Douglas J. PeckenpaughDoug's Domain RSS

Douglas J. Peckenpaugh is a managing editor of Food Product Design and the editor/associate publisher of CULINOLOGY magazine. He has worked in food and agricultural publishing as a writer and editor for books, magazines and websites. He also worked as a cook and kitchen manager while earning his B.A. from Purdue University in Professional and Creative Writing.

03/04/2009

Salt: Welcome to the New Trans

The writing has been on the wall long enough that it’s beginning to fade. Salt is quickly shaping up as the next trans—that is, the new ingredient non grata on the block. Despite an unequivocally clear case against it (and really, has that ever stopped legislators?), the frothing masses have concurred. We must cut the salt.One piece along these lines that caught my eye this morning, which ...
03/03/2009

Time to Forgive and “Forget”

Despite our massive mental capacity for complex information storage and processing, we humans are trusting, “forgetful” creatures. I’m not talking about the location of the car keys or that missing button we just saw the other day, but “forgetful” in our willingness to continually renew our trust in fellow travelers on this planet and the institutions that support our ...
02/25/2009

Firmly Chiseled Niches, or “Pregnant With Possibility”

Most food formulators know that attempting to create the “do all, be all” product that will appeal to everyone and draws on a wide range of prevailing trends—the everything but the kitchen sink approach—is often not the best path to success. However, major (large-run) manufacturers routinely need to gain a certain acceptable percentage of consumer interest (read: sales) in order ...
02/18/2009

Sweet Inspiration

First off: I’m a big fan of the deceptively simple doughnut. From halcyon childhood memories of homemade, chocolate-frosted types to those accompanying adolescent coffee, and on through time, from artisan and ethnic bakeries to chains, supermarket bake shops and yes, even fine dining, I’ve downed many a doughnut over the years. And I plan to continue my love affair with the baked or fried, ...
02/12/2009

Peanut Butter’s Sticking Around

It’s amazing what a few days can do to alter a point of view. My passing thought last week that “it’s just a matter of time before we have another flavor of the month” in regard to the current peanut butter fiasco might hold true, but any new food-safety Johnny come latelys will just add more weight to the frightening pendulum swinging directly into the gut of ...
 

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