Like most Americans, Steve Ettlinger eats processed foods. And, like 聽most consumers, he often reads the ingredients label without a clue as 聽to what most of it means. So when his young daughter asked, "Daddy, 聽what's polysorbate 60?" he was at a loss and determined to find out. In this fascinating exploration into the curious world of packaged 聽foods, Twinkie, Deconstructed takes us from the phosphate mines in Idaho 聽to the corn fields in Iowa, from gypsum mines in Oklahoma to oil fields 聽in China, to demystify some of America's most common processed food 聽ingredients: where they come from, how they are made, how they are used, 聽and why. Beginning at the source, we follow each Twinkie ingredient through the 聽process of being crushed, baked, fermented, refined, and/or reacted into 聽a totally unrecognizable goo or powder with a strange name - all for 聽the sake of creating a simple snack cake. If you've ever wondered what 聽you're eating when you consume foods containing mono- and diglycerides 聽or calcium sulfate (the latter is a food-grade equivalent of plaster of 聽paris), this book is for you. What the Critics Say "[A] delightful romp through the food processing industry." (Publishers Weekly)