Soft solid fat composition, its production method and use

Abstract

Compositions are provided comprising an oil and fat blend, the oil and fat blend comprising cottonseed stearin, the composition having a solid fat content (SFC) of about 1% to about 65% at 20° C., an SFC of 0% to about 40% at 30° C., and an SFC of 0% to 19.9% ​​at 40° C. The compositions may be used in food products. Methods of making the compositions and food products comprising the compositions are included.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] (CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS) This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 282,783, filed November 24, 2021, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety.

[0002] FIELD OF THEINVENTION The present invention relates generally to oil and fat compositions, including methods for making the oil and fat compositions and uses of the oil and fat compositions. [Background technology]

[0003] Fats play an important and multifunctional role in bakery products. They provide structure development, thickness, and softness to the product, thereby improving the eating quality of the product. For some products, such as cakes and icings, fats help provide aeration. For Danish or puff pastry, fats can help develop a crispy texture in the product, or for other products, they can lubricate the gluten. Fats are crucial in the creaming process (e.g., combining fats with other ingredients into a batter or dough) because they help trap air that gives the leavening effect in cakes or the desired volume in icings. Liquid oils do not function the same way and cannot be used in all bakery products. To give the expected quality of bakery products, the structure provided by more solid fats is necessary.

[0004] Various approaches have been developed to produce bakery shortenings without the use of palm oil. One approach is to use tropical or exotic fats such as cocoa butter, coconut oil, shea butter, etc. However, these alternatives can be very expensive and require supply chain development. Another approach is the use of oleogels, which contain gelling agents (e.g., materials such as vegetable waxes, emulsifiers, polymers, or starches) to add structure to the liquid oil. Unfortunately, oleogels generally lack functionality, are very difficult to produce on a large scale, and the materials used (gelling agents) are usually not simple in composition. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The present technology provides a composition comprising an oil and fat blend, the oil and fat blend comprising cottonseed stearin, the oil and fat blend having a solid fat content (SFC) of about 1% to about 65% at 20° C., an SFC of 0% to about 40% at 30° C., and an SFC of 0% to 19.9% ​​at 40° C. In any embodiment, the oil and fat blend may have an SFC of about 18% to about 70% at 10° C.

[0006] In any embodiment, the fat blend may be an interesterified fat blend. In any embodiment, the fat blend may be homogenous.

[0007] The present technology also provides food products comprising the compositions disclosed herein.

[0008] In another aspect, the present technology provides a method of making the compositions disclosed herein, the method comprising combining cottonseed stearin with other edible ingredients to form a homogenous mixture. In some aspects, the method may further comprise interesterifying the homogenous mixture.

[0009] The present technology offers certain advantages over other alternative fat and oil compositions and foods containing the same.For example, there is a clear demand from the food industry for oil and fat manufacturers to develop alternatives to palm oil, especially for sustainability reasons.In many cases, the compositions or foods of the present technology are substantially free of palm oil, which is beneficial for sustainability purposes.

[0010] The mechanical properties and physical structure of a fat or oil contribute to its functionality and affect the quality of the food products produced with it. The composition of the present technology has properties and structure that allow it to be used as a replacement fat or oil in a wide variety of foods (e.g., properties and structure similar to those of palm oil-based fat products).

[0011] In some embodiments, the compositions of the present technology provide compositions that do not rely on the addition of synthetic additives (e.g., emulsifiers, waxes, etc.) or non-lipid materials (e.g., starches, proteins, ethylcellulose, etc.) to provide the properties and structure necessary for the functionality of the oil and fat replacement and the quality of the food products produced therewith, preferably compositions that are substantially free of palm oil. In some embodiments, the compositions of the present technology are alternative oils and fats that are preferably non-palm, non-hydrogenated, non-exotic or tropical, purely lipid-based, and sourced from well-established sustainable supply chains.

[0012] The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the exemplary aspects, aspects and features described above, further aspects, aspects and features will become apparent by reference to the following detailed description. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification. In the drawings, like symbols typically identify like elements unless the context dictates otherwise. The illustrative aspects described in the detailed description, drawings, and claims are not intended to be limiting. Other aspects may be utilized, and other changes may be made, without departing from the spirit or scope of the subject matter presented herein.

[0014] The following terms are used throughout as defined below: All other terms and phrases used herein have their ordinary meanings as one of ordinary skill in the art would understand.

[0015] As used in this specification and the appended claims, singular articles such as "a" and "an" and "the" and similar referents in the context of describing elements (particularly in the context of the claims which follow) are to be construed to encompass both the singular and the plural unless otherwise indicated in the specification or clearly contradicted by context.

[0016] As used herein, "about" will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art and will vary to some extent depending on the context in which it is used. If there are any uses of the term that are not clear to persons of ordinary skill in the art, given the context in which it is used, "about" will mean up to plus or minus 10% of the particular term.

[0017] As used herein, "substantially free" refers to less than about 2% by weight of a particular component based on the total weight of the composition. In any embodiment, the composition may contain less than about 1% by weight, less than about 0.5% by weight, or less than about 0.1% by weight of a particular component. In any embodiment, the composition may be free of a particular component.

[0018] As used herein, "homogeneous" refers to a mixture that is substantially uniform or homogeneous.

[0019] As used herein, the term "solid fat" or "solid fat content" or "SFC" refers to the percentage of crystallized solid fat present over a defined temperature scale. SFC can be measured by methods known to those of skill in the art. For example, SFC can be determined by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) (AMERICAN OIL CHEMIST SOCIETY Official Methods and Recommended Practices, 600 MHz, incorporated herein by reference). th ed., 2008, AOCS Official Method cd-16b-93).

[0020] As used herein, "triglyceride" refers to a molecule having a glycerol moiety linked to three fatty acid residues via ester bonds. A "fatty acid residue" is a fatty acid in its acyl or esterified form. As used herein, the term "fatty acid" may refer to a molecule comprising a hydrocarbon chain and a terminal carboxylic acid group. Alternatively, the carboxylic acid group may be in the form of a free fatty acid or a salt (i.e., COO - or COOH). The "tail" or hydrocarbon chain of a fatty acid may also be referred to as a fatty acid chain, a fatty acid side chain, or a fatty chain. The hydrocarbon chain of a fatty acid is typically a saturated or unsaturated aliphatic group. A fatty acid having n carbon numbers typically has a fatty acid side chain having n-1 carbons. Non-limiting examples of fatty acids include C8, C10, C12, C14, C16 (e.g., C16:0, C16:1), C18 (e.g., C18:0, C18:1, C18:2, C18:3, C18:4), C20, and / or C22 fatty acids. For example, the fatty acids can be caprylic (8:0), capric (10:0), lauric (12:0), myristic (14:0), palmitic (16:0), stearic (18:0), oleic (18:1), linoleic (18:2), and linolenic (18:3) acids, or a combination of two or more thereof.

[0021] As used herein, the term "edible ingredient(s)" refers to fats, oils, and / or additives (e.g., antioxidants, colorants, flavors, emulsifiers, etc.) suitable for human consumption.

[0022] As used herein, the term "flaked fat" refers to a fat that has properties that allow it to be flaked, but not necessarily in flaked form. To flaky fats, the fat blend is melted at a temperature about 10-15°F above the melting point of the fat and dispensed onto a stainless steel belt or drum that is cooled by glycol. As the fat travels down the belt or on the drum, it crystallizes into a hardened form. The fat is then scraped off the belt or drum and broken into smaller pieces (i.e., fat flakes). Flaked fats behave as a solid at room temperature. When added to food products, flaked fats can aid in the lamination and crispiness of the product.

[0023] The present technology provides a composition comprising an oil and fat blend, the oil and fat blend comprising cottonseed stearin, the oil and fat blend having a solid fat content (SFC) of about 1% to about 65% at 20° C., an SFC of 0% to about 40% at 30° C., and an SFC of 0% to 19.9% ​​at 40° C. In any embodiment, the oil and fat blend may have an SFC of about 18% to about 70% at 10° C.

[0024] In any embodiment, the fat blend may have an SFC at 10° C. of from about 20% to about 65%, including from about 30% to about 60%, from about 30% to about 55%, or from about 35% to about 55%.

[0025] In any embodiment, the fat blend may have an SFC at 20° C. of from about 1% to about 55%, including from about 1% to about 45%, from about 1% to about 35%, or from about 4% to about 22%.

[0026] In any embodiment, the fat blend can have an SFC at 30° C. of 0% to about 30%, including 0% to about 25%, 0% to about 15%, or 0% to about 7%.

[0027] In any embodiment, the fat blend can have an SFC of less than 20% at 40° C. In any embodiment, the fat blend can have an SFC of 0% to about 18%, including 0% to about 15%, 0% to about 12%, or 0% to about 5% at 40° C.

[0028] In any embodiment, the percentage of SFC may decrease as the temperature decreases.

[0029] Cottonseed stearin is a solid component of cottonseed oil that can be separated from cottonseed oil. Cottonseed contains a component that melts at a higher temperature (stearin) and a component that melts at a lower temperature (olein). As used herein, cottonseed stearin can be any suitable cottonseed stearin. In any embodiment, cottonseed stearin can be cottonseed stearin from a first fractionation, cottonseed stearin from a second fractionation, cottonseed stearin from fractionation after the second fractionation, cottonseed stearin from one or more dewaxing fractionations, or a combination of two or more thereof.

[0030] In some embodiments, the fat blend may be a non-interesterified fat blend.

[0031] In some embodiments, the oil blend may be an interesterified oil blend. Interesterification is a process that rearranges and redistributes fatty acids on the glycerol fragments of the oil molecule. The rearrangement and redistribution does not change the overall composition of fatty acids on the starting material.

[0032] In any embodiment, the interesterified oil blend may be chemically interesterified. Chemical interesterification is a process in which fatty acids are randomly redistributed over the glycerol backbone of triglycerides. This process is carried out by drying the starting material and adding an interesterification catalyst such as sodium methoxide, or another acid or base catalyst. Once the reaction is complete, the catalyst is neutralized. The rearranged product may be washed, bleached, and / or deodorized. The rearranged product may have different physicochemical properties than the starting material.

[0033] In any embodiment, the interesterified oil blend can be enzymatically interesterified. Enzymatic interesterification is another means by which oils and fats can be modified. This process most commonly uses immobilized lipases to rearrange fatty acids on the glycerol backbone of triglycerides. There are immobilized lipases that can target fatty acids at specific positions on the glycerol backbone, and therefore the rearrangement of fatty acids during such enzymatic interesterification may be less random than chemical interesterification. After interesterification, the material may be deodorized to produce the final interesterified material. Enzymatic interesterification has gained popularity over the past few decades due to the flexibility of the process and low capital process input.

[0034] The interesterification can be carried out to any suitable extent between the arrangement and distribution of fatty acids in the starting material and the steady state arrangement and distribution of fatty acids that is obtained when the interesterification is carried out to substantial completion. In various aspects, the interesterified fat blend can be a fat blend that has been chemically interesterified to substantial completion, the point at which it has reached a relatively steady state arrangement and distribution of fatty acids on the glycerol units of the material.

[0035] Any suitable percentage of the composition may be from about 25% to about 99% by weight of the composition, or from about 0.01% to 100% by weight, or from 0.01% to 100% by weight, and may be from 0.05% to 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, The oil / fat blend may be, for example, 0.01% to 100% by weight, including 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 82, 84, 86, 88, 90, 92, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 99.9% by weight, or 99.99% by weight, up to 99.99% by weight, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values.

[0036] Any suitable percentage of the fat blend may be from about 25% to about 99% by weight, from about 25% to about 75% by weight, from about 25% to about 45% by weight, from about 40% to about 60% by weight, from about 55% to about 75% by weight, or from about 0.01% to 100% by weight, or from 0.01% to 100% by weight, with the percentage being 0.05% or less, 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 82, 84, 86, 88, 90, 92, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 99.9% by weight, 99.99% by weight or less, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values, for example, 0.01% to 100% by weight is cottonseed stearin.

[0037] The composition or oil blend may be substantially free of palm oil (including fractions thereof, high oleic forms thereof, hydrogenated oils formed therefrom, interesterified oils formed therefrom, or combinations thereof). For example, the composition or oil blend may contain 0% by weight palm oil, or less than 5% by weight palm oil, or less than 4.5%, 4, 3.5, 3, 2.5, 2, 1.5, 1, 0.8, 0.6, 0.5, 0.4, 0.3, 0.2, 0.1, 0.05% by weight, or less than 0.01% by weight palm oil, or any range inclusive of and / or between any two of the above values.

[0038] In any embodiment, the composition or fat blend may be substantially free of fully hydrogenated oil. As used herein, fully hydrogenated oil is an oil with an iodine value of 4 or less. For example, the composition of the fat blend may contain 0% by weight of fully hydrogenated oil, or less than 5% by weight of fully hydrogenated oil, or less than 4.5%, 4, 3.5, 3, 2.5, 2, 1.5, 1, 0.8, 0.6, 0.5, 0.4, 0.3, 0.2, 0.1, 0.05% by weight, or less than 0.01% by weight of fully hydrogenated oil, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values. In any embodiment, the composition or fat blend may contain one or more fully hydrogenated oils. As used herein, fully hydrogenated oil is an oil with an iodine value of 4 or less. For example, the composition of the oil or fat blend can include greater than 0 wt.% fully hydrogenated oil, or greater than 5 wt.% fully hydrogenated oil, or greater than 8%, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 29, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, 46, 48, 48 wt.%, or greater than 50 wt.% fully hydrogenated oil, or any range inclusive of and / or between any two of the above values. For example, the composition of the oil / fat blend may comprise less than 100% by weight fully hydrogenated oil, or less than 99.9% by weight fully hydrogenated oil, or less than 99.5%, 99, 98, 96, 94, 92, 90, 88, 86, 84, 82, 80, 78, 76, 74, 72, 70, 68, 66, 64, 62, 60, 58, 56, 55, 54, 53, 52, 51, 50, 49, 48, 47, 46, 45, 44, 43, 42, 41, 40, 39, 38, 37% by weight, or less than 36% by weight fully hydrogenated oil, or any range inclusive of and / or between any two of the above values.

[0039] In other embodiments, the composition or oil blend may include fully hydrogenated oils (eg, fully hydrogenated cottonseed oil having an iodine value of 4 or less).

[0040] In some embodiments, the composition or oil blend may include one or more vegetable oils in addition to cottonseed stearin. The vegetable oil other than cottonseed stearin may be any suitable vegetable oil, such as coconut oil, corn oil, canola oil, cottonseed oil, olive oil, palm oil, peanut oil, rapeseed oil, safflower oil, sesame oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, jojoba oil, cocoa butter, shea butter, mango butter, babassu oil, cupuassu oil, macauba oil, bacuri oil, tucuma oil, kokum oil, ukuba oil, licuri oil, pequi oil, illipe oil, fractions thereof, mid-oleic or high-oleic forms thereof, low-linolenic forms thereof, low-saturated forms thereof, hydrogenated oils formed therefrom (e.g., partially or fully hydrogenated oils), interesterified oils formed therefrom, or combinations thereof. The one or more vegetable oils other than cottonseed stearin are 0.01% by weight to 99.99% by weight, 10% by weight to 90% by weight, or 0.01% by weight to 99.99% by weight, or 0.01% by weight to 99.99% by weight, and 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 25, 30, 35 , 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 82, 84, 86, 88, 90, 92, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 99.9% by weight or less, or greater than or equal to 99.99% by weight, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values, may be formed into an oil and fat blend in any suitable percentage.

[0041] In some embodiments, the composition or fat blend may be substantially free of emulsifiers, non-cottonseed waxes, starches, proteins, cellulose, cellulose derivatives, vegetable oils other than cottonseed stearin, or combinations of two or more thereof. For example, the composition or fat blend may comprise 0% by weight of any one or more of these components, or less than 5% by weight, or less than 4.5%, 4, 3.5, 3, 2.5, 2, 1.5, 1, 0.8, 0.6, 0.5, 0.4, 0.3, 0.2, 0.1, 0.05% by weight, or less than 0.01% by weight of any one or more of these components, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values. In other embodiments, the composition or fat blend may comprise emulsifiers, non-cottonseed waxes, starches, proteins, cellulose, cellulose derivatives, vegetable oils other than cottonseed stearin, or combinations of two or more thereof.

[0042] In some aspects, the composition or oil blend may include emulsifiers, waxes (e.g., non-cottonseed stearin derived waxes or cottonseed stearin derived waxes), carbohydrates (e.g., starches), proteins, cellulose, cellulose derivatives (e.g., ethyl cellulose), food colorings, bulking agents (e.g., fibers), flavorings, vegetable oils other than interesterified cottonseed stearin, animal oils (e.g., lard, tallow, milk fats, etc.), or combinations of two or more thereof. The composition or oil blend may include interesterified oils other than cottonseed stearin (e.g., interesterified vegetable oils other than cottonseed stearin), fully hydrogenated oils (e.g., fully hydrogenated cottonseed oil), polysorbates, monoglycerides, diglycerides, or combinations of two or more thereof.

[0043] In any embodiment, the composition may include one or more animal oils.

[0044] In any embodiment, the oil blend may comprise from 0% to about 35% by weight C12:0 fatty acids, from about 15% to about 60% by weight C16:0 fatty acids, from about 1% to about 50% by weight C18:0 fatty acids, from about 5% to about 20% by weight C18:1 fatty acids, from about 10% to about 40% by weight C18:2 fatty acids, from 0% to about 5% by weight C18:3 fatty acids, or a combination of two or more thereof. In any embodiment, the oil blend may comprise 0% to about 30% by weight C12:0 fatty acids, about 15% to about 45% by weight C16:0 fatty acids, about 1% to about 40% by weight C18:0 fatty acids, about 5% to about 15% by weight C18:1 fatty acids, about 15% to about 35% by weight C18:2 fatty acids, 0% to about 3% by weight C18:3 fatty acids, or a combination of two or more thereof.

[0045] Any suitable percentage of the fat blend can be C12:0 fatty acid esters (i.e., percentage of total fatty acids in glycerol units) that are C12:0 fatty acids, such as 0% to 35% by weight, 0% to 1% by weight, or from 0% to 30% by weight, or from 0.1% to 5, 10, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29% by weight, 30% by weight, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values.

[0046] Any suitable percentage of the fat / oil blend can be C16:0 fatty acid esters (i.e., percentage of total fatty acids in glycerol units) that are C16:0 fatty acids, such as 15% to 60% by weight, 15% to 45% by weight, or 15% to 45% by weight, or 15% to 16%, 17%, 18%, 19%, 20%, 21%, 22%, 23%, 24%, 25%, 26%, 27%, 28%, 29%, 30%, 31%, 32%, 33%, 34%, 35%, 36%, 37%, 38%, 39%, 40%, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values.

[0047] Any suitable percentage of the fat blend can be C18:0 fatty acid esters, such as 1% to 50% by weight, 1% to 40% by weight, or from 1% to 35% by weight, or from 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 22, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29% by weight or less, 30% by weight or more, or any range inclusive of and / or between any two of the above values.

[0048] Any suitable percentage of the fat blend can be C18:1 fatty acid esters, such as 5% to 20% by weight, 5% to 17% by weight, or 5% to 15% by weight, or 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14% by weight or less or greater than 15% by weight, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values.

[0049] Any suitable percentage of the fat blend can be C18:2 fatty acid esters, such as 10% to 40% by weight, 15% to 37% by weight, or 16% to 35% by weight, or 35% or less, or 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33% by weight, 34% by weight, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values.

[0050] Any suitable percentage of the fat blend can be C18:3 fatty acid esters, such as 0% to 5% by weight, 0% to 3% by weight, or from 0% to 2% by weight, or from 0% to 1% by weight or from 0.01% by weight or more, 0.05, 0.09, 0.1, 0.12, 0.15, 0.2, 0.25% by weight, 0.3% by weight, or any range inclusive of and / or between any two of the above values.

[0051] Any suitable percentage of the fat / oil blend can be saturated fatty acid esters, such as 25% to 60% by weight, 30% to 50% by weight, or 30% to 60% by weight, or 30% to 60% by weight, or 30% to 60% by weight, but not more than 35% by weight, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 55% by weight, 60% by weight, or any range inclusive of and / or between any two of the above values.

[0052] The composition or oil blend may have properties suitable to replace other oils or fats in foods or food preparations, such as providing appropriate structure (e.g., hardness) and / or other functionality to enable the production of food products of comparable or improved quality to foods prepared from conventional oils or palm-based fats.

[0053] In any embodiment, the composition or oil blend can have any suitable melting point, such as, for example, from about 20° C. to about 60° C., from about 25° C. to about 50° C., or from about 20° C. to about 60° C., or from about 26° C. or less or from about 26° C. or less, 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 46, 48, 50, 52, 54, 56, 58° C., 60° C., or any range inclusive of and / or between any two of the above values.

[0054] In any embodiment, the composition or oil blend may have any suitable melting point, such as, for example, less than about 50° C., or greater than about 46° C., 45, 44, 43, 42, 41, 40, 35, 30, 29, 28, 27, 26, 25, 24, 23, 22, 21, 20, 19, 18, 17, 16, or 15° C., or any range inclusive of and / or between any two of the above values. In any embodiment, the composition or oil blend may have any suitable melting point, such as, for example, greater than about 1° C., or less than about 5° C., 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, or 13° C., or any range inclusive of and / or between any two of the above values.

[0055] In any embodiment, the composition or oil blend may have any suitable crystallization onset as determined by DSC, such as, for example, from -5°C to about 40°C, from about 0°C to about 35°C, from about 2°C to about 30°C, or greater than about 3°C, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10°C, or less than about 29°C, 28, 27, 26, 25, 24, 23, 22, 21, 20, or 19°C, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values.

[0056] In any embodiment, the fat blend may be homogenous.

[0057] In any embodiment, the composition can be a frying oil.

[0058] In any embodiment, the composition may be a biscuit filling, an icing, a frosting, a confectionery, a bonbon filling, a chocolate or nut spread, a margarine or spread (a water-in-oil emulsion), a bouillon, or a combination thereof.

[0059] In any embodiment, the composition may be a shortening, an all-purpose shortening, an icing shortening, a filling fat, a frying fat, a pumpable shortening, a cookie shortening, a cake shortening, a pastry shortening, a pie shortening, or a combination of two or more thereof.

[0060] In any embodiment, the composition can be a flaked fat.

[0061] The composition may be a filling (e.g. for biscuits or cookies), and the composition may be 15% to 75%, or 25% to 60%, or from 15% to 75%, or from 15% to 75% by weight of the biscuit filling, and may be up to or equal to 20%, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70%, or 75% by weight, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values. The biscuit filling may comprise sugar, for example the sugar may be between 40% and 80% by weight of the biscuit filling, or between 40% and 80% by weight, or between 40% and 80% by weight, up to or including 45% or more, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75%, 80% by weight, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values, etc. The biscuit filling may comprise salt, vanilla, emulsifiers, flavors, colorants, cocoa powder, or combinations thereof.

[0062] The composition can be an icing shortening (e.g., for forming a cake-like icing or frosting), which can be 0.1% to 99%, or 40% to 97%, or 0.1% to 99%, or 0.1% to 99%, up to or including 1%, 2, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95, 96, 97, 98%, 99%, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values, etc. The icing shortening may include one or more emulsifiers, for example, the one or more emulsifiers may be present in an amount ranging from 0.01% to 10%, or greater than or equal to 0.01%, or less than or equal to 0.5%, 1, 2, 4, 6, 8%, 10% by weight of the composition, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values.

[0063] The composition can be an all-purpose shortening. The composition can be 0.1% to 100% by weight, or 10% to 100% by weight, or 0.1% to 100% by weight, or 0.1% to 100% by weight, or 1% or less, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, 99.5, 99.9% by weight, 100% by weight, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values, of the all-purpose shortening. The all-purpose shortening may include one or more animal and / or vegetable oils other than cottonseed stearin, such as 1% to 90% by weight, or 1% to 90% by weight, or 1% to 90% by weight, or 1% to 90% by weight, but not including or not including 5% by weight, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85% by weight, 90% by weight, or any range including and / or between any two of the above values. In some embodiments, the all-purpose shortening may include soybean oil. In some embodiments, the all-purpose shortening may include fully hydrogenated oils (e.g., oils having an iodine value of 4 or less), such as fully hydrogenated cottonseed oil.

[0064] In any embodiment, the composition can be any suitable composition for replacing fats and oils used in food products and / or for replacing fats and oils used in the preparation of food products. In any embodiment, the composition can be used to partially or completely replace other fats and oils in food products. In any embodiment, the composition can provide the properties and structure required to replace other fats and oils in a wide variety of food products.

[0065] The present technology also provides a food product comprising the composition disclosed herein. The food product can be any suitable food product comprising the composition, for example, a food product comprising the oil and fat composition as a partial or complete replacement of another oil and fat composition (e.g., a palm oil-based oil and fat composition). In any embodiment, the food product can comprise fried food, bakery food, biscuit filling, icing, frosting, confectionery, bonbon filling, ice cream coating, chocolate or nut spread, margarine or spread (water-in-oil emulsion), bouillon, or a combination thereof. The food product can comprise potato chips, French fries, fried chicken products, tempura products, biscuits, cookies, pies, cakes, wafers, fillings, doughs, glazes, pastries, donuts, icings, frostings, pizza crusts, American-style biscuits, chewing gum, meat substitutes, dairy analogues (e.g., dairy-free or low-dairy replacement products for dairy products), ice cream, caramel, toffee, or a combination thereof. In any embodiment, the food product may comprise a bakery food, a confectionery, an ice cream coating, a stabilizer (e.g., a stabilizer to retard separation of the product and / or a heat stabilizer to increase the melting point of the fat or composition), an emulsifier (e.g., which may be used in place of or in addition to palm stearin or palm superstearin emulsifiers), a chocolate or nut spread, a margarine or spread (water-in-oil emulsion), a bouillon, or a combination of two or more thereof. In any embodiment, the food product may comprise a fried food, a biscuit filling, an icing, a frosting, a bonbon filling, or a combination of two or more thereof.

[0066] In various embodiments, the food product may be substantially free of palm oil (i.e., both the compositions herein and the remainder of the food product are substantially free of palm oil), while in other embodiments, the compositions, the remainder of the food product, or a combination thereof may include at least some palm oil.

[0067] In any embodiment, the food product may comprise from about 0.01% to about 99% by weight of the compositions provided herein. In any embodiment, the food product may comprise between about 0.1% and 90% by weight of the composition, between 1% and 90% by weight, or between 0.01% and 99% by weight, including 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 82, 84, 86, 88, 90, 92, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99, up to or including 99.9% by weight, up to 99.99% by weight, or any range inclusive of and / or between any two of the above values.

[0068] In another aspect, the present technology provides a method of making the composition provided herein, the method comprising combining cottonseed stearin with other edible ingredients to form a homogenous mixture. The combining can be performed in any suitable manner. The combining can include melting the cottonseed stearin and blending the other edible ingredients therewith.

[0069] In some embodiments, the method may include transesterifying the homogenous mixture. In some embodiments, the method may include further processing, such as hydrogenation and / or fractionation. In some embodiments, the method may include crystallizing the homogenous mixture. In some embodiments, the method may include mechanical operations, such as kneading the crystallized mixture.

[0070] The present technology also provides a method for producing a food product comprising the composition provided herein. The method can be any suitable method for forming a food product comprising the composition.

[0071] In another aspect, the present technology provides the use of the composition provided herein in partial or complete replacement of fats and oils in food products and / or for forming food products. In any aspect, the use can be for forming food products.

[0072] Among other things, at least some of the advantages of the compositions of the present technology lie in the fact that they provide a viable non-palm alternative for food products, the food products thus produced having the appropriate consistency.

[0073] The examples herein are provided to illustrate the advantages of the present technology and to further assist those skilled in the art in preparing or using the compositions of the present technology. The examples herein are also presented to more fully illustrate the preferred aspects of the present technology. The examples should not be interpreted in any way as limiting the scope of the present technology, which is defined by the appended claims. The examples may include or incorporate any of the variations or aspects of the present technology described above. Also, each of the variations or aspects described above may also further include or incorporate any or all other variations or aspects of the present technology. EXAMPLES

[0074] Example 1: Fat Blend Cotton stearin (CS), double fractionated cotton stearin (DFCS), fully hydrogenated cottonseed oil (FHCO), and coconut oil (CO) were used in the exemplary fat blends. CS, DFCS, FHCO, and CO have the properties shown in Table 1.

[0075] [Table 1]

[0076] CS, DFCS, FHCO, and / or CO were combined to obtain fat blends 1-3 in Table 2. For each fat blend, the respective fats were heated 10-15°F above their melting point, the respective oils were added, and the mixture was blended until homogenous. Fat blends 1-3 were transesterified following the same method to obtain fat blends 4-6 in Table 2. To transesterify the fat blends, the initial fat blend was dried under vacuum (200 mbar, 110°C, stirring for 30 min). The vacuum was discontinued and a catalytic amount (0.1% w / w) of sodium methoxide (anhydrous) was added. The reaction was then started under vacuum (100 mbar) and continued for 30 min. The vacuum was released followed by the addition of 50% citric acid solution to inactivate the sodium methoxide (stirring for 5-10 min). The mixture was post-bleached with 1.25% activated bleaching earth (200 mbar, 110°C, stirring for 30 min). The bleaching earth was removed by filtration on a preheated Buchner filter. After bleaching, the transesterified fat mixture was deodorized. Deodorization was completed by first heating the material to 240° C. under vacuum (<1 torr). Once the target temperature was reached, steam distillation was performed with a heated water addition flask for 1 hour (5% water was added to generate steam for 1 hour). The water supply to the steam flask was then stopped and the esterified fat mixture was cooled to 110° C. under vacuum. After the target temperature was reached, a nitrogen overlay was added while the vacuum was released and the transesterified fat blend was drawn from the reactor flask. Fat Blend 7 was prepared following the same procedure.

[0077] The crystallization and melting profiles were determined for fat blends 1-7, as shown in Table 3.

[0078] [Table 2]

[0079] [Table 3]

[0080] Example 2: Use of fat blends in icing shortening Fat Blend 6 was used to make a non-palm icing shortening containing cotton stearin (CS or DFCS) using the formula in Table 4. To make the icing, the shortening, sugar, vanilla, and salt were combined in a mixing bowl and mixed at low speed for 1 minute. The potassium sorbate was dissolved in the water in a separate container. Half of the water / potassium sorbate mixture was added during mixing. The mixer was stopped and the bowl was scraped. Mixing was resumed at low speed for 4 minutes. The remaining water / potassium sorbate mixture was added during the first 30 seconds of the 4 minutes of mixing. The mixer was stopped and the bowl was scraped. Mixing was resumed and continued until a target specific gravity of 0.8 was reached. The icing shortening had properties to make an icing or frosting (e.g., for cake decoration).

[0081] [Table 4]

[0082] Example 3: Use of fat blends in general purpose shortening Fat blend 7 was used to produce non-palm all-purpose shortening containing cotton stearin (CS or DFCS). The fat blend was melted, cooled, crystallized, and mechanically processed to produce the all-purpose shortening. A scraped surface heat exchanger (SSHE) was used to cool and crystallize the all-purpose shortening. A pin rotor machine or intermediate crystallizer was used in combination or separately with mechanical processing employed to ensure homogeneity. The product was a viable non-palm replacement for non-palm all-purpose shortening.

[0083] Example 4: Use of Non-Palm All-Purpose Shortening to Make Sugar Cookies To make the sugar cookies, the sugar, the all-purpose shortening of Example 3, and the baking soda were combined in a mixer and mixed on low speed for approximately 30 seconds. The mixer was adjusted to second speed and mixing continued for 30 seconds. The mixer speed was adjusted to low speed and all liquid ingredients (eggs, syrup, vanilla) were added and mixed on low speed for 1 minute. The mixer was adjusted to second speed and mixing continued for 30 seconds. The mixer speed was adjusted to low speed. The flour was added to the mixture and mixed on low speed for 1 minute. The mixer was adjusted to second speed and mixing continued for 30 seconds. The resulting dough was scooped onto cookie sheets in approximately 30g portions and baked in a 375°F oven for 11 minutes.

[0084] [Table 5]

[0085] Example 5: Use of fat blends in non-dairy creamers A non-dairy creamer was prepared using the fat blend described in Example 1. To produce the non-dairy creamer, water was preheated to 120°F. Sugar and stabilizers were added to the warm water. The fat blend and polysorbate were then added to the water and the mixture was heated to 150°F and homogenized. The resulting product was added to a MicroThermics® batch tank and preheated to 180°F. The product was pasteurized to 280°F and then vacuum cooled to 180°F. The product was homogenized at 2000 psi and cooled to 40°F to obtain the non-dairy creamer.

[0086] [Table 6]

[0087] Exemplary Aspects The following illustrative aspects are provided, the numbering of which should not be construed as designating a level of importance.

[0088] Paragraph A. A composition comprising an oil and fat blend, the oil and fat blend comprising cottonseed stearin, the oil and fat blend having a solid fat content (SFC) of from about 1% to about 65% at 20° C., an SFC of from 0% to about 40% at 30° C., and an SFC of from 0% to 19.9% ​​at 40° C.

[0089] Paragraph B. The composition of paragraph A, wherein the oil blend has an SFC of from about 1% to about 55% at 20°C, from 0% to about 30% at 30°C, and from 0% to about 18% at 40°C.

[0090] Paragraph C. The composition of Paragraph A or Paragraph B, wherein the oil blend has an SFC of from about 1% to about 45% at 20° C., from 0% to about 25% at 30° C., and from 0% to about 15% at 40° C.

[0091] Paragraph D. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-C, wherein the oil blend has an SFC of from about 1% to about 35% at 20° C., from 0% to about 15% at 30° C., and from 0% to about 12% at 40° C.

[0092] Paragraph E. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-D, wherein the oil blend has an SFC of from about 4% to about 22% at 20° C., an SFC of from 0% to about 7% at 30° C., and an SFC of from 0% to about 5% at 40° C.

[0093] Paragraph F. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-E, wherein the oil blend has an SFC at 10° C. of about 18% to about 70%.

[0094] Paragraph G. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-F, wherein the oil blend has an SFC at 10° C. of about 20% to about 65%.

[0095] Paragraph H. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-G, wherein the oil blend has an SFC at 10° C. of about 30% to about 60%.

[0096] Paragraph I. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-H, wherein the oil blend has an SFC at 10° C. of about 30% to about 55%.

[0097] Paragraph J. The composition of any one of Paragraphs AI, wherein the oil blend has an SFC at 10°C of about 35% to about 55%.

[0098] Paragraph K. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-J, wherein the cottonseed stearin comprises cottonseed stearin from a first fractionation, cottonseed stearin from a second fractionation, cottonseed stearin from a fractionation subsequent to the second fractionation, cottonseed stearin from one or more dewaxed fractions, or a combination of two or more thereof.

[0099] Paragraph L. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-K, wherein the oil blend is an interesterified oil blend.

[0100] Paragraph M. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-L, wherein the interesterified oil blend is chemically interesterified.

[0101] Paragraph N. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-M, wherein the interesterified oil blend is enzymatically interesterified.

[0102] Paragraph O. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-N, wherein the composition is substantially free of palm oil.

[0103] Paragraph P. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-O, wherein the oil blend has a primary melting point of less than 40° C.

[0104] Paragraph Q. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-P, wherein the oil blend comprises from about 25% to about 75% cottonseed stearin by weight, based on the total weight of the oil blend.

[0105] Paragraph R. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-Q, wherein the oil blend comprises about 25% to about 45% cottonseed stearin by weight, based on the total weight of the oil blend.

[0106] Paragraph S. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-Q, wherein the oil blend comprises about 40% to about 60% cottonseed stearin by weight, based on the total weight of the oil blend.

[0107] Paragraph T. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-Q, wherein the oil blend comprises about 55% to about 75% cottonseed stearin by weight, based on the total weight of the oil blend.

[0108] Paragraph U. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A through T, wherein about 0.01% to 100% by weight of the composition is an oil blend.

[0109] Paragraph V. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A through U, wherein the oil blend further comprises a vegetable oil other than cottonseed stearin.

[0110] Paragraph W. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-V, wherein the vegetable oil other than cottonseed stearin comprises coconut oil, corn oil, canola oil, cottonseed oil, olive oil, peanut oil, rapeseed oil, safflower oil, sesame oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, jojoba oil, cocoa butter, shea butter, mango butter, babassu oil, cupuaçu oil, macauba oil, baculi oil, tucuma oil, kokum oil, ukuba oil, likuri oil, pequi oil, illipe oil, fractions thereof, mid oleic or high oleic forms thereof, low linoleic forms thereof, low saturated forms thereof, hydrogenated oils formed therefrom, interesterified oils formed therefrom, or combinations of two or more thereof.

[0111] Paragraph X. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-W, wherein the vegetable oil other than cottonseed stearin is present in an amount of 0.01% to 99% by weight, based on the total weight of the oil blend.

[0112] Paragraph Y. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-X, wherein the composition is substantially free of emulsifiers, non-cottonseed waxes, starches, proteins, cellulose, cellulose derivatives, vegetable oils other than cottonseed stearin, or combinations of two or more thereof.

[0113] Paragraph Z. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A through Y, further comprising an emulsifier, a wax, a carbohydrate, a protein, cellulose, a cellulose derivative, an edible colorant, a bulking agent, a flavoring, an animal oil, or a combination of two or more thereof.

[0114] Paragraph AA. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-Z, wherein the oil blend comprises 0% to about 35% by weight C12:0 fatty acids, about 15% to about 60% by weight C16:0 fatty acids, about 1% to about 50% by weight C18:0 fatty acids, 5% to about 20% by weight C18:1 fatty acids, about 10% to about 40% by weight C18:2 fatty acids, 0% to about 5% by weight C18:3 fatty acids, or a combination of two or more thereof.

[0115] Paragraph AB. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-AA, wherein the oil blend is homogenous.

[0116] Paragraph AC. The composition of any one of Paragraphs A-AB, wherein the composition is a shortening, an all-purpose shortening, an icing shortening, a filling fat, a frying oil, a pumpable shortening, a cookie shortening, a cake shortening, a pastry shortening, a pie shortening, or a combination thereof.

[0117] Paragraph AD. A food product comprising the composition of any one of Paragraphs A-AC.

[0118] Paragraph AE. The food product of paragraph AD, wherein the food product comprises a fried food product, a bakery food product, a biscuit filling, an icing, a frosting, a confectionery, a bonbon filling, an ice cream coating, a chocolate or nut spread, a margarine or spread (a water-in-oil emulsion), a bouillon, or a combination of two or more thereof.

[0119] Paragraph AF. The food product is a food product described in paragraph AD or paragraph AE, including potato chips, French fries, fried chicken products, tempura products, biscuits, cookies, pies, cakes, wafers, fillings, doughs, glazes, pastries, donuts, icings, frostings, pizza crusts, American-style biscuits, chewing gum, meat substitutes, dairy analogs, ice cream, caramel, toffee, or any combination thereof.

[0120] Paragraph AG. The food product of paragraph AD or paragraph AE, wherein the food product comprises a fried food product, a biscuit filling, an icing, a frosting, a bonbon filling, or a combination of two or more thereof.

[0121] Paragraph AH. A method of making a composition of any one of Paragraphs A-AC comprising combining cottonseed stearin with other edible ingredients to form a homogenous mixture.

[0122] Paragraph AI. The method of Paragraph AH, further comprising transesterifying the homogeneous mixture.

[0123] Paragraph AJ. Use of a composition of any one of Paragraphs A-AC in partial or complete replacement of fats and oils in a food product and / or to form a food product.

[0124] Equivalent Although certain embodiments have been shown and described, those skilled in the art, after reading the foregoing specification, may make modifications, equivalent substitutions, and other types of alterations to the nanoparticles or derivatives, prodrugs, or pharmaceutical compositions of the present technology described herein. Each embodiment and the embodiments described above may also include or incorporate variations or aspects as disclosed with respect to any or all of the other embodiments and aspects.

[0125] The technology should also not be limited in terms of the specific embodiments described herein, which are intended as single illustrations of individual aspects of the technology. As will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, many modifications and variations of the technology can be made without departing from its spirit and scope. In addition to those enumerated herein, functionally equivalent methods within the scope of the technology will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art from the foregoing description. Such modifications and variations are intended to fall within the scope of the appended claims. It is to be understood that the technology is not limited to specific methods, complexes, reagents, compounds, compositions, labeled compounds, or biological systems, which can, of course, vary. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitable order unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted by context. It is also to be understood that the terms used herein are for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and are not intended to be limiting. Thus, it is intended that the specification be considered only as exemplary, with the breadth, scope, and spirit of the technology being indicated only by the appended claims, the definitions therein, and any equivalents thereof. No language in the specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimed element as essential.

[0126] The embodiments illustratively described herein may suitably be practiced in the absence of any element(s), limitation(s) not specifically disclosed herein. Thus, for example, the terms "comprising," "including," "containing," and the like, shall be read expansively and without limitation. Moreover, the terms and expressions used herein are used as terms of description and not of limitation, and in using such terms and expressions, there is no intention to exclude the features shown and described or equivalents of portions thereof, but it is recognized that various modifications are possible within the scope of the claimed technology. Similarly, the use of the terms "comprising," "including," "containing," and the like, shall be understood to disclose embodiments using the terms "consisting essentially of" and "consisting of," and vice versa. The phrase "consisting essentially of" shall be understood to include the elements specifically recited, as well as additional elements that do not materially affect the basic and novel characteristics of the claimed technology. The phrase "consisting of" excludes any elements not specified.

[0127] In addition, where features or aspects of the disclosure are described in terms of a Markush group, one of skill in the art will recognize that the disclosure is also thereby described in terms of any individual members or subgroups of members of the Markush group. Each of the narrower species and subgeneric groupings included in the generic disclosure also form part of the technology. This includes the generic description of the technology with a condition or negative limitation that removes any subject matter from the genus, regardless of whether the removed material is specifically mentioned herein.

[0128] As will be understood by those skilled in the art, for any and all purposes, particularly with respect to providing a written description, all ranges disclosed herein also encompass any and all possible subranges and combinations thereof. Any recited range can be easily recognized as fully descriptive and allowing the same range to be broken down into at least equal halves, thirds, quarters, fifths, tenths, etc. As a non-limiting example, each range discussed herein can be easily broken down into a lower third, middle third, and upper third, etc. Also, as will be understood by those skilled in the art, all language such as "up to," "at least," "greater than," "less than," etc. refers to a range that includes the recited numbers and can be subsequently divided into subranges as described above. Finally, as will be understood by those skilled in the art, a range includes each individual element, and each separate value is incorporated herein as if set forth individually herein.

[0129] All publications, patent applications, issued patents, and other documents (e.g., journals, articles, and / or textbooks) mentioned herein are incorporated by reference herein as if each individual publication, patent application, issued patent, or other document was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference in its entirety. Definitions contained in the texts incorporated by reference are excluded to the extent they conflict with definitions in this disclosure.

[0130] Other aspects are set forth in the following claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

Claims

1. 1. A composition comprising an oil and fat blend, the oil and fat blend comprising cottonseed stearin, the oil and fat blend having a solid fat content (SFC) of about 1% to about 65% at 20°C, an SFC of 0% to about 40% at 30°C, and an SFC of 0% to 19.9% ​​at 40°C.

2. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend has an SFC of about 1% to about 55% at 20°C, an SFC of 0% to about 30% at 30°C, and an SFC of 0% to about 18% at 40°C.

3. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend has an SFC of about 1% to about 45% at 20°C, an SFC of 0% to about 25% at 30°C, and an SFC of 0% to about 15% at 40°C.

4. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend has an SFC of about 1% to about 35% at 20°C, an SFC of 0% to about 15% at 30°C, and an SFC of 0% to about 12% at 40°C.

5. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend has an SFC of about 4% to about 22% at 20°C, an SFC of 0% to about 7% at 30°C, and an SFC of 0% to about 5% at 40°C.

6. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend has an SFC of about 18% to about 70% at 10°C.

7. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend has an SFC of about 20% to about 65% at 10°C.

8. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend has an SFC of about 30% to about 60% at 10°C.

9. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend has an SFC of about 30% to about 55% at 10°C.

10. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend has an SFC of about 35% to about 55% at 10°C.

11. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the cottonseed stearin comprises cottonseed stearin from a first fractionation, cottonseed stearin from a second fractionation, cottonseed stearin from fractions subsequent to the second fractionation, cottonseed stearin from one or more winterization fractions, or a combination of two or more thereof.

12. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the oil and fat blend is an interesterified oil and fat blend.

13. 13. The composition of claim 12, wherein the interesterified fat blend is chemically interesterified.

14. 13. The composition of claim 12, wherein the interesterified fat blend is enzymatically interesterified.

15. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the composition is substantially free of palm oil.

16. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend has a main melting point of less than 40°C.

17. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend comprises from about 25% to about 75% cottonseed stearin by weight, based on the total weight of the fat blend.

18. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend comprises from about 25% to about 45% cottonseed stearin, by weight, based on the total weight of the fat blend.

19. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend comprises from about 40% to about 60% cottonseed stearin by weight, based on the total weight of the fat blend.

20. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend comprises from about 55% to about 75% cottonseed stearin by weight, based on the total weight of the fat blend.

21. The composition of claim 1, wherein from about 0.01% to 100% by weight of the composition is the fat blend.

22. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the oil blend further comprises a vegetable oil other than cottonseed stearin.

23. 23. The composition of claim 22, wherein the vegetable oil other than cottonseed stearin comprises coconut oil, corn oil, canola oil, cottonseed oil, olive oil, peanut oil, rapeseed oil, safflower oil, sesame oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, jojoba oil, cocoa butter, shea butter, mango butter, babassu oil, cupuacu oil, macauba oil, baculi oil, tucuma oil, kokum oil, ukuba oil, licuri oil, pequi oil, illipe oil, fractions thereof, mid oleic or high oleic forms thereof, low linolenic forms thereof, low saturated forms thereof, hydrogenated oils formed therefrom, interesterified oils formed therefrom, or combinations of two or more thereof.

24. 23. The composition of claim 22, wherein the vegetable oil other than cottonseed stearin is present in an amount of 0.01% to 99% by weight based on the total weight of the fat / oil blend.

25. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the composition is substantially free of emulsifiers, non-cottonseed waxes, starches, proteins, cellulose, cellulose derivatives, vegetable oils other than the cottonseed stearin, or combinations of two or more thereof.

26. 10. The composition of claim 1, further comprising an emulsifier, a wax, a sugar, a protein, a cellulose, a cellulose derivative, a food coloring, a bulking agent, a flavoring, an animal oil, or a combination of two or more thereof.

27. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the fat blend comprises 0% to about 35% by weight of C12:0 fatty acids, about 15% to about 60% by weight of C16:0 fatty acids, about 1% to about 50% by weight of C18:0 fatty acids, 5% to about 20% by weight of C18:1 fatty acids, about 10% to about 40% by weight of C18:2 fatty acids, 0% to about 5% by weight of C18:3 fatty acids, or a combination of two or more thereof.

28. The composition of claim 1 , wherein the oil and fat blend is homogeneous.

29. 10. The composition of claim 1, wherein the composition is a shortening, an all-purpose shortening, an icing shortening, a filling fat, a frying oil, a pumpable shortening, a cookie shortening, a cake shortening, a pastry shortening, a pie shortening, or a combination thereof.

30. A food product comprising the composition of any one of claims 1 to 29.

31. 31. The food product of claim 30, wherein the food product comprises a fried food, a bakery food, a biscuit filling, an icing, a frosting, a confectionery, a bonbon filling, an ice cream coating, a chocolate or nut spread, a margarine or spread (a water-in-oil emulsion), a bouillon, or a combination of two or more thereof.

32. 31. The food product of claim 30, wherein the food product comprises potato chips, French fries, fried chicken products, tempura products, biscuits, cookies, pies, cakes, wafers, fillings, doughs, glazes, pastries, donuts, icings, frostings, pizza crusts, American-style biscuits, chewing gum, meat substitutes, dairy analogs, ice cream, caramel, toffee, or combinations thereof.

33. 31. The food product of claim 30, wherein the food product comprises a fried food, a biscuit filling, an icing, a frosting, a bonbon filling, or a combination of two or more thereof.

34. 30. A method of making the composition of any one of claims 1 to 29, comprising combining cottonseed stearin with other edible ingredients to form a homogeneous mixture.

35. 35. The method of claim 34, further comprising transesterifying the homogeneous mixture.

36. 30. Use of a composition according to any one of claims 1 to 29 in the partial or complete replacement of fats and oils in a food product and / or for forming said food product.