LU87958A1 - Milk-based mousse prods. - contg. lactic acid bacteria, esp. for three-layer dessert prodn. - Google Patents

Abstract

The following is claimed a milk-based mousse with a balanced, slightly acidic, particularly pleasant and delicate flavour, characterised in that it is additive free (and) has a high content of live and viable lactic acid bacteria which remains constant during its entire storage life and guarantees a product of outstanding organoleptic properties and consistency properties. The mousse contains 0.1-0.5% of mesophilic lactic acid bacteria, esp. St.cremories, St.lactis, St.diacetylactis and/or L.cremories, and/or 1-2% of thermophilic lactic acid bacteria, esp. St.thermophilus strains with limited acidulating activity. The mousse may also contain probiotic bacteria, esp. of Acidophilus and/or Bifido type.

Description

PRIORITY CLAIM Filing of the patent application in Luxembourg of January 29, 1991 under number MI91A000207 and of January 29, 1991 under number MI91A000206

DESCRIPTIVE MEMORY FILED IN SUPPORT OF A PATENT INVENTION APPLICATION TO THE GRAND DUCHY OF LUXEMBOURG by: SITIA-YOMO S.p.A. Via Quaranta 42 I - 20139 Milano for: MOUSSE LACTEE, ITS PREPARATION AND ITS USE

MILK FOAM, ITS PREPARATION AND ITS USE

The present invention relates to a new milk foam containing a large quantity of living and viable lactic ferments ensuring a pleasant and delicate taste, slightly acidic, particularly well balanced, to a process for its preparation and its use in the manufacture of desserts. and the desserts thus obtained.

"Dessert" is generally understood to mean the last service of a meal, essentially consisting of fruit, cheese and sweet desserts. In the present context, the term dessert will exclusively designate a special sweetness in cup or glass, comprising a lower layer of foam, an intermediate layer with ingredients of different kinds, and an upper layer of milk foam or whipped cream, in which said layers may possibly be mixed just before ingestion by the consumer.

Many types of desserts belonging to this class are known in the art, the best known of these however consisting of a lower layer containing chocolate, vanilla, coffee or fruit compositions, and an upper layer with an exclusively milk foam. Generally, the lower layer / upper layer ratio is 5 to 7/1.

As used here, the expression "foam" refers to a soft composition obtained from milk which, mixed with other layers, gives a tasty dessert with a specific and refined taste. We know the milky foams used in combination with the aforementioned lower layers to give a dessert. However, lactic acid bacteria from the fermentation process have never been detected in the products currently on the market. This may be due to the most diverse factors, and possibly to the treatments that are responsible for the destruction of any viable form.

As mentioned above, none of the foams on the market contains live lactic ferment, and they have been added with thickening and emulsifying agents, and aerated with an inert gas to give a soft and delicate cream whose softness is exclusively attributable to the fact that large quantities of gas have been incorporated into it. Bacteriological tests carried out on commercially available products have shown the complete absence of any living and viable lactic ferment.

One of the objects of the present invention therefore relates to a new milky foam usable as a lower layer and possibly as an upper layer of usual desserts, which has a soft and soft appearance without it being necessary to aerate it with large quantities of gas, which contains a large number of different types of living and viable lactic ferments, which contains no additives and which can be mixed giving the best result with well-known layered combinations, based on chocolate, vanilla, coffee or fruit, as well as with new chocolate compositions, eggnog (egg-flip), coffee, wild strawberries, wild berries and other additive-free novelties, thus making it possible to obtain a composite of '' a particular taste and appearance.

The present invention has also been developed with the aim of offering an improved method for preparing the foam described above as well as a dessert of a new design.

In accordance with the present invention, the above specifications have been satisfied by means of a new milky foam with a pleasant and delicate taste, slightly acidic, particularly well balanced, said foam being characterized in that it contains a quantity significant amount of living and viable lactic ferments which remains constant throughout the shelf life and whose presence provides the product with exclusive and personalized organoleptic and structural characteristics. Other aspects, objects, advantages and additional features of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art in the detailed description which follows and in the appended claims. The object of the invention is therefore a new milk foam with a pleasant and delicate taste, slightly acidic, particularly well balanced, said foam being free of any additive, containing a large quantity of living and viable lactic ferments, foam which , mixed with the middle layer of the dessert, gives the whole an exquisitely personalized taste.

The lactic ferments used for the present invention are known. These are normally the thermophilic ferments chosen from the different strains of St. thermophilus and / or the mesophilic ferments (St. cremoris, lactis, diacetylactis, L cremoris). The above ferments can also be used alone or mixed, this in order to eliminate the problem of the inconsistency of the organoleptic and structural characteristics which arises from fluctuations in the raw materials used which cannot be compensated for by adding appropriate additives (agents aromatics, thickeners, etc ...), this because in the present case only natural raw materials are used. Anyway, and whatever the use, the amount of thermophilic ferments is generally between 1 and 2% and that of mesophiles between 0.1 and 0.5%. In this regard, it should be noted that, in the mixture of fermented milk, it sometimes seemed desirable to also add probiotic bacteria, namely the types acidophilus and bifidus.

As mentioned above, the intermediate layer with which the foam will be mixed can also undergo completely new and never described changes. Besides chocolate, layers including "eggnog" (egg-flip), coffee, wild strawberries, wild berries and others can be used. Fruit-based ingredients are made from selected fresh fruit. The gentle physical and thermal treatments to which the fruits are subjected during their preparation make it possible to better exploit their precious organoleptic characteristics while protecting their original structural texture.

As stated above, the soft appearance of the foam is generally obtained with the aid of aeration with an inert gas (nitrogen). In the case of the foam of the present invention, after a process of homogenization, finishing and cooling, the fermented and concentrated milk product undergoes aeration treatment with inert gas without first using the thickening and emulsifying agents usually employed to retain large amounts of gas. The softness of the foam of the present invention is therefore the only result of the specific combination of completely natural physical and biological treatments.

Another object of the present invention is the use of the aforementioned foam in the preparation of desserts in which said foam is dosed on the bottom of the container or even on an intermediate layer of a different nature, and the tasting of the three mixed layers or not mixed will give a product with delicious and delicate taste.

The preparation of the ingredients of the middle layer is carried out by means of a technology ensuring a completely natural character, and therefore therefore without using additives intended to stabilize, color, emulsify or give a particular physical characteristic. The flavor of an ingredient therefore comes entirely from its components, without requiring the addition of natural flavoring agents.

The compositions intended for the intermediate layer which follow are given here by way of illustration and not by way of limitation.

Quantities (%)

Chocolate a) cream (whole milk) 42-65 b) chocolate powder 15-25 c) sucrose 15-25 d) wheat flour (type 00) 5-8

Egg-Flip / Eggnog a) egg yolk + sucrose 50-60 b) Marsala liqueur 27-30 c) sucrose 12-15 d) wheat flour (type 00) 3-5

Coffee a) cream (whole milk) 50-53 b) sucrose 38-40 c) wheat flour (type 00) 4-6 d) lyophilized soluble coffee 2-5 e) cocoa powder 0.5-1.5 Strawberry from the woods a) whole and mashed strawberries 70 b) cane sugar 15 c) sucrose 15 d) fructose δ

Forest fruits a) blueberries (Vaccinium myrtillus) 32 b) currants 22 c) raspberries 16 d) cane sugar 15 e) sucrose 15 f) fructose 8

All the percentages given above are relative to the weight. The above values can logically undergo a few modifications or changes without however departing from the scope of the present invention. In all cases, the percentage ratio between fruits and soluble solids will advantageously be 70/44. It is at least worthy of interest that, in fruit-based compositions, the mixture of sugars used is new, both from a quantity and typology point of view.

While the fruits are used fresh and whole, the other ingredients are stored in hermetically sealed containers (type 00 wheat flour, chocolate powder, egg yolk, sucrose, freeze-dried coffee) and in tanks separated (whole milk and / or cream). They are then mixed by direct dissolution in iait / cream, a heat treatment at 95-110 ° C with thin layer heat exchangers, a homogenization treatment to obtain the desired structure, cooling to 4 ° C in a heat exchanger and storage in a tank with sterile air pressure and equipped with a mixing system. Packaging, removal from the refrigerator and shipping are then possible.

As in the prior art, there has never been described an intermediate layer of dessert based on wild strawberries or forest fruits, examinations have been carried out to establish the properties and to define the characteristics thereof. The results obtained are reported below:

Physico-chemical characteristics for berries Optical residue (20 ° C) 44 + 2 Brix Residue of the dry substance (70 ° C under vacuum) 46 + 2% pH 3.4 ± 0.2

Fluidity (Bostwick 25 ° C, 60 ") 6 ± 2

Foreign body and / or material none

Additives none

Heat resistant yeasts and molds none

Pathogens none

Total bacterial load less than 1000 x 1 g

Physico-chemical characteristics for wild strawberries Optical residue (20 ° C) 44 ± 2 Brix Residue of the dry substance (70 ° C under vacuum) 46 ± 2% pH 3.2 ± 0.2

Fluidity (Bostwick 25 ° C, 60 ") 6 ± 2

Foreign body and / or material none

Additives none

Heat resistant yeasts and molds none

Pathogens none

Total bacterial load less than 1000 x 1 g It is also important to emphasize that the particular technology of manufacturing the ingredients and the milk foam gives the final product a new and original aroma which makes it completely innovative. The limited heat treatments to which the ingredients are subjected make it possible to preserve intact and unchanged the typical aromatic characteristics known and natural; · making unnecessary the additional addition of natural aroma of integration.

The percentage composition reported above offers a percentage of nutrients, which makes it possible to obtain a dessert combining delicious taste and good nutritional value.

The quantitative proportions of the milk foam and the ingredients were chosen in order to meet the following requirements: 1) better exploitation of the nutritional / health properties resulting from the major presence of the fermented milk foam in relation to the ingredient of the layer medium compared to known products, usually simply using an upper layer of foam (unfermented) in proportions always lower than the lower layer; 2) balanced synergy between the organoleptic characteristics of the milk foam and of the ingredient, so as to make the dessert more tasty, and thus making it possible not to add aromas; and 3) less amount of inert gas in the milk foam so as to provide a richer product in milk while preserving the softness of the foam. The invention additionally comprises an improved process for the preparation of the above-mentioned milk froth, said process comprising the steps consisting in: a) reception and storage of whole milk, addition of cream (and optionally sugar), and heating (purification) centrifugal force); b) additional heating at 90-95 ° C; c) concentration to obtain an evaporation of 5 to 13% of water; d) bacteriological purification of milk by pasteurization at 95 ° C; e) cooling and adding the selected lactic ferments; f) maturing at 22-40 ° C; g) stopping the curdling at a pH value of 4.9 to 5.4 and heating, and optionally h) additional concentration of the fermented milk by ultrafiltration at 40 ° C., and optionally still i) mixing the concentrated fermented milk with cream (35 to 40% fat) and sucrose; l) homogenization and / or smoothing of the mixture, m) cooling to 4 ° C and subsequent storage with overpressure of sterile air, n) gas blowing and conditioning.

With regard to the manufacturing steps a) to d), these steps are well known to those skilled in the art and, therefore, there is no need to describe them further. On the contrary, it should be noted that the presence in the milk foam of living and viable lactic ferments in proportions ranging from 300 to 500 million per gram is essential for obtaining the product of the present invention.

As mentioned above, lactic acid fermentation lowers the pH value due to the production of lactic acid by the bacteria constituting the bacterial culture. Experimental tests have enabled the depositor to determine the stopping point (exploitation of the curd obtained for the posterior ultrafiltration) when a pH of 4.9 to 5.4 is reached. In known processes, this does not happen because the products are always at neutral pH.

While step f) can be considered as known, it is important to highlight that the cessation of curdling at a given pH value (step g)) is completely new and that ultrafiltration (step h) has was directly carried out on the acidified milk so as to increase the protein content and the dry extract content, thus contributing to obtaining a natural thickening of the product.

The temperature also must be chosen so as to preserve the number and the viability of the lactic ferments, by avoiding the preliminary heat treatments usually employed in the known processes.

The mixture of fermented and concentrated milk with the cream and sucrose is necessary t-tape i)) to minimize and suppress the acidulous character generated by lactic fermentation.

In step n), the treatment of the mixture was carried out in an appropriate material to obtain the desired softness. This equipment includes a supply unit with a positive displacement pump (ensuring a constant flow of the mixture), an inert gas injection unit in which the gas is mixed with the product, and a drum whose walls are cooled with water. icy. Air injection is carried out at a rate of 20 to 40% so as to obtain a foam with a density of between 0.6 and 0.8 kg / l. Said aeration is done without using thickening / emulsifying agents and the softness of the milk foam is the only result of natural physical treatments. The dosing and packaging unit is also of a new design, thus avoiding any phenomenon of destruction of structure or any contamination of the product. The example which follows is presented by way of illustration of the invention. All parts, percentages and proportions referred to here and in the appended claims are by weight, unless otherwise stated.

Example

Raw milk (3.5% fat) stored at a temperature of 4 ° C is purified and titrated (and possibly sweetened). The milk is then preheated to a temperature of 50-55 ° C for purification by centrifugal force, additionally heated to 90-95 ° C and concentrated to obtain the evaporation of 5 to 13% of water. A bacteriological purification is then carried out by pasteurization at 95 ° C. with standing in line for 5 minutes, cooling to the maturation temperature from 22 to 40 ° C. and addition of the thermophilic and / or mesophilic ferments chosen at the rate of 1 respectively. -2% and 0.1-0.5%.

The ferments mentioned can be used alone or mixed together, this in order to eliminate the problem of the inconsistency of the organoleptic and structural characteristics which arises from fluctuations in the raw materials used which cannot be compensated for by the addition of suitable additives (thickeners, aromatic agents), this because in the present invention only natural raw materials are used.

The following maturation is carried out in tanks with sterile air overpressure over a period of 8 to 16 hours, after which the product is left on standby and, when a pH of 4.9 to 5.4 is reached, the curdling is interrupted and the temperature brought to 40 ° C. Ultrafiltration of fermented milk is carried out at an average temperature of 40 ° C, allowing a total dry extract content of 30 to 40% to be obtained; the concentrated fermented milk is then mixed with cream (35-40% fat) and sucrose, then optionally added with probiotic bacteria (type acidophilus and / or bifidus). Homogenization and / or <consecutive smoothing) of the mixture thus obtained is carried out in order to provide the product with a particular microstructure; the assembly is then cooled on a heat exchanger to a temperature of 4 ° C, then transferred to a tank with sterile air pressure.

The product is then gasified with nitrogen, thus incorporating 20 to 40% of inert gas, and the average density after such treatment then drops to 0.6-0.8 kg / l. At this point, the product is transferred to the dessert manufacturing facilities equipped with metering units for the different layers, offering a final product, the proportions of which are preferably as follows: - upper layer: 3-5% - intermediate layer : 45-50% - lower layer: 45-52%.

The filled container is closed with an aluminum lid, placed in a refrigerator at 4 ° C and kept at this temperature for approximately 18 to 24 hours, after which the product is ready for dispatch.

Claims (20)

1. Milky foam with a pleasant and delicate taste, slightly acidic, particularly well balanced, said foam being characterized in that it is free from any additive and contains a large quantity of living and viable lactic ferments which remains constant throughout the shelf life and the presence of which gives the product exclusive organoleptic and structural characteristics. 2. Milky foam according to claim 1, characterized in that it contains mesophilic lactic ferments. 3. Milky foam according to claim 1, characterized in that it contains thermophilic lactic ferments. 4. Milky foam according to claim 1, characterized in that it contains mesophilic and thermophilic lactic ferments. 5. Milky foam according to claim 1, characterized in that it additionally contains probiotic bacteria. 6. Milky foam according to claim 2, characterized in that the mesophilic ferments are chosen from St. cremoris, St. lactis, St. diacetylactis and L cremoris. 7. Milky foam according to claim 3, characterized in that the thermophilic ferments are chosen from the different strains of St. thermophilus having a very limited subsequent aci-dificatrice activity. 8. Milky foam according to claim 5, characterized in that the probiotic bacterium is of the acidophilus or bifidus type. 9. Milky foam according to claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the proportion of thermophilic ferments is 1 to 2%. 10. Milky foam according to claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the proportion of mesophilic ferments is 0.1 to 0.5%. 11. Use of the milk foam of claims 1 to 10 for the preparation of a dessert. 12. Use according to claim 11, characterized in that the lower layer contains the milk foam of claims 1 to 10, the upper layer contains milk foam or whipped cream, and the middle layer consists of "eggnog "(" egg-flip "), chocolate, coffee, wild strawberries, forest fruits and others. 13. Use according to claim 12, characterized in that in the case of wild strawberries and wild berries, is used a sugar mixture consisting of cane sugar, sucrose and fructose, and that the proportion in percentage between fruits and SS is 70/44. 14. Dessert comprising a lower layer consisting of the foam of claims 1 to 10, an upper layer also consisting of milky foam or whipped cream, and a middle layer consisting of "eggnog" ("egg-flip"), chocolate, coffee, wild strawberries, forest fruits and others, in the following preferred proportions: - upper layer: 3-5% - intermediate layer: 45-50% - lower layer: 45-52%. 15. Method for preparing a milk foam according to claims 1 to 10, comprising the steps consisting of: a) receiving and storing whole milk, adding cream (and optionally sugar), and heating for purification by centrifugal force; b) additional heating at 90-95 ° C; c) concentration to obtain an evaporation of 5 to 13% of water; d) bacteriological purification of milk by pasteurization at 95 ° C; e) cooling and adding the selected lactic ferments; f) maturing at 22-40 ° C; g) curdling stopped at a pH value of 4.9 to 5.4 and heating to 40 ° C, and optionally h) additional concentration of the fermented milk by ultrafiltration at 40 ° C, and optionally i) mixing of the fermented milk concentrated with cream (40% fat) and sucrose; l) homogenization and / or smoothing of the mixture, m) cooling to * ° C and subsequent storage with sterile air overpressure, n) gas blowing and conditioning. 16. Method according to claim 15, characterized in that in step e) the lactic ferments are thermophilic and / or mesophilic ferments, in proportions of 1 to 2% and 0.1 to 0.5%, respectively. 17. The method of claim 16, characterized in that the thermophilic ferments are chosen from the different strains of St. thermophilus and the mesophilic ferments are chosen from St. cremoris, St. lactis, St. diacetylactis and L cremoris. 18. Method according to claims 15 to 17, characterized in that in step h), the ultrafiltration can be carried out directly on the acidified milk so as to increase the protein content and the total content of dry extract. 19. Method according to claims 15 to 18, characterized in that in step i), the concentrated and fermented milk is mixed with cream (containing 35-40% fat) and sucrose, and that bacteria acidophilus and bifidus type probiotics are optionally added. 20. The method as claimed in claims 15 to 19, characterized in that the gas blowing in step n) is carried out with 20 to 40% of nitrogen and that the resulting density is between 0.6 and 0, 8 kg / l, and in that the curdling stops at a pH value of between 4.9 and 5.4.