HK1181618B - Composition and method for preparing frozen gelatin dessert - Google Patents

Description

Composition and method for preparing frozen gel confections

Reference to related applications

This application claims priority to U.S. provisional application No. 61/359,896, filed on 30/6/2010, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Field of the invention

The present invention relates generally to gel confections and in particular provides compositions and methods for preparing freeze-stable gel confections ready for use after thawing.

Background of the invention

Gels are very short-shelf-life products because gelatin gels are sensitive to freezing. Such products have a very high moisture content and are not stable protein gels. However, such products are very popular as confectionery or panned foods, especially for children.

At present, the products are mostly prepared at home, and when manufactured on a large scale, the products are usually in the form of single-flavor products of plastic cups used alone. The product is stored in a refrigerator and dispensed through the cold chain network of conventional dairy products.

Summary of The Invention

The present invention provides ready-to-use gel compositions that are freeze stable for weeks or months. The gel composition of the present invention comprises a gel, a fat, a sugar, an emulsifier, a stabilizer, starch, a soluble fiber, a wheat fiber, and water. The composition has desirable organoleptic properties and is freeze stable for a shelf life of several months.

Detailed Description

The present invention provides freeze-stable compositions as ready-to-use gelatin gel products. The product is stable for months at freezing temperatures compared to other existing products. The gel composition of the present invention comprises a gel, fibers, and a gel stabilizing agent such as a hydrocolloid. Without being bound by any particular theory, it is believed that the hydrocolloid enhances the network of proteins. The compositions of the present invention have desirable organoleptic properties and are freeze stable for a shelf life of up to several months.

The gelatin dessert of the present invention comprises gel, fat, sugar, emulsifier, stabilizer, starch, soluble fiber (e.g., 1.5-3.5%), wheat fiber (e.g., 0.01-0.5%), and water. In one embodiment, the wheat fiber is 0.05-0.5%. All percentages are by weight unless otherwise indicated. Where the numerical ranges specified in the application include all numbers to the ten decimal places, the numerical ranges in the ranges include all decimal places. The singular forms (e.g., "an emulsifier") include the plural forms (e.g., "an emulsifier") and vice versa, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

The confection is water-based or may be based on any other non-dairy liquid, such as fruit juice. The gel may be of any bloom strength for edibility purposes. For example, the gel may be 250 or 275 bloom strength, and all integers in between. The gel should be present in an amount such that it is capable of being in colloidal form. A suitable content is 1.5-3.5%.

The fat may be any edible fat. In one embodiment, the oil is a vegetable oil. For example, the oil may be Palm Kernel Oil (PKO) and/or coconut oil. In another embodiment, the oil is hydrogenated PKO, and partially hydrogenated coconut oil. In another embodiment, the oil may be soybean oil, canola oil, sunflower oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, olive oil, peanut oil, rapeseed oil, safflower oil, or any fraction or combination thereof. In another embodiment, the oil may be babassu oil, coconut oil, cladribine oil, palm kernel oil, or any fraction or combination thereof. Suitable oil content is 5-10%.

The stabilizing agent in the composition of the present invention is a hydrocolloid. They may be natural or synthetic. Examples include guar gum, locust bean gum, gum arabic, carrageenan, methylcellulose, and HPMC, among others. It is preferred not to use guar alone because it is observed that in compositions containing guar (and very small amounts of locust bean gum and carrageenan), the product does not form a gel with the desired characteristics and is not freeze stable. Importantly, the formulation contains at least gum arabic and in one embodiment, the composition comprises guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan gum, and gum arabic. The glue is usually 0.5-1.0%. Most of the gum component is gum arabic. For example, gum arabic may comprise 90-99.9% of the gum component.

Suitable emulsifiers for use in the present invention include polysorbate 60, polysorbate 80, mono and diglycerides, sorbitan and glyceryl monostearate and lecithin, and the like. Suitable amounts of emulsifier are 0.05-0.2%.

Suitable starches for the compositions of the present invention include corn starch, potato starch, tapioca starch, and the like. In one embodiment, the starch is a modified corn starch. Suitably the starch content is 0.1-0.2%.

Various buffers may also be used in the present invention. Preferred buffer salts include disodium phosphate, dipotassium phosphate, disodium hexaphosphate, and sodium citrate. More than one buffer may be used in the present invention.

Fibers are considered to be an important component of the present invention. A suitable fibre content is 1.5-4.0%. One example is inulin, which is a soluble fiber. Another important fiber is wheat fiber. One convenient way to use two important components (wheat fiber and gum arabic) is to use equcia, a commercially available gum-fiber containing ingredient. Suitable amounts of Equalia are 0.5-1.5%. Equalia typically contains 5-30% wheat fiber and 70-95% acacia gum. In one embodiment, the wheat fiber/gum arabic mixture (equcia) contains 10-12% gluten-free wheat fiber, the remainder being gum arabic.

Various sugars may be used in the compositions of the present invention. Suitable sugars for the present invention include monosaccharides, disaccharides and polysaccharides. The sugar may be comprised of one or more sugars, such as sucrose, fructose, glucose, and/or intense sweeteners, such as aspartame, acesulfame (acesulfame), alitame, saccharin, cyclamate, and sucralose. One or more intense sweeteners may be used in the present invention and bulking agents may be included in the formulation to provide supplemental solids and to impart texture to the product. Suitable bulking agents include maltodextrin, polydextrose, polyglucose, xylitol, mannitol and sorbitol. Suitable sugar content is 18-24%.

It is believed that the particular combination of ingredients described herein provides a gel confection that can be frozen in a ready-to-eat form and can withstand one or more freeze and thaw cycles. In frozen form, the gel confection can be stored in a freezer for at least one month. In various embodiments, it may be stored in the freezer for at least 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, or 12 months. Thus, the gel does not require the end user to prepare a fresh product from a powdered formula, but rather can be purchased in a frozen ready-to-eat form. The frozen confection can be simply thawed and consumed.

It is believed that the particular combination of ingredients provides the product with freeze stability. For comparison purposes, the product did not exhibit a corresponding freeze stability when tested with other fibers or gums. In addition, when guar gum is used alone, no gel product corresponding to the product prepared with the formulation of the present invention is produced.

TABLE 1

In the above table, Profit^TMCommercially available from Panadino, Dannova、Quimica，Metalose^TMSFE-50 is commercially available from R.W.Unwin&Co.Ltd ShinEtsu，MiraThik^TM469 from Tate&Lyle，Seagel^TMFL 6625 and Avicel^TMFrom FMC Biopolymer (FMC Biopolymer), Gelogen^TMRTE 20 was purchased from Cargill. The tested component content was between 0.9 and 2.5%. The above table shows that inulin, wheat fiber and gum arabic need to be mixed in order to provide freeze stability. The gel confectionery product of the invention has a moist cold mouthfeel. Although the product does not contain milk, it has the same mouthfeel, texture and sensory as a dairy product.

To prepare the gel, the various ingredients may be mixed according to methods known in the art. The gel is formed by heating the gel mixture to 65-75 deg.C, then cooling to 40 deg.C until a precipitate forms in the non-stick pan, and cooling to 4-7 deg.C. A simple approach is to use a premix of certain ingredients. For example, a premix of fat, buttermilk solids, starch, emulsifier and gum may be prepared according to the following method. Mixing starch, guar gum, emulsifier, buffer and butter powder in water, adding oil, and mixing thoroughly. The resulting mixture may be heated (e.g., to 66 ℃). The mixture is UHT treated using steam injection or a tubular heat exchanger and then homogenized. The resulting mixture is cooled and then stored for later use. To make a gelatin dessert, the gelatin is dissolved in water and then mixed with the premix and other ingredients including sugar, inulin, wheat fiber and gum arabic. The mixture was refrigerated and allowed to gel for about 1 hour. Stored in a refrigerator overnight, followed by long term freezing. For use, the frozen gel may be thawed in a refrigerator overnight and then consumed for use. After thawing, the confection can be stable in the freezer for at least 7 days.

To make a more palatable confection, the product can be formed into several layers of different flavors, sometimes comprising canned or dried fruit and alternating layers of jelly of milk and water base. The product can tolerate acidity and therefore, if desired, yoghurt can be added to the product before the gel is formed.

The product may be provided in the form of a single serving size or larger home size (e.g. 1-2.5 kg) and may have multiple layers (e.g. 3-6 layers). In addition, dried fruit may be included in one or more layers, for example, in the bottom layer.

Some features of the product of the invention include: the prepared gel confectionery product can be stored in a freezer, rather than refrigerated. Shelf life in a freezer is months rather than days. In one embodiment, the product may be stored in a freezer for at least 6 months. In another embodiment, the product can be stored in a freezer for at least 12 months. Because the prepared product can be frozen and stored at freezing temperatures for longer periods of time, the product can be served in a ready-to-eat state. In addition, the confectionery product is a gel confectionery product which maintains product integrity even after freezing and thawing and has a traditional mouth feel of a gel which is easily meltable in the mouth.

TABLE 2

Table 2 provides the compositions of the water-based formulations. Buttermilk solids contain minerals, proteins and sugars from milk. This ingredient is usually a by-product in the preparation of cream. Some ingredients (part of the water, fats and oils, milk solids, part of the sugar, starch, part of the pigments/salts, emulsifiers and gums) may be added in the form of a premix. For example, the non-dairy culinary cream composition found in U.S. patent No. US7658962, which is hereby incorporated by reference, may also be used.

Example 1

In this example, the premixes provided in table 3 below were used.

TABLE 3 (premix I)

This premix was then used to prepare a gel confection (table 4) in the following formulation.

TABLE 4

The product has a highly desirable mouthfeel and texture and is freeze stable for at least 13 months. The product is particularly desirable in terms of visual and organoleptic properties. The gel of the product gives a good smooth, soft and hard feel, without a harsh texture. In addition, the product has a shiny and transparent appearance.

The present invention has been described in terms of specific embodiments, but routine variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art and are intended to be within the scope of the present invention.

Claims (5)

1. A gelled confectionery product comprising a gel, a fat, a sugar, an emulsifier, a fiber, a starch, and a stabilizer, wherein the stabilizer comprises an gum arabic and one or more compounds selected from the group consisting of: guar gum, locust bean gum, carrageenan, methyl cellulose and HPMC, the fibres comprising at least inulin and wheat fibres, the confectionery product being resistant to freezing and thawing, capable of being stored in a freezer for at least 2 months and ready-to-use gel confectionery after thawing, wherein

The gel content is 1.5 to 3.5 wt%;

the oil content is 5 to 10 wt%;

the sugar content is from 18 to 24 wt%;

the emulsifier is present in an amount of 0.05 to 0.2 wt.%;

the fiber content is 1.5 to 4.0 wt%;

the starch content is from 0.1 wt% to 0.2 wt%; and

the stabilizer is contained in an amount of 0.5 to 1.0 wt%, wherein the fiber comprises inulin and wheat fiber, the inulin is contained in an amount of 1.5 to 3.5 wt%, and the wheat fiber is contained in an amount of 0.01 to 0.5 wt%.

2. The gelled confectionery product of claim 1, wherein the fat comprises a vegetable oil.

3. The gelled confectionery product of claim 2, wherein the vegetable oil comprises one or more selected from the group consisting of: palm kernel oil, coconut oil, hydrogenated palm kernel oil, partially hydrogenated coconut oil, soybean oil, canola oil, sunflower oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, olive oil, peanut oil, rapeseed oil, safflower oil, babassu oil, and cladribia oil.

4. The gelled confectionery product of claim 1, wherein the fat comprises palm kernel oil and coconut oil.

5. The gelled confectionery product of claim 1, which can be stored in a freezer for at least 12 months.