Chef Robert Saia is a self-trained chef, food science expert, and nutritionist, and he has been working on solving problems in the kitchen ever since he began working in food service. He and Mrs. Chef joined me on the podcast to share details about the book and provide a great giveaway for our PeasOnMoss podcast listeners just in time for the holidays! Sign up for the and be entered for a copy of the e-book! This podcast is sponsored by . Get information about sugar free formulations and find ou...
Dec 22, 2018•31 min
Jeff is a nationally acclaimed marketing leader, specializing in reigniting and revitalizing brands and categories. He is best known for GOT MILK?, transforming the now famous phrase from a local tag line into one of the best known, most influential campaigns in advertising history. A campaign licensed nationally by companies including Nabisco, Nestle, General Mills and Kellogg. This podcast is sponsored by . Get information about sugar free formulations and find out what they've developed latel...
Dec 15, 2018•40 min
Jeff Manning is not your typical mad man advertising man, but he does have a pretty nifty history. He worked on the California milk processor board side of the advertising slogan “got milk.” He is one of the speakers for the upcoming American Food Innovate Summit in Chicago Feb 4-5, and he came to the show to give us a preview of what he plans to share at the innovation summit. This podcast is sponsored by . Get information about sugar free formulations and find out what they've developed lately...
Dec 08, 2018•3 min
Joshua Smith has enjoyed a wonderful career at So Delicious, and has a godfather-like affection for several of the products that have made So Delicious a staple in the non-dairy products category. From the younger days as an independent brand through partnerships and acquisitions, Joshua has grown in his career as the company has. He shares that that experience was like and his optimism for the future. We also talk about Expo West and the changes that the Natural Products show - and the category...
Dec 01, 2018•41 min
Food product developer Joshua Smith is a connection through Katie Jones, the founder of the Food Heroes Podcast, a former colleague at So Delicious. In this preview, Joshua talks about why he has stayed for several years in the same business while many middle managers and developers (myself included) have moved to different companies for promotions and opportunities. This show is sponsored by Icon Foods. Find out from them how they could help you reduce sugar without losing your sweet identity. ...
Nov 24, 2018•5 min
Andrew Garrett laughs easily, but don't think that this doesn't mean he doesn't take his work seriously. The founder of NW Elixers, a chef-created cooking sauce brand in Portland, OR, Chef Andrew has also worked with Icon Foods commercializing sugar free sauces for the ketogenic community. He shares some of the challenges of what it is like to force himself to relinquish the ownership of every single step in a product manufacturing process in order to focus on the most important elements of busi...
Nov 11, 2018•41 min
Next week's podcast guest is R&D Chef Andrew Garrett. After acknowledging his obsession with condiments and sauces, Chef Andrew shared how he came to found NW Elixirs and why co-packing was the biggest challenge he faced as a food business entrepreneur. In this preview he shares what the biggest two lessons were for his work as a research chef. This podcast is sponsored by Icon Foods, the source for high intensity, natural sweeteners. Get details at . Join them and sponsor PeasOnMoss. Contac...
Nov 03, 2018•4 min
Food product developer and writer Katie Jones didn't start out with the plan to be the next big podcast host, but after years of writing about food and experience as a food product developer, she was looking for another way to contribute to the industry. Since she already interviewed experts in the field for articles in various food publications, she thought podcasting would be a breeze. It's not. But she discovered something else: a platform to tell the stories about food businesses with unique...
Oct 27, 2018•41 min
One thing that is great about podcasting is the relationship we build with our guests and our audience. Some of my good friends in the industry started as guests on the show. In this clip, I chat with Katie about imposter syndrome - whether I feel it, and how I deal with it. You'll hear Katie's perspective in next week's full interview, but here's my most recent approach to how I landed a senior scientist role without a master's in food science. (Hint: it takes a lot of late night reading to mak...
Oct 20, 2018•6 min
Chef Dan Follese is your modern-day traveling fixer, but not in the Mob sort of way. He's a consulting R&D Chef who has a knack for speaking to the marketing and brand managers as well as the operators, developers, and chefs in a team. Instead of introducing line extensions, he helps brands refresh their offerings and expand their customer base by showing them how to repurpose and showcase their existing ingredients in the food trends of today. Chef Dan is a member of the Research Chefs Asso...
Oct 13, 2018•58 min
Chef Eric Rivera is one of my first podcast guests, and we recorded his interview when he was first moving back to Seattle. Fast-forward a few years, and both of us are in very different roles. Chef Eric has founded , an innovative pop-up restaurant and chef business incubator space. After a year in the Coffee Flour space, Eric has moved the location and has founded his own on-going pop-up, Lechoncito, serving Puerto Rican delights for business lunches and dinners. He's even taking a group to Pu...
Oct 06, 2018•36 min
Alan Reed is the Executive Director of the Chicagoland Food and Beverage Network, and he joined us to introduce the CFBN. Chicago is a hub for food manufacturing and restaurants, and the network appears to be the first one that brings together both sides of the industry and provides a platform to collaborate. They do multiple events each month, so if you find yourself in Chicago, make sure you check out an event. This podcast is sponsored by . Get more information about natural sugar replacement...
Sep 29, 2018•28 min
Conversations with Chef Greg Grisanti are always fun. A previous guest of the podcast, Chef Greg returned to the show to talk about best practices in research chef work and how the work compares to restaurant cooking. From restaurant work to cleaning up labels at quick service restaurants, Chef Greg has seen lots of different ways to have a vibrant culinary career, and he's still excited about the future. Special thanks to our founding and only sponsor, Icon Foods. Join them, help us grow the po...
Sep 24, 2018•38 min
While Chef Greg and I were wrapping up our podcast recording, we started talking about next year's Research Chefs Association conference in Louisville, Kentucky. Turns out, Chef is from Louisville, so he shares some insights about the city and gets us really excited about visiting the conference. Listen to the full episode next week, but in the meantime, get excited for the RCA . . This podcast is sponsored by Icon Foods - . Find out how sugar replacement can be accomplished naturally. Join Icon...
Sep 15, 2018•3 min
Inspected, safe kitchens scaled for commercial use (bigger stoves, refrigerators, etc) are required to prepare food consistently and safely, but if you're newer to the business or too small for a full-scale co-packer, where do you turn? Rachael Miller joins us on the podcast to tell us about The Food Corridor, a business incubator that connects commercial kitchens with users, whether for catering chefs, small scale production, or hosting special events. Rachael is The Food Corridor's Director of...
Sep 10, 2018•32 min
Research Chef Chris McAdams is a talented voice in the RCA and culinology world and shares his knowledge through Culinary Culture, a consultancy in Austin, Tx. Culinary Culture is a group of passionate research chefs who offer consulting services for food-based businesses. Through trend research, innovative ideation, and unsurpassed industry experience, Culinary Culture delivers imaginative, craveable products that consistently exceed your expectations. In part 2, Chris and I review the 2018 Cul...
Aug 25, 2018•22 min
Research Chef Chris McAdams is a talented voice in the RCA and culinology world. As a writer for various sites, including the RCA student committee's The Culinologist and Culinary Culture's blogs, Chris uses every dining out and experience to share with the readers. Chris has followed a crazy pathway to his R&D career, from the Air Force, to college, to culinary school, and eventually to Culinary Culture. Culinary Culture is a group of passionate research chefs who offer consulting services ...
Aug 18, 2018•32 min
I've been off-air for two weeks, and thank you for sticking around! Chef Matthew Raiford was the keynote speaker for the 2018 Research Chefs Association Conference, and he spoke about diversity, service, acknowledging our histories (including the parts we aren't proud of), and the future of the culinary world, including the research world. He owns two restaurants in Georgia, and he spends no less than 10 hours per week volunteering his time for various nonprofits. Our conversation was an unscrip...
Aug 11, 2018•55 min
Food technologist Andrea Zeng and I worked together as the product development team at Lundberg Family Farms renovating their snack line, creating new rice meal kits, and developing frozen items for them. Andrea has since moved into chocolate product research and development, drawing on her time managing the Cal Poly Chocolates Food and Nutrition Science student product development and management program. Now a chocolate technologist, she joins us to talk about product development across differe...
Jul 21, 2018•41 min
Andrea Zeng worked with me in a past R&D role, and although she crossed food categories when she moved to a new job at Ghirardelli Chocolate Company, she had past experience working in chocolate science. Here she gives some foundational advise on how you could cross from one category to another and how passion for the category is the key to cross-over. Thanks to Icon Foods for being the founding sponsor. Check out other episodes at
Jul 14, 2018•3 min
Wendy Lu McGill is CEO/Founder of Rocky Mountain Micro Ranch (RMMR), Colorado's first and only edible insect farm. With a background in sociological research in international development and intercultural communication, Wendy Lu brings a global perspective and deep understanding of the why and how of farming insects for food. She joins the PeasOnMoss podcast to dispel some myths about insect protein, share top reasons to consider alternative protein sources, and why insect protein shouldn't be c...
Jul 07, 2018•41 min
Wendy Lu McGill is CEO/Founder of Rocky Mountain Micro Ranch (RMMR), Colorado's first and only edible insect farm. With a background in sociological research in international development and intercultural communication, Wendy Lu brings a global perspective and deep understanding of the why and how of farming insects for food. Wendy Lu was a guest panelist during the 2018 Research Chefs Association Conference, the discussion I was honored to host. She's arguably the rancher of the smallest animal...
Jun 30, 2018•6 min
Food scientist Lindsey Wisener started WiseBev two years ago to balance her work and life responsibilities and has experienced great growth. With a specialty in beverage development, she started her niche business by getting hired by companies that already knew her quality of work, and the calls kept coming. Now she runs a thriving business in a popular food category and shares some great insights about founding her own business and how it compares to the corporate world. PeasOnMoss is sponsored...
Jun 23, 2018•48 min
When you've worked in product development and food science for ten years, you have earned some intense stories about projects that almost failed. Lindsay's story is a classic, and I couldn't believe how real it felt. Hear the start of her story in this nail-biting preview, and download the full episode next week to find out how she saved it! Get in touch with Lindsay at . Thank our show's sponsor, Icon Foods, at Support PeasOnMoss and consider joining an upcoming conversation.
Jun 16, 2018•4 min
Jessica Goldstein is the head of business development and sales for NuSpice, a company based in New Jersey, but she travels the nation and the world to develop business relationships and bring a personal touch to the relationships among vendors, customers, and the supply chain. Her key to success: focus on problem solving - it helps her focus on the client's biggest needs and sets the tone of working together rather than placing blame. Connect with NuSpice at This podcast is brought to you by Ic...
Jun 09, 2018•55 min
NuSpice business developer and sales VP Jessica Goldstein manages a team of experienced individuals, many of whom are older than her. How does she acknowledge her youth but also maintain management? She has a solid staff, and she treats them with respect and acknowledgement of their experiences. And she trusts them to be incredible. Hear this perspective in the preview and listen to the whole episode next week. Get in touch with NuSpice Thanks to Icon Foods for being our sponsor. Please join the...
Jun 02, 2018•3 min
Chef Robert Saia joins us on PeasOnMoss to describe his unique careers as both a nutritionist and chef and how he has leveraged those experiences in restaurant management, culinary instruction, and food business entrepreneurship. Humorous and quick-witted, the conversation covered topics from how food science helps him be a better chef and how he is preparing for the Certified Executive Chef exam. Check out his program and app at You can reach Chef Robert on LinkedIn, and he's also active on Fac...
May 26, 2018•39 min
Chef Robert Saia is a personality, a passionate educator, and a Renaissance man. An entrepreneur who never let degrees and pedigrees get in his way, Chef Robert is constantly looking for needs and ways to fill them. In this preview he talks about how he uses food science to explain to culinary students how the knowledge of what's going on at a molecular level could make them better cooks. Next week, you'll get to hear about the Menu and Recipe Genesis app that he has created to help with recipe ...
May 19, 2018•5 min
Before I (Kimberly) crossed into product development, I was on the pathway to studying a Master's of Food Science and taking the registered dietitian certification (RD). I don't often meet very many registered dietitians in product development, but the Research Chefs Association has members from all specialties, including Chef and Registered Dietitian Stephanie Green. She discusses how nutrition and culinary arts are interrelated and how nutrition scientists are vital in food product development...
May 12, 2018•45 min
Chef Stephanie Green is both a clinical dietitian and a chef, and she is active in food education, food styling and photography, recipe development and consultation. She joins us on POM to share her career and tell us about the unique niche she has filled in combining clinical dietetics with professional cooking. This week is a preview, and next week you'll get to laugh along with Kimberly as Stephanie describes her "slow" season, which is packed with educational events, teaching, cooking demos,...
May 05, 2018•3 min
