Clients/Editor Comments

“Nancy Hughes has been a valuable asset and ally for us here at Smart Balance.  She has an expertise in food, recipe development, styling, and presentation that is world class, balanced with a sunny, energetic and down to earth disposition that is an inspiration for those fortunate enough to work with her.

Though we often ask Nancy to do the impossible, she delivers every time; with a will and a smile.  Nancy puts her heart and her considerable talents fully into everything she is asked to do.  I can think of no higher praise than that!"

--David P. McCarty
Director of Marketing, Smart Balance, Inc.

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“It has been our pleasure working with Nancy Hughes, as she brings the highest level of expertise and dedication we need to support our projects. Nancy continually proves herself a valued resource for USA Rice, and her good nature and positive approach make it even more enjoyable working with her.

She has been a valuable resource for USA Rice Federation from recipe development and testings to writing and editing projects. She is very attuned to consumer trends and needs, and is highly experienced with recipes for healthy eating and special diets. Not only is she knowledgeable, she is efficient, working around the clock, if necessary, to get projects completed for us.

She responds quickly to requests and meets even the most rigorous deadlines without fail. Nancy is also a "people person" and has the ability to establish meaningful relationships with everyone she meets along the way. Her creative passion for good food and relationship building is delivered with a sense of boundless energy.”

--Judy Rusignuolo,
Director/National Consumer Education & Foodservice Marketing, USA Rice Federation

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“I’m glad to write a letter of recommendation for Nancy Hughes. Nancy has worn a number of hats for us at PIL, including recipe developer, recipe tester, and recently contributing columnist. No matter what the task, she is always creative, collaborative, prompt in completing her assignment, and an absolute dynamo of energy, enthusiasm, and good humor. We have asked her to work in a variety of cuisines and cooking styles, and she invariably delivers (and usually with a dozen or so ideas in reserve). Nancy is firmly established as a go-to resource in any emergency, and she’s a genuine pleasure to work with.”

--James M. O’Connor,
Editor-in-Chief, Cooking Magazines, Publications International, Ltd.

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“Nancy has worked with ConAgra Foods as a food consultant since October 2002 when we began revamping our database. Her thoroughness and expertise in editing, standardizing the format and creativity go well beyond what is expected of her. She immerses herself in the project and because of her close contacts with her various editors and writing for the home cook, she is able to offer creative ways to enhance the program that would appeal to the consumer. Not only is she proficient in her job, but a good communicator. Her sense of humor coupled with her talents and contagious enthusiasm make for an amicable work environment. I highly recommend Nancy Hughes and look forward to working with her on future projects.”

--Michael Bragg, Director,
Online Strategies & Services Corporate Marketing, ConAgra Foods

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 “I am pleased to be a reference for Nancy Hughes. She has worked for me as an independent recipe tester for several years, starting around 1995. At that time, we (Pillsbury Publications) were publishing a bi-monthly magazine called, Fast and Healthy. As one of our best recipe developers, I’d ask her to develop anywhere from eight to fifteen new recipes per issue. Our last issue was on the newsstand in December, 1999. During the years that Nancy worked for me, she never missed a deadline no matter how many other projects that she was working on. More importantly, she always understood the project and delivered great (and delicious) results against any criteria that I assigned to her. She is one of the rare developers who can create recipes that range from gourmet to ones for average families. In addition to that she is an authority on developing healthy recipes-ones with low fat and sodium-and can make them taste great! And, that is not an easy thing to do.”

--Andi Bidwell
Senior Food Editor, Betty Crocker Kitchens, General Mills

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“Nancy Hughes is a treasured cookbook author at the American Diabetes Association—treasured both for her culinary talents and for her enthusiasm about her subject matter. She is adept at developing healthy recipes and will go to great lengths to learn more about health issues to make sure her recipes truly help the readers. She also makes sure that the recipes taste good, too.

Nancy is easy to work with and helpful well beyond any expectations based on a signed contract. For example, with only a few days’ notice, she arranged a photo shoot for her latest cookbook, choosing the recipes, preparing them, and arranging the table settings. She even went so far as to find and hire the photographer for us. She is dependable, thorough, honest, light-hearted, and a really good cook!”

--Sherrye Landrum
Former Assistant Director, Consumer Books, American Diabetes Association

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“Nancy Hughes has worked for Oxmoor House as an independent recipe developer for the past 7 years and has developed recipes for both our Cooking Light and Weight Watchers book series. Her recipes are consistently full of flavor, easy to prepare, and meet our guidelines for healthy cooking. In addition to the quality of her work, Nancy is a delight to work with. She meets deadlines, offers ideas and suggestions for the project, and is always willing to rework and revise recipes if necessary. Whenever our editors start selecting project recipe developers, Nancy is one of the first people we call.”

--Anne Cain, M.S., M.P.H., R.D.
Former Foods Editor, Oxmoor House
Former Assistant Director, Consumer Books, American Diabetes Association
Currently Senior Food Editor, MyRecipes.com