Food photography is not something that I know much about, though I enjoy taking pictures.  I lurk on a blog called the Digital Photography School and they recently mentioned some pointers to tricks that food photographers use.
Some of them are kind of creepy but fun.
Here are some links:
The last article had quite a few pretty amazing tricks (at least amazing to me), like:
  • Use motor-oil instead of syrup
  • Soaked and microwaved cotton balls to make steam
  • Spray deoderant on grapes to make them look frosty
  • Spray fabric protector to prevent the motor-oil from soaking into the pancakes
  • Squirting mashed potatos under the skin of a chicken to make it look "voluptuous"
Yummy!
Anybody around Foodsville do this stuff for a living?  What other tricks and tips are there for the serious food photographer?