Last week, I took a whirlwind trip to the City of Brotherly Love (Philadelphia) where Frito-Lay participated in the Healthy Living Summit (HLS), a weekend-long conference and networking event for food, nutrition and health bloggers from around the country. We wanted to bring a taste of Frito-Lay to the bloggers and give them an experience they wouldn’t forget. So, on Friday, we hosted an interactive demonstration in a downtown Philly kitchen to showcase the steps Chef Stephen Kalil from the Frito-Lay Flavor Kitchen and his team take to help develop new flavors for Frito-Lay snacks.
I think many of our guests were surprised to learn the Flavor Kitchen team starts with real food and real recipes to develop the flavor inspirations behind many of our snacks. The end result? Chips as flavorful as Chef Stephen’s recipes -- many made with all natural ingredients, like Lay’s potato chips, SunChips multigrain snacks and Tostitos tortilla chips. (Our chips made with all natural ingredients contain no artificial flavors, no artificial preservatives and no monosodium glutamate (MSG)).
Chef Stephen explained how the Flavor Kitchen chefs start with a flavor idea and develop an extensive number of recipes to bring that flavor to life. After exploring the different recipes and conducting consumer taste testing, the team selects the final flavor profile used to create the seasoning blend for the snack. We encouraged the bloggers to submit their own flavor inspiration ideas for SunChips snacks and Lay’s chips, and Chef Stephen chose to prepare two submissions from blogger Lauren at Sassy Molassy: Caramelized onions and cheese for SunChips multigrain snacks and coconut curry for Lay’s potato chips. Click here to listen to a podcast I recorded with Lauren following the kitchen demos.
(Above: Chef Stephen Kalil and Flavor Kitchen consultant chef Nico Murillo are joined by Lauren of Sassy Molassy to cook up two versions of caramelized onions and cheese.)
Chef Stephen also showed bloggers how an existing flavor of our chips can inspire a new recipe. Lay’s Garden Tomato and Basil potato chips served as the inspiration behind Chef Stephen’s Bruschetta Quinoa Salad, which he prepared at the event.
(Above: Chef Stephen and the HLS bloggers after the Flavor Kitchen demonstrations.)
Chef Stephen wrapped up the cooking demos by preparing a recipe for avocado hummus, a snack that pairs perfectly with Tostitos Artisan Recipes Roasted Garlic and Black Bean tortilla chips. I think the bloggers enjoyed the chips and humus -- there was not much left over after they tasted them!
On Saturday, the HLS bloggers came together for a marathon day of lectures, workshops and classes aimed to make them healthier, happier bloggers! Of course, Frito-Lay was there to offer a little levity, with a photo booth full of fun props and a giveaway for a Williams-Sonoma gift card to encourage the bloggers to get cooking in their own kitchens. Check out our photo gallery from the HLS events.
I’d like to give a special shout out to all the HLS bloggers who joined us for the cooking demo: What Katie Said, Running Loving Living, Finish Your Broccoli, Little Bitty Bakes, Healthy Happier Bear, Lisa's Foods, The Realistic Nutritionist, Caitlin Lives Well, Sweet Tooth Sweet Life, A Philly Nerd Girl, The Running Jewess, Dynamic Balancing, Jen is Green, Brownies and Zucchini, Blunder Construction, Healthy Happy Whole and Hungry Healthy Hilary -- and thank you to all of the HLS attendees who visited our photo booth. We had a blast, and we hope you did too!
- Kristin
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