Culinology - December 2019 - 30

MEMBER profile

"I tell my students that in this industry...
we need more nice people,
not just smart people."
Staying the course
During her past six years in Culinology
education, Dr. Trout has seen the field evolve.
"The main difference is that food scientists
are working more directly with chefs now, and
all realize food needs to taste good, not just
be good for you," she said. "Another change
is that food companies are collaborating more
with academia, offering students valuable,
applied research opportunities that they otherwise had to wait to gain until they were fulltime employees."
Also, the traditional job search for
Culinology students has changed. "Students
now have more opportunities to network
with industry executives, and connectivity is
vastly expanded because of social media,"
she said.
Through her programs at Drexel, students
work with several local companies and restaurants such as Campbell Soup Co. and
Philadelphia's Vernick Food & Drink and are
paid for their time during the co-ops.
Students also learn specific product development skills. "We ensure students receive
foundation coursework before they can move
into product development courses," Dr. Trout
said. "They take a three-term culinary course
progression in the undergraduate program,
along with an introduction to chemistry,
math and physics and intro to food science
courses during their first year. Without a solid
foundation, students wouldn't have the skills
to take on the more complex competencies
that product development demands."

Dedication to her field
Dr. Trout has worked with the Research
Chefs Association (RCA) for many years, as a
member of the RCA Board of Directors since
2015, and currently as Education Committee
chair. The two Drexel degree programs she
teaches in are accredited through the RCA.
In March, the RCA honored Dr. Trout with

30 |

Culinology | DECEMBER 2019

its first-ever Outstanding Achievement in
Culinology Education award.
"As Education Committee chair of the RCA,
and with generous input and donations from
key members, we have established a higher
education task force for Culinology program
faculty and advisors to meet for the purpose
of updating and sharing curriculum information," she said. "The Education Committee
has excellent and active members, which
is why it's been successful. We've set up
Culinology webinars and an online learning
library in the last two years, for example."

Of food and fame
When not teaching at Drexel or conducting
research there - her research work includes
the antioxidant properties of fruit juices, chocolate sensory appeal and food sustainability,
to name just a few - she is busy being a featured food scientist on Bon Appétit's "Making
Perfect" pizza series and the "Four Levels"
series for Epicurious. "For Epicurious.com,
we have more than 70 million views. It's an international audience. Even a lot of non-foodies
also like Epicurious," she explained.
Dr. Trout, however, is definitely a foodie herself. She and her husband even have a plot
in a community garden in their Philadelphia
neighborhood, which certainly contributes to
those holiday gatherings. "We get so much
food from this 10-foot-by-20-foot garden that
we have home-grown vegetables throughout the year because we freeze so much,"
she explained.
One of eight siblings and born in
Bethlehem, Pa., her generosity around the
holidays is reflected in volunteer work she
does cooking at a local homeless shelter and
inspires one piece of advice for those she
teaches. "I tell my students that in this industry - culinary and food science - we need
more nice people, not just smart people," she
said. *

http://www.Epicurious.com

Culinology - December 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Culinology - December 2019