There’s often more to life than meets the eye. Interestingly, that even applies to food and beverage innovation. In fact, some breakthrough products have features that go beyond the senses—with attributes that cannot been seen, smelled, touched or tasted.

That was the case last summer as The Marzetti Company, Westerville, Ohio, extended its New York Bakery brand with two new frozen Gluten Free Texas Toast varieties (Regular, Five Cheese). The on-shelf offerings promise the same look, smell, bite and taste of regular bread. Behind the scenes, the August 2024 product launch marked the end of a 15-year project that resulted in a patent-pending dough technology and capital investments in dedicated, gluten-free manufacturing.

Daniel Morin is Marzetti’s Vice President, R&D and Research Fellow, Grain & Dough.

“Developing this gluten-free toast was a complex challenge that spanned over a decade,” he notes. “In fact, for more than 15 years, our team experimented with gluten-free formulations. Until recently, the technology and processes needed to replicate the taste and texture of our traditional Texas Toast simply didn’t exist.”

He continues, “Most gluten-free products rely on batter-based methods that don’t allow for proofing or traditional baking. To overcome this, our R&D team pioneered a new dough-based approach—one that proofs, rises and bakes like real bread. Achieving this required more than 30 recipe iterations, careful sourcing of new ingredients and refining baking techniques until we met our ‘gold standard.’ Bringing Gluten Free Texas Toast to life was a labor of love across the entire New York Bakery team.”

Speaking again of that team, Morin says R&D’s challenge was to match the texture, rise and mouthfeel that consumers expect from classic Texas toast. The group ultimately moved away from a batter-based formula and developed its own dough-based formulation that proofs and rises like conventional dough. The result is a “crisp exterior and a soft, chewy interior that consumers say they ‘can’t believe is gluten-free,’” says Morin.

Morin notes that R&D first developed the product’s unique, patent-pending formula and a broader R&D team focused on product texture and flavor, monitored the manufacturing process during trials, and employed rigorous testing as it determined the right packaging.

Marzetti’s procurement and supply chain groups sourced ingredients that upheld the integrity of the formula at scale. This ensured the team could meet aggressive production timelines without compromising quality.

Quality Assurance also played a critical role as it maintained gluten-free standards from concept through production. QA staffers vetted facilities, suppliers, and vendors, and provided ongoing compliance and consistency oversight during production.

Morin says operations and engineering ensured the appropriate equipment was in place (in a dedicated gluten-free facility) and oversaw the manufacturing process to support a smooth production rollout. When officials finally approved the product formula in early 2024, Marzetti accelerated production so finished offerings reached nationwide retail distribution within just eight months.

Morin also credits Marzetti’s field sales team for translating innovation into retail success.

“They supported our launch with strategic sell-in efforts and executed merchandising opportunities that gave the product strong visibility and adoption across the country,” he says. “Together, all our teams worked in lock-step to deliver a delicious, gluten-free innovation that meets consumer demand without sacrificing taste, texture, or convenience.”