AU781036B2 - Pasta product - Google Patents

Description

1

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT

ORIGINAL

a a Applicant(s): MARK HAASE Actual Inventor(s): MARK HAASE Address for Service: PATENT ATTORNEY SERVICES 26 Ellingworth Parade Box Hill Victoria 3128 Australia Title: PASTA PRODUCT Associated Provisional Applications: No(s).: The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me/us:- 14/04/2004 16:40 +613-9890-1337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PAGE 04/28 TITLE: PASTA PRODUCT TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to filled food products, and in particular, but not by way of limitation, to filled pasta products.

BACKGROUND ART Traditionally, commercially prepared side dishes were comprised of a bland starchy food intended to round out a meal, providing economic and nutritional value. However, food manufacturers must now try to produce side dishes with improved organoleptic properties which provide excitement and variety, particularly in dishes intended for S: children. It has been noted that customers frequently base purchase decisions on the "diversity in taste and appearance as well as the quality of side dishes and recent popular attention to "healthy" eating has resulted in a renewed emphasis on the primary staples of grains, in particular pasta.

It is known to produce attractive novelty pasta pieces, for example, in the shape of bells, Christmas trees and stockings, as illustrated in New Zealand registered design numbers 25262, 25263 and 25264 respectively. Whereas filled pasta products such as ravioli, possibly having improved taste and nutritional value, are made in generally simple "geometrical shapes, such as circles or squares.

In the production of ravioli and similar filled dough food products, portions of filling material, such as cheese, ground meat, and the like, are introduced between two layers of dough. The layers may be formed first as sheets or alternatively co-extruded with the 2 COMS ID No: SMBI-00706662 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:53 Date 2004-04-14 14/04/2004 16:40 +613-9890-1337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PAGE 05/28 filling material in tubular form. The layers are pressed together between a die having a mould cavity and an anvil. The sealed pockets enclosing individual portions of filling are then cut to form individual ravioli pieces.

The die is used to seal the edges of the pieces and the shapes used are simple and avoid sharp edges or changes in form to avoid tearing the fragile uncooked pasta dough forming the walls of the ravioli. In particular when producing dough for refrigerated ravioli, which differs from that produced for marketing in a canned or frozen state in that, for extended shelf life, the dough is formulated to have a lower moisture content and is therefore stiffer and more readily damaged.

Accordingly, although the consumer has readily accepted fairly simple, ordinary filled dough food products in the past the market requires increasing sophistication of these o products to make them more appealing.

SIt is an object of the present invention to provide a product and a method which meets the above-mentioned demands or at least to provide the public with a useful choice.

Further aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the 20 ensuing description which is given by way of example only.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a novelty food product comprising a paste casing enclosing a filling, the casing having an outline and relief 3 COMS ID No: SMBI-00706662 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:53 Date 2004-04-14 14/04/2004 16:40 +613-9890-1337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PAGE 06/28 features in an outer surface of the casing, the outline and relief features together forming a representation of an object, wherein the object is not a manufactured food item.

Preferably the object is a physical object. Preferably the object is selected from the group consisting of: animals, vehicles, and countries. In one embodiment the paste casing comprises substantially opposing sides and relief features are formed in only one of said sides. The outline and relief features are retained after cooking.

According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of manufacturing a novelty food product substantially as described above, the method characterised by the steps of: a) stretching a flexible elastomeric mould to enlarge the opening to a novelty-shaped cavity formed therein, and b) placing at least part of the food product into the cavity opening, 15 c) moulding the food product by applying pressure on the product via the mould, and d) removing the moulded novelty food product.

*00 Preferably a bending moment is applied to the mould at step to stretch it and enlarge 20 the opening to the novelty-shaped cavity. Optionally bending moments may be applied to the mould about at least two mutually perpendicular axes and/or a tensile load may be applied to stretch the mould.

Preferably the mould is of a relatively thick and self-supporting wall construction with (in a relaxed state) a substantially planar surface in which the cavity opening is formed and wherein application of the bending moment tends to raise the lowermost part of the 4 COMS ID No: SMBI-00706662 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:53 Date 2004-04-14 14/84/2004 16:40 +613-9890-1337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PAGE 07/28 mould cavity to a level substantially at, or above, the level of the cavity opening. In this manner, at step the walls of the cavity are deformed to a shape tending toward a plane and the cavity opening is enlarged to form the periphery of a surface adapted to receive the side of the product to be moulded.

Preferably the product comprises a paste casing having opposing sides enclosing a filling and one of the sides is placed into the cavity opening. Reference will henceforth be made to the paste casing being a pasta casing, however this should not be seen as limiting and the paste casing, in addition to being made from pasta dough, may also be made from pastry or other edible shell material. The sides of the casing may be of any shape and are preferably joined at a central plane of the casing.

Preferably at step one side of a pasta casing formed in the known manner is placed within the cavity opening.

15 Alternatively, at step a first layer of pasta dough may be placed within the cavity opening followed by the filling and a second layer of pasta dough to form the casing.

When a load applied to the mould to stretch it is released the mould tends to return to its relaxed state thereby applying pressure to the part of the product in the cavity. The part of the product in the cavity is also pressed into intimate contact with the cavity walls by pressure applied to the opposing side of the pasta casing.

Where the above-described alternative method is used, wherein at step a first layer of pasta dough may be placed within the cavity opening followed by the filling and a second layer of pasta dough to form the casing, the pressure applied to the second layer also serves to seal together the zedges of the layers to enclose the filling.

COMS ID No: SMBI-00706662 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:53 Date 2004-04-14 14/04/2004 16:40 +613-9890-1337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PAGE 08/28 Preferably at step the mould is stretched to release the moulded food product. Most preferably a bending moment, as described above, is applied to release the product.

Preferably, the cavity has a generally three-dimensional shape with a distinctive outline and relief features. The novelty shape may be any shape chosen for its aesthetic appeal and, for example, may be selected from the following: animal shapes dolphins, elephants, monkeys, fish etc.), country shapes New Zealand etc.) and other shapes trees, cars, bicycles, computers etc.).

The above-described method produces novelty shaped pasta casings having a distinctive outline but only having relief features on the first side. However, it will be understood that the method is generally applicable to produce fully three-dimensional shapes by simple adaptation. For example, both the first and second sides may be moulded 15 simultaneously in respective cavities or a shaped die may be used to.press the cavity contents at step BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS Further aspects of the present invention will become apparent from the following 20 description which is given by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a cross-section of a flexible mould of the present invention in a relaxed state; and Figure 2 is a cross-section of the flexible mould of Fig. 2 in a loaded state; 6 COMS ID No: SMBI-00706662 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:53 Date 2004-04-14 14/04/2004 16:40 +613-9890-1337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PAGE 09/28 Figure 3 is a cross-section of the flexible mould of Fig. 2 containing a moulded pasta product of the present invention, and Figure 4 is plan view of a novelty-shaped pasta product of the present invention.

BEST MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Referring to Figures I to 4, in the preferred method'a pasta casing comprising pasta layers 1, 1' enveloping a filling 2 is first formed using any of the known methods into a simple shape approximating that of the desired finished novelty shape. For example, a square casing 10 such as may be produced by a ravioli machine, is moulded as will be described to produce the fish-shaped filled pasta piece 110 of Fig. 4.

Pasta dough is prepared from a farinaceous ingredient and egg. Generally, durum wheat flour is preferred. Optionally one or more additives such as a shape-retaining agent may also be added, however pasta dough in common use has been moulded satisfactorily .15 using this method. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the dough texture must be such that it can be readily formed, although relatively soft it should not be too soft to hold the shape or too hard that it will not conform to the mould without tearing. With most pasta dough formulations the product should be moulded within half an hour to an hour of preparation, due to the aging characteristic of starch food, whereby the dough 0* 20 hardens with time after production.

00 The filling 2 may include vegetable, fruit, meat, cheese or the like. Whole or chopped pieces may be employed, alternatively a paste may be used with the components in comminuted or granulated form. Although preferably the casing 10 is in a simple shape, a novelty shaped die may used to produce an outline close to that of the moulded product.

7 COMS ID No: SMBI-00706662 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:53 Date 2004-04-14 14/04/2004 16:40 +613-9890-1337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PAGE 10/28 Fig. 1 illustrates a section through the square casing 10 and the flexible mould 3. The mould 3 is made of silicone rubber or a similar food quality elastomer, and is shown in Fig. 1 in its normal relaxed state with a substantially planar upper face 6 in which is formed the opening 5 to a novelty-shaped cavity 4. A flange 7 surrounds the cavity opening 5 forming part of the walls of the cavity 8 which are of a relatively thick and self-supporting construction. In plan view (not shown) the outer edge 9 of the cavity is in the form of a distinctive two-dimensional novelty shape.

The mould 3 allows one piece to be moulded at a time by manual manipulation, as will be described. This is very convenient for domestic pasta production and a user may use several different moulds in one production run, however, it will be appreciated that the method may be readily adapted for production by machine for producing commercial quantities of novelty-shaped filled pasta products.

Fig. 2 illustrates the mould in the loaded state before the square casing 10 is placed therein. A positive (radius increasing) bending moment is applied to the upper surface 6 to enlarge the opening 5. The load is applied in a manner that the base 12 is raised and the formerly curved inner surface 11 is largely flattened. The face 11' now presented 20 toward the pasta piece 10 is of a shape that will receive the pasta piece 10 and when the face 11' returns to its relaxed shape 11 air pockets between the wall 1' and face 11, 11' are avoided and there is no requirement for air venting. As the bottom of the mould wall 16 is pushed upward toward the loaded state the wall 8 buckles as it is partially inverted and preferably the same bending action is performed simultaneously, generally about the two 8 COMS ID No: SMBI-00706662 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:53 Date 2004-04-14 14/04/2004 16:40 +613-9890-1337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PAGE 11/28 mutually perpendicular axes parallel to the plane of the surface 6 to stretch the outer edge 9 in all directions.

The mould 3 is then released and pressed against a press 14, as shown in Fig. 3. Pressure is applied to mould the product 10 by the resilient action of the mould 3 and the pressure applied by contact with the press 14 ensures the shape is fully developed. The volume of the mould cavity is such that the wall 1 protrudes somewhat above the surface 6 to ensure good intimate contact between the moulded wall, 1' and the face if the cavity 11.

Finally, to release the moulded product 110, the bending load is reapplied to return the mould 3 to its loaded state (see Fig. and the mould 3 is able to receive another square casing 10 to repeat the moulding cycle.

As illustrated in Fig. 4 the fish-shaped moulded piece 110 includes prominent relief 15 details formed by the mould 3, such as features 17, 18. The relief features used are preferably prominent, since finely detailed features are lost when the product swells during cooking. The shape of the relief features 17, 18 may also be used to some extent to assist in retaining the shape of the product 110 during cooking. Most preferably the product 110 is packaged for marketing in refrigerated storage. Before packaging, the 20 product 110 may advantageously be coated with edible oil to inhibit sticking. The product may finally packaged in suitable containers, e.g. cans, glass jars or plastics pouches. Alternatively, the product 110 may be stored frozen and possess good freeze/thaw stability for optimal shape retention..

9 COMS ID No: SMBI-00706662 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:53 Date 2004-04-14 1'4/4/2084 16:40 +613-9890-1337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PAGE 12/28 The filling and/or the pasta casing may have colour or flavour added. Preferably the external surface of the product is finished with a relatively smooth attractive finish, to which a sauce will readily adhere.

Aspects of the present invention have been described by way of example only and it should be appreciated that modifications and additions may be made thereto without departing from the scope thereof.

*0 *o COMS ID No: SMBI-00706662 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:53 Date 2004-04-14

Claims (14)

1. A novelty food product comprising a paste casing enclosing a filling, the casing having an outline and relief features in an outer surface of the casing, the outline and relief features together forming a representation of an object, wherein the object is not a manufactured food item.

2. A novelty food product as claimed in claim 1 wherein the object is a physical object

3. A novelty food product as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the object is selected from the group consisting of: animals, vehicles, and countries.

4. A novelty food product as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3 wherein the paste casing comprises substantially opposing sides and relief features are formed in only one of said sides.

5. A novelty food product as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4 wherein the outline and relief features are retained after cooking. 15

6. A method of manufacturing a novelty food product as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5, the method characterised by the steps of: a) stretching a flexible elastomeric mould to enlarge the opening to a cavity formed therein; b) placing at least part of a food product into the cavity opening; c) moulding the food product by applying pressure on the food product via the mould, and d) removing the moulded novelty food product.

7. A method of manufacturing a novelty food product as claimed in claim 6 wherein a bending moment is applied to the mould at step to stretch it and enlarge the opening to the cavity. 1I COMS ID No: SMBI-00706662 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:53 Date 2004-04-14 14/04/2004 16:40 +613-9890-1337 PATENT ATTORNEY SERV PAGE 14/28

8. A method of manufacturing a novelty food product as claimed in claim 6 or claim 7 wherein bending moments are applied to the mould about at least two mutually perpendicular axes to stretch an enlarge the opening of the cavity.

9. A method of manufacturing a novelty food product as claimed in claim 7 or claim 8 wherein the mould is of a self-supporting wall construction with (in a relaxed state) a substantially planar surface in which the cavity opening is formed and wherein application of the bending moment tends to raise the lowermost part of the mould cavity to a level substantially at, or above, the level of the cavity opening.

A method of manufacturing a novelty food product as claimed in any one of claims 6 to 9 wherein at step the walls of the cavity are deformed to a shape tending toward a plane and the cavity opening is enlarged to form the periphery of a surface I adapted to receive the part of the food product.

11. A method of manufacturing a novelty food product as claimed any one of Sclaims 6 to 10 wherein at step the mould is stretched to release the moulded novelty 15 food product.

12. A method of manufacturing a novelty food product as claimed in any one of claims 6 to 11 wherein a bending moment is applied to the mould to release the product.

13. A method of manufacturing a novelty food product as claimed in any one of claims 6 to 12 wherein opposing sides of the food product are moulded simultaneously in respective cavities.

14. A method of manufacturing a novelty food product substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings. 12 COMS ID No: SMBI-00706662 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:53 Date 2004-04-14 14/04/2004~ 16:40 +613-9890-1337 PATENT ATTORN'EY SERV PAGE 15/28 A novelty food product substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Dated this 10~ day of April 2004 PATENT ATTORNEY SERVICES Attorneys for MARK HAASE 13 COMS ID No: SMBI-00706662 Received by IP Australia: Time 16:53 Date 2004-04-14