Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Products per se – or processes of preparing or treating... – Basic ingredient is starch based batter – dough product – etc.
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-03
2001-11-06
Cano, Milton I. (Department: 1761)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Products per se, or processes of preparing or treating...
Basic ingredient is starch based batter, dough product, etc.
C426S560000, C426S549000, C426S094000, C426S516000, C426S445000, C426S808000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06312750
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a cooked-extruded-expanded sweet snack and to a process for manufacturing such a sweet snack.
BACKGROUND ART
U.S. Pat. No. 4,650,685 (Persson et al.) discloses a biscuit comprising agglomerated granules of a cooked-extruded base coated with a binder, the base comprising from 40 to 80 parts by weight of cereal flour, up to 20 parts sucrose and from 0.5 to 3 parts of oil or fat, and the binder comprising from 8 to 30 parts by weight of sucrose and/or mixtures of glucose and its polymers.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a cooked-extruded-expanded sweet snack comprising an amylaceous material, milk solid non-fat and an oil or fat, which has a fine, porous, light, melt-in the mouth texture with a biscuit/caramel flavour, which is attractive in shape and taste, and which may be coated with chocolate.
To this end, the present cooked-extruded-expanded sweet snack has a porous texture, a specific weight of from about 80 to 200 g/l and a biscuit and caramel flavor, and it comprises, in percent by weight of the snack, from about 5 to 15% of non-fat milk solids, from about 4 to 8% of oil or fat, from about 35 to 75% of a hydrolyzed amylaceous material having a DE of from about 5 to 45, up to about 40% of a non-hydrolyzed amylaceous material, and from about 1 to 3% of residual water. Optionally, from about 5 to 15% of sugar and from about 0.5 to 1.5% of a phosphate can be included.
The invention also relates to a process for manufacturing a sweet snack. The process includes the steps of cooking-extruding-expanding at a temperature of about 100 to 165° C. under a pressure of about 20 to 40 bar for a time of about 5 to 50 sec a mixture comprising, in parts by weight, from about 5 to 15 parts of non-fat milk solids, from about 4 to 8 parts of oil or fat, from about 35 to 75 parts of a hydrolyzed amylaceous material having a DE of from about 5 to 45, up to about 40 parts of a non-hydrolyzed amylaceous material, and added water up to a water content of from about 5 to 10% by weight of the mixture, thus obtaining a rope of a thermoplastic mass having a porous texture, cooling the rope to solidify it and then cutting it into pieces. Optionally, from about 5 to 15 parts of sugar and from about 0.5 to 1.5 parts of a phosphate can be included in the mixture.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The terms “cooked” or “cooking” in the expressions “cooked-extruded-expanded” or “cooking-extruding-expanding” is to be understood in the present context as meaning “heated and/or cooked” or “heating and/or cooking” depending on whether the whole amylaceous material of the starting mixture is already cooked or at least a part of it is not yet cooked.
The present sweet snack thus comprises non-fat milk solids, oil or fat, hydrolyzed amylaceous material having a DE of from about 5 to 45, and, optionally non-hydrolyzed amylaceous material, sugar, bisodium phosphate and residual water.
The non-fat milk solids may be a powdered milk such as powdered skimmed milk. The oil or fat may be any vegetable oil or fat or butter oil. Preferably, the fat or oil is present in an amount to act as a lubricating agent in the cooking-extrusion process.
The hydrolyzed amylaceous material having a DE (dextrose equivalent) of from about 5 to 45 may be a flour or even a starch of a cereal or mixture of cereals such as wheat, barley, rice and/or corn which have been cooked and then partially hydrolyzed by alpha and/or beta amylases so that it contains a relatively high amount of glucose and its polymers.
An advantageous process for obtaining such a hydrolyzed amylaceous material in dehydrated, powdered form is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,374,860.
The non-hydrolyzed amylaceous material, when used, may be a raw flour or even a native starch of a cereal or mixture of cereals such as wheat, barley, rice and/or corn and is present in an amount of about 10 to 35% by weight. It preferably is wheat flour in an amount of from about 14 to 22%.
The sugar may be saccharose and/or dextrose. It preferably is a mixture from about 5 to 15% of saccharose and up to about 10% of dextrose.
In the present product, any food grade phosphate can be used. Preferably, the phosphate is sodium biphosphate and is present in an amount to act as a stabilizer (antioxidant) during storage.
The biscuit and caramel flavor of the present product is most likely due to caramelization and Maillard reactions occurring during cooking-extrusion-expansion of a mixture of the non-fat milk solids, oil or fat, hydrolyzed amylaceous material having a DE of from about 5 to 45. Similar reactions are also observed when the optional components are present in the mixture. The mixture especially comprises added water up to a water content of from about 5 to 10%. Such a water content is adequate for obtaining a correct expansion after cooking-extruding the mixture.
For carrying out the present process for manufacturing a sweet snack, a mixture having the composition indicated above may be prepared by first mixing together powdery components to obtain a dry mix and then mixing together the dry mix and liquid or fluid components, such as in a first mixing section of an extruder. For this embodiment, the mixture may be cooked in subsequent sections of the extruder where the mixture is heated, compressed and sheared so that it forms a cooked thermoplastic mass.
The thermoplastic mass may be extruded by having it pushed by an extruder screw or twin screw through the openings of a die provided for at an end of the extruder. The thermoplastic mass may be expanded by extruding it through the die into an open space at ambient temperature and at atmospheric pressure.
For carrying out these cooking-extruding-expanding steps, any traditional food extruder may be used, although a twin screw extruder is preferred.
Preferably, a rather large screw length of from about 800 to about 1200 mm is chosen in order to provide an adequate residence time of from about 5 to 50 seconds.
Preferably, from four to possibly about six barrel heating zones are utilized to cook the mixture in stages.
In a first zone, the screw configuration may be relatively large (i.e., a screw pitch of 45 to 85 mm and typically 50 mm) that the components of the mixture are simply mixed together and transported into the next zone.
In further zones, namely in from a second to up to a sixth zone, the screw configuration may be relatively small (i.e., a screw pitch of 10 to 40 mm and typically 32 mm) that the mixture is simultaneously transported and kneaded. The barrel heating may be set within a temperature range of from about 65 to 90° C. for a second zone, it may be set within a range of from about 100° C. to 120° C. for a third zone and within a range of from about 130° C. to 165° C., for a fourth zone. Optionally, fifth and sixth zones can be used, with the temperature being in the same range as the third zone or slightly higher if further cooking is desired.
In the last zone, the screw configuration is also relatively small, (i.e., a screw pitch of 32 mm) that the cooked and kneaded mixture is further kneaded and compressed in order to be pushed through the openings of a die provided for after the end of the screw or twin screw, and the barrel heating may be set within a temperature range of from about 130° C. to 165° C.
The die may have one or more circular openings having of from about 2 to 10 mm in diameter. The die openings may also have different configurations such as polygons or fancy shapes such as stars, hearts, clovers or diamonds.
In a preferred embodiment of the present process, compressed inert gas such as nitrogen is injected into the plastified mass just before extruding it. Nitrogen injection may be carried out under a pressure of from about 20 to 40 bar, at a rate of from about 0.1 to 0.6 g nitrogen per kg of mass.
Most surprisingly, the cooked-extruded thermoplastic mass does not expand to a greater degree under the effect of this nitrogen injection, but on the contrary to a lesser degree. This is because the injected nitrogen not only in
Bonnasse-Gahot Sabine
Diaz Francois
Fourre Pierre Felix
Jones-Wiltshire Adrienne S.
Pfaller Werner
Cano Milton I.
Madsen Robert
Nestec S.A.
Winston & Strawn
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