Additive-free cream, stable and with good foaming properties

Abstract

The present invention relates to a whole, fluid, soft, additive-free cream that is both stable over time and has good whipping properties, and to its manufacturing process.

Description

Title of the invention: ADDITIVE-FREE, STABLE CREAM WITH GOOD OVERFLOW PROPERTIES

[0001] The present invention relates to a whole, fluid, soft, additive-free cream which is both stable over time and has good over-expansion properties and to its manufacturing process.

[0002] Within the world of whole (unfermented) fluid cream, there are today various products with different properties, in particular with regard to stability and overrun.

[0003] The stability of a fluid cream is characterized by the absence of creaming, that is to say the absence of phase separation which leads to the appearance of a fatty phase above an aqueous phase. As for the overrun, it is defined by the capacity of the cream to incorporate air by mechanical agitation so as to form a Chantilly-type foam with satisfactory organoleptic qualities and stable over time.

[0004] The main categories of whole fluid creams are:

[0005] - Fresh creams without additives which whip up correctly but are not stable over time (shelf life of barely 30 days) because the fat drops are large, they therefore tend to form a fatty phase above an aqueous phase (creaming), which results in a heterogeneous product incompatible with consumer requirements.

[0006] - Creams stable for about 4 months at a temperature of 4 to 20°C and which do not do not abound or do not abound, except through the implementation of the combination of the following two technical levers:

[0007] - reduction of the size of fat globules via homogenization at a pressure chosen to produce this effect (the size of the drops is directly related to the level of pressure used); and

[0008] - the use of stabilizing / texturizing additives, in particular carrageenans (E407). These additives are used at a low concentration but it is commonly accepted that they establish a weak network sufficient to stabilize this heterogeneous environment during storage and thus prevent the rise of fat globules. Such a product meets the functional specifications of stability over time (greater than 4 months at room temperature) and of foamable character but requires the use of a non-dairy texturizing additive whose presence is not appreciated by consumers.

[0009] As an illustration, products have been identified on the market for creams without food additives, but none have all of the desired functionalities:

[0010] - with 30% fat, Alsace Lait® fluid fresh cream and cream Fleurette flourishes without additives but have a maximum shelf life of 30 days and are unstable (fat rise) despite this short shelf life;

[0011] - with 38% fat, Panna Elena® cream in Italy is also flourishing without additives but is also not very stable with a rapid rise in fat. This cream also produces a very heavy buttery Chantilly cream, which does not meet consumer expectations and the targeted performance.

[0012] Furthermore, and to meet the demand for creams without additives, the applicant has developed and marketed a whole cream without additives; it is stable for 4 months at 20°C, however it does not foam: the foaming time is too long and the quality of the foam cannot be considered as Chantilly because the foam is soft and resembles milk foam without any consistency.

[0013] The applicant thus set himself the objective of developing a whole cream composed solely of dairy ingredients, fluid, soft and without additives, which is stable over time and which has the capacity to quickly form a firm and stable foam.

[0014] For information purposes, fluid cream is understood to mean a cream whose viscosity is less than or equal to 1000 cp (measured with a Brookfield device at 4°C, 20 rpm).

[0015] Surprisingly, he achieved this result by combining two creams, each with distinct particular characteristics.

[0016] Thus, the present invention relates to a whole, fluid, soft cream without non-dairy food additives, stable and which expands, which comprises:

[0017] - a cream A comprising between 25 and 35%, preferably between 30 and 31%, of fat with a fat globule size of an average diameter of between 2.4 and 3.5 microns, preferably of the order of 2.6 microns; and

[0018] - a cream B comprising between 25 and 35%, preferably between 30 and 31%, of fat with a fat globule size of an average diameter of less than 1 micron and up to 3% by weight, preferably from 0.75 to 1.25% by weight, more preferably from 0.8 to 1.2% by weight and most preferably approximately 1% by weight of milk proteins chosen from whey proteins and / or caseinates;

[0019] in a weight proportion of between 1 / 3 cream A and 2 / 3 cream B and 2 / 3 cream A and 1 / 3 cream B; preferably, the weight proportion is approximately % cream A and % cream B.

[0020] Cream A is a cream that foams well but is not stable over time: over time, the fat globules rise (creaming phenomenon) and the cream separates (fatty phase on top and aqueous phase below), which is not acceptable for consumers.

[0021] Process for preparing cream A:

[0022] The process for preparing this cream A is characterized by a low homogenization pressure, it comprises more precisely the following steps:

[0023] - standardization of the fat content of a Fleurette type cream comprising between approximately 25 and 35% fat (MF) with a large fat globule size with an average diameter of between 2.4 and 3.5 microns, preferably of the order of 2.6 microns, with skimmed milk so as to obtain a fat content preferably of between 30 and 31%;

[0024] - sterilization of this standardized cream; preferably, in injection mode of steam ;

[0025] - homogenization in descending phase at a pressure between 5 and 25 bars on a head;

[0026] - cooling to a temperature between 2 and 8°C.

[0027] Cream B is stable over time but does not expand.

[0028] It is characterized by a reduced fat globule size, with an average diameter of less than 1 micron, and comprises milk proteins chosen from serum proteins and caseinates, alone or in a mixture in variable proportions, for example, in a ratio of 25:75 to 75:25.

[0029] For illustration, whey proteins may be a whey protein concentrate or isolate and caseinates may be a caseinate concentrate. Cream B is composed exclusively of dairy ingredients.

[0030] Such a cream B, without food additives and in particular, without carrageenan, has a stability of 4 months at room temperature (i.e. without creaming or significant rise in fat at 20°C and without rise in fat at 4°C).

[0031] Process for manufacturing cream B:

[0032] - mixture of a fluid whole cream with whey proteins and / or caseinates, for example, sodium, calcium or soda-calcium caseinates, preferably sodium caseinates and preferably in powder form;

[0033] - addition of skimmed milk in a quantity sufficient to standardize the cream to a fat content of 25 to 35%, preferably between 30 and 31%;

[0034] - sterilization;

[0035] - homogenization between 60 and 150 bars, on a head:

[0036] - cooling to a temperature between 2 and 8°C.

[0037] The stability of a cream over time is characterized by the weight of solid fat which rises to the surface: as soon as a visible thickness of more than 2 mm appears, the cream is considered unstable.

[0038] The ability to whip is evaluated by implementing mechanical beating in a mixer (for example of the Kitchen Aid type or household mixer) of the cream; the whipping properties are considered acceptable when the whipping time (time required to obtain an airy foam) with a household mixer is between 2 and 4 minutes, preferably 3 minutes and when the volume of the cream is multiplied by more than 2, preferably 2.5 to 2.8.

[0039] The size distribution of the fat globules is measured by a laser granulometer (standard laboratory equipment). The particle size distributions as presented in [Fig.l] show a first peak between 0.01 and approximately 0.3 microns which corresponds to the protein particles. The size of the fat globules corresponds to that of the majority peak which is between 0.2 and 10 microns.

[0040] By food additive, from which the cream according to the invention is exempt, is meant a substance added to food for a technological purpose: improving its preservation, texturizing, thickening, reducing oxidation phenomena, coloring the foodstuffs, enhancing their taste, etc., it may be colorings (including whitening agents), preservatives, antioxidants, acidifiers / acidity correctors and texturizing agents (stabilizer, emulsifier, thickener, gelling agent). The use of food additives is governed by Regulation (EC) No. 1333 / 2008 and these substances are identified by a code in the format "E" followed by a number.

[0041] The cream according to the invention is obtained by gentle mixing, i.e. non-shearing, under aseptic conditions of creams A and B.

[0042] The cream according to the invention comprises between 25 and 35%, preferably between 30 and 31% of fat and has a fat globule size distribution wider than those of the two initial creams A and B; in particular, the fat globule size distribution is such that the ratio between the largest fat globule size and the smallest fat globule size (also referred to as "max / min ratio") is greater than or equal to 4, in particular between 4 and 9; this distribution is also characterized by a peak width at mid-height greater than or equal to 3 μm.

[0043] Surprisingly, by mixing the two creams A and B in close proportions, the resulting cream does not have properties intermediate to these two creams A and B but on the contrary combines the advantages of the two creams: instead of obtaining a “moderately stable” cream which foams “moderately” as one would have expected if the properties were just averaged in proportion to the incorporation rate, one obtains a cream whose stability and foaming performance are satisfactory.

[0044] More particularly, the cream according to the invention has the following characteristics: - it is free from food additives, that is to say it contains only dairy ingredients; - it is aseptic (UHT); - it is stable over time, that is to say that it does not show any rise in fat content for at least 3 months at 4°C; - it has good performance in mechanical threshing; this can be demonstrated by several factual indicators: • the foaming time required to form the foam is less than 3 minutes; • the expansion rate of the foam once formed which must be at least equal to 2, preferably as close as possible to 3; • the firmness of the foam; this assessment can be done by sensory analysis or by observing any possible collapse of the foam after mechanical beating; • the stability of the foam over time: this can be assessed by the loss of volume after 4 hours at 4°C, a stable cream shows a loss of volume of less than 25%.

[0045] [Fig.l] represents the particle size distributions of creams 1 to 5 of example 2 (the first peak between 0.01 and approximately 0.3 microns which corresponds to the protein particles). Example 1#: Effect of proteins in cream B

[0046] Table 1 below details different protein combinations tested to produce small globule B cream.

[0047] [Tables 1] Test 13 Test 14 Test 15 Test 16 Sodium caseinate (source 1) 0.25 0.75 0.25 Fatty whey protein (source 2) 0.75 0.25 Standard sodium caseinate (source 3) 0.25 Non-fatty whey protein (source 4) 0.75 0.75

[0048] Table 1

[0049] The different creams B comprising each of these combinations were then mixed with a cream A in the following proportions:

[0050] - 1 / 3 cream A and 2 / 3 cream B;

[0051] - r / 2 cream A and / 2 cream B; and

[0052] - 2 / 3 cream A and 1 / 3 cream B;

[0053] to prepare a cream according to the invention.

[0054] All the creams thus prepared have the required functionalities: stability and capacity to quickly form a firm and stable foam; the creams according to the invention prepared with cream B including formula 13 are those with the best features.

[0055] Example 2: preparation and characterization of creams according to the invention

[0056] Creams A and B are mixed in different proportions:

[0057] [Tables2] 1 2 3 4 5 Cream A 100% 2 / 3 1 / 2 1 / 3 Cream B 1 / 3 1 / 2 2 / 3 100%

[0058] Table 2

[0059] under a laminar flow hood in order to maintain the sterility of the mixtures; the mixture must be gentle so as not to break any fragile interactions that could take place.

[0060] Gentle mixing means non-shear mixing; for example, on an industrial scale, this can be achieved by non-shear mixing in a stirred tank (with slowly rotating blades) or by bringing together two pipelines, each with a type of cream.

[0061] Granulometric characterization

[0062] This mixture of creams A and B leads to creams with a distribution of fat droplet size intermediate between the two initial creams:

[0063] [Tables3] Cream 1 2 3 4 5 Centering peak fat globules 2.6 2.44 2.3 1.09 0.972

[0064] Table 3

[0065] The mixtures have a more spread out (wider) fat globule size distribution even though the 2 fat globule populations are not distinguished separately.

[0066] The distribution can be objectified by considering the width of the main peak at mid-height, this offers the possibility of having a factual and quick to obtain product characterization criterion: for example, cream 3 which is a 50 / 50 mixture of the two initial creams has a width at mid-height (extended to 50%) of between 0.45 and 4.1 microns, which gives a ratio of 9.1 (between min and max) compared to only 2.56 and 2.82 for the two initial creams.

[0067] [Tables4] Cream 1 2 3 4 5 Max / min ratio 2.56 4.75 9.11 8.6 2.82 Peak width at mid-height (pm) 2.5 3 3.65 3.8 0.71

[0068] Table 4

[0069] Functionality tests

[0070] The following tests were then carried out:

[0071] - RMG: increase in fat content measured with a graduated ruler in a 180 ml TPS.

[0072] For creams 2, 3 and 4 according to the invention, there is no rise of fat at D+8, unlike whipping cream 1 (cream A) which shows a rise in fat to a height of 3 mm from 8 days.

[0073] After D+50, the fat rises are low (from 2 to 5 mm) for the creams according to the invention, when the whipping cream has a fat rise of 10 mm.

[0074] - Visco cP: viscosity measured using a Brookfield DV2+ 20 rpm on a product at 4°C.

[0075] The cream according to the invention prepared with 50% cream A and 50% cream B has a viscosity of 50 cPoise. This is slightly above the 45 cPoise of whipping cream.

[0076] - Whipping - made on 180-200ml of cream with a household whisk.

[0077] The following are assessed:

[0078] - the time needed to have a nice, airy and firm whipped cream (if possible) - must be < 3 min

[0079] - the estimated firmness of the cream with a comment

[0080] - a measurement of whipped cream sagging and a measurement of exudation

[0081] Slump measurement protocol: molding of a cylinder approximately 40 mm thick and approximately 65 mm in diameter, waiting 4 hours at 20°C, second measurement of the height and calculation of the difference = slump in %

[0082] The cream of the invention prepared with 50% cream A and 50% cream B has a whipping time of approximately 4 min and the whipped cream has a mousse-like texture. With a whipping cream 1, the whipping time is 2 min 38 but the whipped cream obtained is soft.

[0083] At D+50, the syneresis of the whipped cream is low on the creams within the scope of the invention (1 mm) whereas the whipping cream has a greater syneresis (5 mm).

[0084] - White wine: cooking test with resistance to acid and alcohol.

[0085] 2 / 3 of cream is incorporated into 1 / 3 of hot boiling white wine, a reduction is carried out and 2 marks are given, the first upon incorporation and the second after reduction (from 0 = very poor to 3 perfect); the result obtained is 2.

[0086] Conclusion: Creams 3 and 4 have optimal properties in terms of their aging and their ability to expand.

Claims

Claims

1. Whole, fluid, soft cream, without non-dairy food additives, stable and capable of overflowing, comprising: - a cream A comprising between 25 and 35%, preferably between 30 and 31% of fat with a fat globule size of an average diameter of between 2.4 and 3.5 microns; and - a cream B comprising between 25 and 35%, preferably between 30 and 31% of fat with a fat globule size of an average diameter of less than 1 micron and from 0.75 to 1.25% by weight of milk proteins chosen from whey proteins and / or caseinates; in a weight proportion of between 1 / 3 cream A and 2 / 3 cream B and 2 / 3 cream A and 1 / 3 cream B.

2. Cream according to claim 1, characterized in that the milk proteins of cream B are composed of whey proteins and caseinates in a ratio of 25:75 to 75:

25.

3. Cream according to claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that it has a fat globule size distribution such that the ratio between the largest fat globule size and the smallest fat globule size is greater than or equal to 4.

4. Cream according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that it has a fat globule size distribution such that the peak width at mid-height is greater than or equal to 3 μm.

5. Cream according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: - it is stable over time for at least 3 months at 4°C; and - the foaming time required to form a foam is less than 3 minutes; optionally, the cream is also characterized in that: - the foaming rate once formed must be at least equal to 2, preferably as close as possible to 3; and / or - the foam obtained is firm and stable.

6. A process for preparing a cream according to any one of claims 1 to 5, comprising a step of aseptic and non-shear mixing of: - a cream A comprising between 25 and 35%, preferably between 30 and 31% of fat with a fat globule size of an average diameter of between 2.4 and 3.5 microns; and - a cream B comprising between 25 and 35%, preferably between 30 and 31% of fat with a fat globule size of an average diameter of less than 1 micron and from 0.75 to 1.25% by weight of milk proteins chosen from whey proteins and / or caseinates; in a weight proportion of between 1 / 3 cream A and 2 / 3 cream B and 2 / 3 cream A and 1 / 3 cream B.

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