Oftentimes, Inside the Plant features look in-depth at the processing of dairy products. This issue, we change up the story and look at the fascinating process of flavor formulation and recipes at Land O’Lakes’ 8,400-square-foot Culinary Center.

A key component of its Arden Hills, Minn.-based company headquarters is the Culinary Center. Kim Anderson, manager of the Culinary Center, explains its role, which is to understand how people use Land O'Lakes' products.

“We monitor trends and use that information to make our products better and provide recipe inspiration,” she explains. Anderson took us on a tour of the Culinary Center to explore some food trends and showcase their work. She first introduced us to Ann Stuart, who oversees the butter and spreads category within the Culinary Center and content development.

According to Stuart, snacking is a huge trend today, something Land O’Lakes is trying to cater to. "A variety of cheese forms are meeting the snacking needs: cubes, cracker cuts, and the chunk cheeses which can be sliced for snacking but also shredded for cooking and baking needs," Stuart says. “We’re seeing that 74% of consumers have a snack in place of a meal at least once a week. Reasons for this include typical things like a busy schedule and wanting to experiment with new flavors and textures in a snackable form. The pandemic also changed the way we eat.”

We taste-tested several of the Land O’Lakes' culinary offerings, seeing the new trends in full force. “This pimento cheese dip is to die for,” Stuart jokes. “And who knew a saltine could get any better? But we made a spicy butter mixture, put the crackers in the oven, and the result is crispy and spicy.”

Snack mixes are also popular, Stuart adds, with sweet and savory mixes both selling well. Although the snack mix flavors are new, nostalgia can be found in Bugles and Honeycomb cereal included.

“It’s a new way to elevate familiar things,” Anderson maintains. “Bold flavors are a great addition.

The Culinary Center is always working on potential flavor combinations and recipes and works hand-in-hand with Dairy Foods’ businesses to bring content to life that ties back to business goals. “We think about the holidays as one example, which are all about baking and cooking,” Stuart states during our mid-April interview. “Right now, we are working on recipe concepts and inspiration for the summer grilling season.”

The Culinary Center must vigorously follow trends, whether overall social media trends or food trends to try to gauge what could be a hot new product. “Land O’Lakes has a really active social media channel, especially Instagram,” Stuart reveals. “One of our main goals is to create recipe inspiration that involves Land O’Lakes products. Some of our most popular content are the videos that walk-through recipes step by step.”

Anderson and Stuart both have food science backgrounds. They have balanced those backgrounds with Stephanie Wise, who sold her food blog business and came to join Land O’Lakes to work on recipe development and innovation in the butter category. Chefs, a dietitian and food authors are also on staff. “Everybody sees the world differently in food,” Anderson notes. “So, it is really nice to have our diverse backgrounds.”

One of the culinary trends Wise focuses on is restaurant-quality meals at home. “It is a trend that continues to endure after the pandemic. People want to stay home but still have a good meal that is elevated beyond something like grilled cheese.”

Of course, Wise realizes most people are not chefs, nor do they have a tremendous amount of time to cook. So, she focuses on simple recipes that are easy to make and deliver on flavor.

A prime example is Land O’ Lakes One Pan Tuscan Chicken Pasta. “It takes about a half-hour to make. When we put it on our Instagram, it did really well with excellent engagement.”

Beyond the pasta we tried, Stuart cited brown butter and pistachio as two big flavor trends this year. Regarding the latter, social media has amplified pistachio’s popularity, with platforms like TikTok and Instagram showcasing creative pistachio-based products like the viral Dubai Chocolate bar. Land O’Lakes’ Pistachio Chocolate Chunk cookie plays well into this trend.

“Stephanie and her team developed that, and it is delicious,” Stuart says. “I think we are going to see a lot of pistachio cookies during the holidays this year.”

Regarding brown butter, Land O’ Lakes has added the popular trend to Rice Krispies treats. “Adding brown butter changes and enhances the flavor of the recipe,” Stuart says. “It started by making its way into the restaurant world and has made its way now into homecooked products. It adds a rich, nutty flavor. It involves taking butter, cooking it down and browning the milk solids so the butter becomes a rich, golden brown color.”

Stuart adds that butter, in general, “is back.” “We have seen bread baskets return at restaurants with flavored butters. Artisanal butters are also popular,” she reveals. “Butter is having a moment.”

Dairy at school

Another important segment for Land O’Lakes is its K-12 product line within its foodservice business. At the time of this interview, the K-12 team was conducting a recipe photoshoot for an upcoming food show and customer visits. The recipes ranged from classic Alfredo recipes to globally inspired dishes like Loaded Korean Fries. Recently, Land O’Lakes has leaned into the speed-scratch cooking process for recipe inspiration for the K-12 side of their dairy business. Speed-scratch involves removing a portion of the scratch cooking process that improves efficiency of a recipe and helps yield more consistent results, while taking time, kitchen size and staff allocation into account.

“Interest in speed-scratch started before the pandemic and now has continued after the pandemic. Some districts get funding in exchange for having a percentage of scratch-made cooking at their schools,” notes Susie Berglund, who heads the K-12 segment at the Culinary Center.

To develop recipes for schools, the Culinary Center looks for trends and inspiration from quick service restaurants and the school districts themselves. One example of such a recipe is a Jerk Chicken Alfredo. “Other districts can see those recipes and see if it will work for them. It is a great source of creativity,” Berglund suggests.

What the Culinary Center is working on today is certainly not your “father’s school lunch.” Asian food and Banh Mi style sandwiches are examples of the innovation explosion currently taking place at the Culinary Center. However, Berglund adds it tries to keep recipes simple for schools, with most containing six ingredients or less. “We want the recipes to be simple to create, but we are also leaning toward bold flavors that will excite the students,” she mentions.

Berglund’s favorite item for school menus is Land O’Lakes’ Ultimate Creamy White Cheese Sauce. “It is so versatile and can be a component of so many flavor profiles,” she states.

Foodservice options

Heading the foodservice segment at the Culinary Center is Beth Jones, who formerly served as a chef for about 20 years. Foodservice options are designed for restaurants and a variety of event locations, such as convention centers, college campuses, casinos and cruise ships. Within this segment of the Culinary Center, we sampled cheese sauces and dips bursting with flavor.

“A lot of our sauces work as a really good base for other things. Most just involve heating them and serving them,” Jones notes.

The foodservice segment does a ton of performance testing on a daily basis. The goal is to see how much acid (like lime juice), or fat the sauces can take on before “breaking.” Other tests include how a recipe responds to reheating and more.

“We want to have recipes where an operator can use a full pouch of our products to make it simpler,” Jones continues. "We create recipes with a chef in mind.”

Land O’Lakes’ Queso Bravo White Cheese Dip is currently a big “go-to” for foodservice operators. “No chef wants to order one ingredient and only have one or two uses for it,” Jones reveals. “You can use the Queso Bravo for things other than appetizers. You can use it for entrees and breakfast foods like burritos or tacos. That’s what a lot of our operators use it for.”

Foodservice operators have input themselves. Land O’Lakes employs corporate sales chefs who meet with the foodservice operators on a regular basis, Anderson reveals. “We will tailor things specifically for customers,” she says.

One of the most enjoyable parts of the job for Jones is the constant experimenting with foods to make perfect recipes. “Sometimes, you get a random idea and you just see if it will work. At times, you will be pulled in a different direction than I would have thought. You make some really cool discoveries about what sauce can do.”

When visiting the Culinary Center, one thing is abundantly clear: the passion of all the employees. “I love cooking. I am a recipe writer and a recipe reader. I think I have checked out every Mexican cookbook from the library in the last three months,” Jones jokes. “I also love going out to eat. When I go on business trips, I visit restaurants and get random ideas.

“My favorite part of the job is collaborating with others on recipe ideas,” Jones adds. “I am willing to try any food to generate new ideas.”

Anderson concludes so many employees love to work at Land O’Lakes because they enjoy talking about food all day, every day. “We are so passionate about what we do,” she maintains. DF