JP-7854939-B2 - Fat-free, dairy-free soft serve ice cream composition

JP7854939B2JP 7854939 B2JP7854939 B2JP 7854939B2JP-7854939-B2

Inventors

パテル，ダヴァル
セバロス，ボリバル

Assignees

ザコカ・コーラカンパニー

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20210303
Priority Date: 20200303

Claims (20)

(i) 15% to 50% by weight of at least one fruit juice concentrate, fruit puree concentrate, or a combination thereof; (ii) 0.01% to 0.1% by weight of at least one saponin-rich plant extract; (iii) 0.3% to 0.5% by weight of pectin and (iv) a thickener containing xanthan gum and gum arabic, a fat-free, milk-free liquid soft serve ice cream premix comprising: (i) 15% to 50% by weight of at least one fruit juice concentrate, fruit puree concentrate, or a combination thereof; (ii) 0.01% to 0.1% by weight of at least one plant extract rich in saponins; (iii) 0.3% to 0.5% by weight of pectin and (iv) a thickener containing xanthan gum and gum arabic , wherein the weight ratio of pectin to the thickener is at least 0.75; and (v) 50% to 80% by weight of water. (i) The fruits are apples, apricots, avocados, bananas, blackberries, blackcurrants, blueberries, breadfruit, cantaloupe, carambola, cherimoya, cherries, clementines, coconuts, cranberries, custard apples, dates, durian, elderberries, feijoas, figs, gooseberries, grapefruits, grapes, guavas, canromeda, jackfruit, purple berries, mulberries, kumquats, lemons, limes, longans, and biscuits. Selected from the group consisting of wa fruit, lychee, mandarin, mango, mangosteen, mulberry, nectarine, orange, papaya, passion fruit, peach, pear, persimmon, pitaya (dragon fruit), pineapple, pitanga, plantain, plum, pomegranate, flat cactus, prune, pomelo, quince, raspberry, rhubarb, myrtle, sapodilla, sapote, thorny soursop, strawberry, soursop fruit, tamarin, tangerine, watermelon, and combinations thereof. A fat-free, dairy-free liquid soft serve ice cream premix.
(i) The fruit in (i) is selected from the group consisting of apples, grapes, mangoes, pears, strawberries, and combinations thereof, in the non-fat, dairy-free liquid soft serve ice cream premix according to claim 1.
The aforementioned plant extracts, which are rich in saponins, include horse chestnut (Aesculis hipocastanum), wild oat (Avena sativa), sugar beet leaves (Beta vulgaris), quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa), chickpea (Cicer arietinum), saffron (Crocus savitus), soybean (Glycine max), licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabbra), ivy (Hedera helix), alfalfa (Medicago sativa), ginseng (Panax ginseng), American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius), green pea (Pisum sativum), dwarf jasmine (Polygala spp.), primrose (Primula spp.), quillaja bark (Quillaja saponaria), soapwort (Saponaria officinalis), and sarsaparilla (Smilax). A fat-free, dairy-free liquid soft serve ice cream premix according to claim 1 or 2, selected from the group consisting of *Citrine officinalis*, fenugreek (*Trigonella foenum-graecum*), and yucca (*Yucca schidigera*).
The pectin is high-methoxyl pectin, as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, for a fat-free, milk-free liquid soft serve ice cream premix.
A fat-free, milk-free liquid soft serve ice cream premix according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising at least one additional thickener selected from the group consisting of alginic acids, guar gum, tara gum, locust bean gum, tamarind seed gum, plantain seed gum, water-soluble soybean polysaccharides, tragacanth gum, karaya gum, pectin, glucomannan, carrageenan, agar, gellan gum, natural gellan gum, curdlan, pullulan, macrohomopis gum, ramzan gum, methylcellulose (MC), hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), cellulose derivatives, and gellan gum.
(i) air; (ii) a fat-free, dairy-free soft serve product comprising the fat-free, dairy-free liquid soft serve premix described in claim 1, wherein the soft serve product has at least 70% overrun.
(i) The fruit in (i) is selected from the group consisting of apples, grapes, mangoes, pears, strawberries, and combinations thereof, in the non-fat, dairy-free soft serve ice cream product according to claim 6.
The aforementioned plant extracts, which are rich in saponins, include horse chestnut (Aesculis hipocastanum), wild oat (Avena sativa), sugar beet leaves (Beta vulgaris), quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa), chickpea (Cicer arietinum), saffron (Crocus savitus), soybean (Glycine max), licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabbra), ivy (Hedera helix), alfalfa (Medicago sativa), ginseng (Panax ginseng), American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius), green pea (Pisum sativum), dwarf jasmine (Polygala spp.), primrose (Primula spp.), quillaja bark (Quillaja saponaria), soapwort (Saponaria officinalis), and sarsaparilla (Smilax). A fat-free, dairy-free soft-serve ice cream product according to claim 6, selected from the group consisting of *Citrine officinalis*, fenugreek (*Trigonella foenum-graecum*), and yucca (*Yucca schidigera*).
The aforementioned pectin is high-methoxyl pectin, in the non-fat, milk-free soft-serve ice cream product according to claim 6 or 7.
A fat-free, milk-free soft serve ice cream product according to any one of claims 6 to 8, further comprising at least one additional thickener selected from the group consisting of alginic acid derivatives, guar gum, tara gum, locust bean gum, tamarind seed gum, plantain seed gum, water-soluble soybean polysaccharides, tragacanth gum, karaya gum, pectin, glucomannan, carrageenan, agar, gellan gum, natural gellan gum, curdlan, pullulan, macrohomopis gum, ramzan gum, methylcellulose (MC), hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), cellulose derivatives, and gellan gum.
The aforementioned soft-serve ice cream product is a non-fat, dairy-free soft-serve ice cream product according to any one of claims 6 to 9, in which no sugar is added.
A fat-free, dairy-free liquid soft serve ice cream premix according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising one or more sweeteners.
A fat-free, dairy-free liquid soft serve ice cream premix according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising one or more flavoring agents, coloring agents, and/or fruit acids.
a. Introducing a fat-free, dairy-free liquid soft serve premix into the frozen storage tank of a soft serve machine, wherein the fat-free, dairy-free liquid soft serve premix comprises (i) water; (ii) the fat-free, dairy-free liquid soft serve premix described in claim 1; b. Introducing the fat-free, dairy-free liquid soft serve premix and a certain volume of air from the frozen storage tank into the freezer of the soft serve machine equipped with beater and/or scraper blades, wherein the beater and/or scraper blades continuously blend the premix and air to provide a fat-free, dairy-free soft serve product; and c. A method for preparing a fat-free, dairy-free soft serve product, comprising distributing at least a portion of the fat-free, dairy-free soft serve product.
The method according to claim 14, wherein the fruit in (i) is selected from the group consisting of apples, grapes, mangoes, pears, strawberries, and combinations thereof.
The aforementioned plant extracts, which are rich in saponins, include horse chestnut (Aesculis hipocastanum), wild oat (Avena sativa), sugar beet leaves (Beta vulgaris), quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa), chickpea (Cicer arietinum), saffron (Crocus savitus), soybean (Glycine max), licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabbra), ivy (Hedera helix), alfalfa (Medicago sativa), ginseng (Panax ginseng), American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius), green pea (Pisum sativum), dwarf jasmine (Polygala spp.), primrose (Primula spp.), quillaja bark (Quillaja saponaria), soapwort (Saponaria officinalis), and sarsaparilla (Smilax). The method according to claim 14 or 15, selected from the group consisting of *Yucca officinalis*, *Trigonella foenum-graecum*, and *Yucca schidigera*.
The method according to any one of claims 14 to 16, wherein the pectin is high-methoxyl pectin.
The method according to any one of claims 14 to 17, further comprising at least one additional thickener selected from the group consisting of alginic acid derivatives, guar gum, tara gum, locust bean gum, tamarind seed gum, plantain seed gum, water-soluble soybean polysaccharides, tragacanth gum, karaya gum, pectin, glucomannan, carrageenan, agar, gellan gum, natural gellan gum, curdlan, pullulan, macrohomopis gum, ramzan gum, methylcellulose (MC), hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), cellulose derivatives, and gellan gum.
The method according to any one of claims 14 to 18, wherein the soft-serve ice cream product does not contain added sugar.
The method according to any one of claims 14 to 18, wherein the soft-serve ice cream product further comprises one or more sweeteners.

Description

Cross-reference of related applications This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/984,547, filed on 3 March 2020, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Field of Invention This specification discloses a fat-free, dairy-free soft serve ice cream premix; a fat-free, dairy-free soft serve ice cream product prepared from the premix; and a method for preparing a fat-free, dairy-free soft serve ice cream product from the premix. The fat-free, dairy-free soft serve ice cream product disclosed herein has an improved overrun compared to conventional dairy-containing soft serve ice cream products. Background of the Invention Traditional soft-serve ice cream products contain dairy products, but generally have less milk fat (3% to 6%) than ice cream (10% to 18%). Instead, similar frozen desserts that do not contain any dairy ingredients at all ("dairy-free soft-serve ice cream products") are known. Both dairy-free products and dairy products are manufactured at a temperature of approximately -4°C, compared to ice cream which is stored at -15°C. These products contain air introduced at the time of freezing. Soft serve ice cream products are dispensed intermittently, for example, at the point of sale, from a freezing cylinder or freezing chamber. The seller or consumer dispenses the product into a container, such as a bowl, cup, or cone, through a dispenser mechanism. The product must be in a suitable condition to be served when needed. To achieve this, the soft serve premix (held in a storage chamber at 3°C (37°F)) and air are supplied to a freezer, where the mixture is frozen to a semi-solid consistency and moved or beaten with beater and/or scraper blades so that folding or blending of the nearly frozen mixture occurs within the freezing cylinder. The material is then whipped or scraped (as it freezes within the freezing cylinder) and pulled back into the original mixture for further blending and movement within the cylinder. Both gravity freezers and pressurized freezers are known in the art. Pressurized freezers offer superior air intake (i.e., overrun) compared to gravity freezers. In conventional methods, the amount of air in a soft-serve ice cream product (i.e., overrun) alters its taste and texture. Products with less air have a heavier, icy taste and appear more yellowish. Products with more air have a creamier, smoother, and lighter taste and appear whiter. Conventional soft-serve ice cream containing dairy products is typically sold with an overrun of approximately 40% to 60%. The difference between soft-serve ice cream products (e.g., Dairy Queen®) and "standard" aerated frozen desserts such as ice cream or sorbet lies in the fact that soft-serve ice cream is intended for immediate consumption after preparation, while "standard" aerated frozen desserts are intended for consumption after being removed from long-term frozen storage. Soft-serve ice cream products are preferably soft after foaming and freezing, but compared to "standard" aerated frozen desserts, they develop undesirable large ice crystals after long-term frozen storage. The formation of large ice crystals can be exacerbated by fluctuations in storage temperature. Negative sensory characteristics in soft-serve ice cream products usually result from such sensory or tissue defects. Brief explanation of the drawing This figure shows a pie chart reflecting the results of a consumer sensory test focusing on the aftertaste of the strawberry soft serve ice cream product described in Example 3. The aftertaste is represented as follows: no aftertaste (hash), pleasant aftertaste (dark), and unpleasant aftertaste (light). This figure shows a pie chart reflecting the results of a consumer sensory test focusing on the aftertaste of the mango soft serve ice cream product described in Example 3. The aftertaste is represented as follows: no aftertaste (hash), pleasant aftertaste (dark), and unpleasant aftertaste (light). Detailed Description of the Invention I. Definitions As used herein, “dairy-free” refers to the absence of milk and milk-derived components. Dairy-free premixes and dairy-free soft serve ice cream products are characterized in part by the absence of any milk-derived components, including milk or butter fat, non-fat milk solids or sugars, and milk-derived proteins such as whey solids or casein salts. Such compositions are particularly useful for consumption by individuals with lactose intolerance. As used herein, "overrun" refers to the amount of air incorporated into a soft-serve ice cream composition. Overrun is expressed as a percentage and relates to the relative volume of air to the premix. For example, a soft-serve ice cream composition in which the volume of air is exactly equal to the volume of the premix is said to have 100% overrun. When properly incorporated, the overrun is in the form of finely ground and uniformly dispersed air cells that help provide structure and creaminess