time after time. Do good for both Mother Earth and yourself out by picking up a Sport + Store Water Bottle, which not only will reduce waste from unnecessary disposable bottles, but also helps you stash your goods and stay hydrated all in one convenient container.

Now you can just carry a single item into the gym without having to haul an enormous bag for your wallet, keys, gym pass and water.

Herban Essentials Towelettes

Notice a funky smell while in downward dog on your yoga mat (or even on yourself)? Storing this dirty and ripe-smelling mat in your warm trunk only amplifies the issue. Whether it's your exercise equipment or your own bod that might not have time to hit the showers after getting a workout in, reach for an Herban Essential towelette to wipe out bacteria, germs and odor.

Available in lavender, lemon and peppermint scents, these easily portable wipes will also help invigorate your mood in case the endorphins aren't enough to get you through the rest of the day.

Good luck my friends, with achieving your healthy resolutions in 2013. What "toys" help you garner excitement for jumping into an exercise warrior?