Articles by Kimberly Decker
Makers of dairy foods and beverages can boast about the inherent nutrition in their products. They also can boost the health claims by adding functional ingredients such as protein and omega-3s.
May 16, 2013
In the words of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, “All
foods are functional at some physiological level.”
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Making foods taste sweet is one of sugar’s roles. It also provides bulk to foods and beverages, and depresses the freezing point in ice cream.
April 16, 2013
Dairy manufacturers are well aware of the health-and-wellness trend that is forcing serious re-evaluations of their ingredient choices.
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Americans drink tea and coffee because they enjoy the beverages and because they expect health benefits. Our roundtable discussion gives dairy processors ideas for creating foods with coffee and tea ingredients.
March 8, 2013
Millions of Americans can’t be wrong. And what is it that we are not wrong about? Our choice in beverages, that’s what. According to “Coffee and Tea Foodservice Trends in the US” (a report from Packaged Facts), fully 183 million Americans enjoy their regular infusions of java and 173.4 million take tea.
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February 12, 2013
Kimberly Breedlove, director of research & development at Pecan Deluxe Candy Co., Dallas, knows that a truly transcendent inclusion is worth hunting for. When one really hits the mark, she said, it “should make you want to dig around to find each piece and eat it first. It can be that little welcomed surprise you get when taking a bite of your favorite ice cream that makes you smile and brag about it to your friends and family.”
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In creating healthy foods, formulators often reduce fat and sugar, the very ingredients responsible for the attributes creamy, smooth and soft that consumers expect in dairy foods. What’s the solution? Texturants.
January 20, 2013
In September 2011, a study appeared in the journal Appetite reporting that texture, not flavor, best predicted the level of satiation that subjects expected from certain dairy products. In three separate experiments, the researchers wrote, product samples with the thicker texture — whether yogurt, custard or chocolate milk — rated higher for expected satiation than thinner ones.
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Chocolate and cocoa are long-time associates of dairy. These days, everything from frozen yogurt to blended coffee beverages is angling for a chocolaty profile. A panel of experts explains how to formulate with the ingredients.
October 12, 2012
We Americans have notoriously restless palates. This is especially so in today’s food-forward world, as chefs vie for celebrity status and the more adventuresome among us approach dining as an extreme sport. It’s now commonplace to find even familiar flavor favorites forced into some pretty unusual pairings, as the current practice with chocolate demonstrates.
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Consumer awareness of natural colorings in dairy foods is important. But coloring milk and dairy foods is a tricky proposition. Never fear. We look at red, yellow, blue and green color options for milk, cheese, yogurt and ice cream.
September 14, 2012
Starbucks probably thought it was doing the right thing by coloring its Strawberries & Crème Frappuccino with carmine. After all, even if consumers didn’t realize it when they ordered the popular dairy-berry beverage from their friendly neighborhood barista, the coffee giant had them in mind in opting for this natural colorant over a synthetic like, say, FD&C Red #40.
The frozen yogurt category is getting its second wind. Today’s product is more acidic, and some consumers prefer a sour or tart taste. But the bigger market is for creamy, indulgent frozen yogurt. Here are tips and ideas for working with flavors.
May 14, 2012
It’s getting harder to stroll a city block without landing in front of yet another frozen yogurt outlet. These brightly colored, sleekly designed shrines to soft-serve bliss are sprouting like spring grass, adding oomph to what some have described as the latest renaissance for a category that was all but written off not long ago.
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