Meltable plant-based cheese

Abstract

The present invention relates to a plant-based cheese of the half hard type, preferably a pizza cheese that has improved optical properties (i.e. reduded translucency upon melting). The plant-based cheese of the invention comprises a combination of certain structuring vegetable fat, (modified) starches and optionally a mixture of beta carotene. The invention further relates to the use of such structuring vegetable fat as a (meltable) cheese ingredient, a food product comprising the plant-based cheese, and a method for the preparation of the plant- based cheese.

Description

[0001] Title: Meltable plant-based cheese

[0002] Field of the invention

[0003] The present invention relates to a meltable plant-based cheese of the half hard type, preferably a pizza cheese, and a method for its preparation.

[0004] Background of the invention

[0005] Dairy products such as cheese are a much desired asset to many tables and taste. In general, there has been a significant increase in the demand for cheese, as well as for cheeses with specific performance or nutritional characteristics. This general demand is at least in part driven by the steady growth of the ready meal or convenience food sector, in which cheese is often used. The increasing popularity of various pizza-type products is one specific example of cheese-containing products in this sector that have contributed to the surge in demand.

[0006] Driven by factors such as the environment, animal rights and human health, the interest in non-dairy products such as plant-based cheese has increased tremendously. Typically, plantbased cheese comprises three key components, namely a dry ingredient blend (e.g. combinations of ingredients such as starches, emulsifying salts, emulsifiers, pH adjusters, colorants, and flavors), water, and fats, wherein the the fat is often cococnut oil. However, traditional dairy cheese production has come to rely on certain ingredients, such as animal milk, which is attributing to many of the appealing qualities of dairy cheese. Finding ingredients that provide cheese compositions with one or more suitable functional properties (e.g., melt, stretch, and firmness), organoleptic properties (e.g., texture and flavor), and when necessary, nutritional properties, is very challenging. For this reason, plant-based alternatives are often characterized by a different undesired structure, which may give them a different appearance, and due to the lack of organoleptic qualities, not making them comparable to traditional cheeses either in taste, colour or in texture i.e. in structure, or in appearance.

[0007] For instance, existing cheese analogues that are used in a molten form such as for pizza, toast and croque monsieur suffer from the disadvantages that upon heating, the cheese analogue becomes translucent. There is a need for non-dairy containing cheeses that combine a structure, look and mouthfeel that mimics traditional (dairy based) cheese, but that do not become translucent upon melting.

[0008] Summary of the invention

[0009] The present inventors found that a cheese alternative based on a combination of certain structuring vegetable fat, (modified) starches and optionally a beta carotene resulted in a cheese with an excellent taste, texture mouthfeel and optical properties (i.e. translucency, colour) when it is in melted form, such as on a pizza.

[0010] The inventors found that a cheese with a fat phase that contained a higher fraction of saturated long chain fatty acids of the H type (C16:0, C18:0) than conventionally used fats (such as Coconut), optionally in combination with a lower fraction of saturated medium chain fatty acids of the M type (C12:0, C14:0) was less tranclucent upon melting.

[0011] Thus, in a first aspect the invention relates to a plant-based cheese comprising:

[0012] 5 - 35 wt.% of a vegetable fat;

[0013] 10 - 40 wt.% (modified) starch(es); the remainder (up to 100 wt.%) being water, wherein the wt.% are calculated on the weight of the total plant-based cheese, wherein the vegetable fat comprises one or more of: a) < 55 wt.% M; b) > 15 wt.% H’; c) H / M wt.% ratio of at least 0.3 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0014] In second aspect, the invention relates to the use of said structuring fat as a (meltable) (plantbased) cheese ingredient.

[0015] In another aspect, the invention relates to a food product comprising the plant-based cheese of the invention.

[0016] In yet another aspect, the invention relates to a method to prepare the plant-based cheese of the invention.

[0017] Detailed description of the invention The current invention relates to a plant-based cheese, preferably a plant-based cheese of the half-hard type, comprising:

[0018] 5 - 35 wt.% of a vegetable fat;

[0019] 10 - 40 wt.% (modified) starch(es); the remainder (up to 100 wt.%) being water, wherein the wt.% are calculated on the weight of the total plant-based cheese, wherein the vegetable fat contains one or more of: a. < 55 wt.% M; b. > 15 wt.% H’; c. H / M wt.% ratio of at least 0.3 d. = / < 9 wt.% C:16 e. > 7 wt.% C18:0 f. > 2 wt.% 2-C16:0 g. > 10 wt.% 2-C18:0 h. > 1 wt.% H3 i. > 5 wt.% H2M j. > 1 wt.% H2U k. > 8 wt.% H3+H2M+H2U l. > 0.3 wt. % (H3+H2M+H2U) / (HM2+M3) m. > 1 wt. % SSS calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0020] In an embodiment, the plant-based cheese of the current disclosure comprises a vegetable fat, preferably 1-40 wt.%, more preferably 5-35 wt.%, even more preferably 10-30 wt.%, most preferably 20-25 wt.% of a vegetable fat. The plant-based cheese preferably comprises at least 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 wt.% of a vegetable fat. Additionally and / or alternatively, the plantbased cheese preferably comprises at most 60, 50, 40, 30, 29, 28, 27, 26, 25, 24, 23 wt.% of a vegetable fat.

[0021] The term “fat”, is typically used for triglyceride compositions that that are solid at room temperature. The term “oil” or “liquid oil” is typically used for triglyceride compositions that that are liquid at room temperature, preferably also liquid at temperature below room temperature such as below 15, 10 or 5° C. Preferably the solid fat content of the liquid oil is 0 at 20° C, more preferably it is 0 at 15° C. A fat is typically used for structuring a fat composition, i.e. to provide a structure and texture in admixture with an oil or other fat. It can also be indicated as a structuring fat or hard stock fat. The plant-based cheese of the current disclosure may comprise a vegetable fat which comprises two or more different hard fats. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat of the current disclosure may be an interesterified mixture of one or more fats and / or a fat blend, wherein the fat blend may include both vegetable fat and liquid oil. A suitable structuring fat in the fat phase may be essentially as decribed in WO2022 / 162026.

[0022] The term “tropical oil” is used to define oils from plants which are native to tropical regions of the world. Tropical oils are for example coconut oil, shea oil, palm kernel oil, palm oil, illipe oil, sal oil, mango oil, cocoa butter and kokum oil. There is a preference for non-tropical oils in the cheese of the invention. Non-tropical oils in the fat phase may comprise a vegetable oil selected from the group consisting of rapeseed oil, high oleic rapeseed oil, high erucic acid rapeseed oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, high oleic sunflower oil, high stearic acid sunflower oil, linseed oil, olive oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, carinata oil, groundnut oil, safflower oil, high oleic safflower oil, peanut oil, rice oil, camelina oil and mixtures thereof, preferably a vegetable oil selected from the group consisting of rapeseed oil, high oleic sunflower oil, sunflower oil, linseed oil and mixtures thereof, more preferably sunflower oil or high oleic sunflower oil, most preferably high oleic sunflower oil. Preferably the fat phase of the invention has less than 5 wt.%, preferably less than 2 wt.%, of tropical oil, more preferably less than 1 wt.%, 0.5 wt.%, 0.1 wt.% or even 0 wt.% (non-detectable using analysis methods common in the art), based on the weight of the fat phase.

[0023] The fat fraction can also be characterized by a triacylglyceride or TAG profile. In the TAG profile and throughout this application, the following abbreviations are used:

[0024] In an embodiment, the plant-based cheese of the current disclosure comprises (modified) starch(es), preferably 5-50 wt.%, more preferably 7-40 wt.%, even more preferably 9-30 wt.%, yet even more preferably 11-25 wt.%, most preferably 13-20 wt.% (modified) starch(es) based on the weight of the total plant-based cheese. Whereas a number of different types of starches can be incorporated into the plant-based cheese of the invention, suitable starches include (modified) vegetable starches (e.g., (modified) potato starch, arrowroot starch, pea starch, and tapioca) and grain starches (e.g., (modified) corn starch, wheat starch, and rice starch). Specific examples of suitable corn starches for the plant-based cheese of the invention include dent corn starch, waxy corn or maize starch, and high amylose corn starch. In the plant-based cheese of the invention, the starches can be used individually or in combination. The starch can be waxy, modified or native. Modified starches, also called starch derivatives, are prepared by physically, enzymatically, or chemically treating native starch, thereby changing the properties of the starch. Modified starches are used in practically all starch applications, such as in food products as a thickening agent, stabilizer or emulsifier. Modified food starches differ in their degree of cross-linking, type of chemical replacement, oxidation level, degree of molecular scission, and ratio of amylose to amylopectin. In the current disclosure, the starches are selected form the group consisting of modified and unmodified starches, preferably modified starches.

[0025] In one embodiment, the modified starch is starch that has been altered in its structure or properties compared to its native (natural) form by a modification selected from the group consisting of acid hydrolysis, cross-linking, oxidation, esterification, pregelatinization, enzymatic hydrolysis, acetylation, phosphorylation, and cationization.

[0026] In an embodiment, the plant-based cheese of the current invention may further comprise a colorant to adjust its natural color. This can be useful, for example, if consumers have a preference for a color other than the naturally-occurring color. Examples of suitable colorants that could be incorporated into the plant-based cheese of the invention include annatto, turmeric, titanium dioxide, and beta-carotene or any combination thereof. Colorants may be of both the natural or artificial color. If one wished to color the cheese a red, an artificial color such as FD&C red # 40 can be used. Annatto imparts a yellowish color to cheese. The yellowish color often is preferred by consumers who perceive it to indicate a "richer" product upon cooking on a pizza. The amount of colorant added to the plant-based cheese of the invention may vary from 0.01 to 5 wt.%, preferably from 0.1-3 wt.%, more preferably from 0.2- 2 wt.%, even more preferably from 0.3-1 wt.% based on the weight of the total plant-based cheese. Turmeric, if used in plant-based cheese such as a plant-based cheese of the current disclosure, is generally added in an amount of about 0.001 to 0.01 wt.%. If annatto is added, it normally is added to about 0.1 to 0.2 wt.% based on the weight of the total plant-based cheese. In a preferred embodiment, the plant-based cheese of the current invention comprises beta-carotene, preferably 0.05-5 wt.%, more preferably 0.1-2 wt.%, even more preferably 0.2-1.5 wt.%, most preferably 0.3-1 wt.%, based on the weight of the total plantbased cheese.

[0027] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises < 55 wt.% fatty acids of the M type, preferably between 20-55, 25-53, 30-50 wt.% calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 27, 28, 29, 30, 31 , 32, 33 wt.% calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 30, 31 , 32, 33, 34, 35, 40, 42, 44, 46, 48 wt.% M calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0028] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises > 15 wt.% fatty acids of the H type, preferably between 15-65 wt.%, 20-60, 30-55 wt.% H calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50 wt.% H calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 60, 59, 58, 57, 56, 55, 33 wt.% H calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0029] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises H and M in a (H / M) ratio of at least 0.3 (calculated on the wt.% of H and M, drawn on the total amount of vegetable fat), preferably H and M in a (H / M) ratio between 0.3-2, 0.5-1.9, 0.6-1.8. In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises H and M in a (H / M) ratio of at least 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 0.7. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises H and M in a (H / M) ratio of at most 2.5, 2, 1.9, 1.8, 1.7, 1.6.

[0030] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises 9 wt.% and / or less than 9 wt.% C16:0, preferably between 1-9, more preferably between 3-9 wt.%, 4-8.5 wt.%, 5-8 wt.% C16:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 1 , 2, 3, 4, 5 wt.% C16:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 9, 8, 7, 6 wt. % C16:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0031] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises more than 7 wt.% C18:0, preferably between 7-55 wt.%, 14-53 wt.%, 22-50 wt.% C18:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 8, 10, 20, 21 , 22, 23, 24, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 46, 47 wt. % C18:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 60, 55, 50, 49, 48, 47 wt.% C18:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In one embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 7 wt.%, preferably at least 30 wt.% C18:0, calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0032] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises more than 2 wt.% 2-C16:0, preferably between 2-10 wt.%, 2.5-9 wt.%, 3-8 wt.% 2-C16:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 1 , 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 wt. % 2-C16:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 30, 25, 20, 15, 10, 9, 8 wt.% 2-C16:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0033] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises more than 10 wt.% 2-C18:0, preferably between 10-60 wt.%, 17-58 wt.%, 22-55 wt.% 2-C18:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 40, 50 wt. % 2-C18:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 30, 25, 20, 15, 10, 9, 8 wt.% 2-C18:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0034] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises more than 1 wt.% H3, preferably between 1- 20 wt.%, 4-19 wt.%, 6-18 wt.% H3 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 1 , 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 , 12, 13, 14, 15 wt. % H3 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 30, 25, 20, 15, 10, 9, 8 wt.% H3 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0035] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises more than 5 wt.% H2M, preferably between 5-

[0036] 35 wt.%, 9-33 wt.%, 13-30 wt.% H2M calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 , 12, 13, 14, 15, 20, 25 wt. % H2M calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 40, 35, 30, 25, 20, 15 wt.% H2M calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0037] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises more than 1 wt.% H2U, preferably between 1- 4 wt.%, 1 .5-6.5 wt.%, 1.8-5 wt.% H2U calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 1 , 2,3 ,4, 5, 6, 7 wt. % H2U calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4 wt.% H2U calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0038] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises more than 8 wt.% H3+H2M+H2U, preferably between 8-55 wt.%, 15-53 wt.%, 22-50 wt.% H3+H2M+H2U calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 8, 9, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 40, 45 wt. % H3+H2M+H2U calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 60, 50, 49, 48 wt.% H3+H2M+H2U calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0039] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises (H3+H2M+H2U) and (HM2+M3) in a ratio (H3+H2M+H2U) / (HM2+M3) of more than 0.3, preferably between 0.3-5, 0.4-4, 0.5-3 (calculated on the wt.% of (H3+H2M+H2U) and (HM2+M3), drawn on the total amount of vegetable fat). In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.4, 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, 0.9, 1 , 1 .5, 2 (H3+H2M+H2U) / (HM2+M3) calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 10, 5, 4, 3, 2 (H3+H2M+H2U) / (HM2+M3) calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0040] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises more than 1 wt.% SSS, preferably between 1 - 20 wt.%, 2-16 wt.%, 3-12 wt.% SSS calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 1 , 2, 3, 4, 5 wt. % SSS calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 20, 17, 15, 12, 10 wt.% SSS calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0041] In a preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises 40 wt.% and / or less than 40 wt.% C12:0, preferably between 1-40 wt.%, 10-38 wt.%, 20-36 wt.% C12:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In another preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 15, 20, 22, 25, 30 wt.% C12:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 42, 41 , 40, 39, 38, 37, 36, 35 wt.% C12:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0042] In one embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises a combined sum of C12:0 and C14:0 (M) of <55 wt.% calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat; and a combined sum of C16:0 and C18:0 (H) to the combined sum of C12:0 and C14:0 (M) in a wt.% ratio (H / M) calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat of between 0.3 and 5, preferably 0.3 to 2.0, more preferably 0.5 to 1 .9. Preferably, the combined sum of C16:0 and C18:0 (H) is >15 wt.% calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat; preferably 20-60 wt.%.

[0043] In another preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises 16 wt.% and / or less than 17 wt.% C14:0, preferably between 1-17 wt.%, 3-16 wt.%, 6-15 wt.% C14:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In another preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 wt.% C12:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 17, 16, 15 wt.% C14:0 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0044] In another preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises less than 25 wt.% M3, preferably between 1-25, 1.5-22, 2-19 wt.% M3 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In another preferred embodiment, the vegetable fat comprises at least 1 , 2, 3 wt.% M3 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat. In addition and / or alternatively, the vegetable fat comprises at most 25, 24, 23, 22, 21 , 20, 19, 18 wt.% M3 calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

[0045] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat is non-hydrogenated and / or does not contain palm oil or palm oil derived fats or fractions thereof. Non-hydrogenated means that the fat or oil has not undergone hydrogenation treatment. This entails the fats as well as blends and interesterified mixtures of the fats. Non-hydrogenated fats have essentially no trans-fatty acids. Preferably the vegetable fat of the invention has less than 5 wt.%, preferably less than 2 wt.%, of trans fatty acids, more preferably less than 1 wt.%, 0.5, 0.1 wt.% or even 0 wt.% (non-detectable using analysis methods common in the art).

[0046] In an embodiment, the vegetable fat of the current disclosure can be any vegetable fat. Preferably, the vegetable fat may contain coconut, rapeseed, sunflower, palm, shea, soy, cocoa, allan blackia, glyceryl tristearate fats or any combination thereof. The vegetable fat from these sources may contain interesterified fats, fractionated fats or combinations of both. Preferably, the vegetable fat is a non-hydrogenated fat and / or does not contain palm-oil of palm-oil derived fats or fractions thereof. In an embodiment, the plant-based cheese preferably further comprises (non-animal) proteins. Such proteins are preferably a plant protein or plant protein isolate or plant protein concentrate. The plant protein concentrate may include one or more of pea protein, fava (vicia faba) protein, amaranth protein, chickpea protein, lima beans protein, lentil protein; and any other suitable vegetable protein; or combinations thereof. Preferably, the plant protein concentrate does not include any or substantially any soy bean protein to minimize allergenic reactions. A plant protein or plant protein isolate or concentrate can be present in an amount from 0.1-20 wt.%, preferably from 1 to 10 wt.%, more preferably from 4 to 9 wt.%, most preferably from 3 to 8 wt.%, calculated on the total composition. In preferred embodiments, the plant protein is selected from the group consisting of lentil protein, fava (vicia faba) protein and pea protein or combinations thereof. The presence of a plant protein as outlined herein, provides additional textural advantages to the plant-based cheese and improves stability, attributed to the emulsifying properties of the plant protein. In addition and / or alternatively, the presence of plant-based protein as outlined herein was found to further reduce translucency upon heating and / or melting.

[0047] The current invention further relates to the use of a vegetable fat comprising one or more of: a) < 55 wt.% M b) > 15 wt.% H c) (H / M) wt.% ratio of at least 0.3 d) = / < 9 wt.% C16:0 e) > 7 wt.% C18:0 f) > 2 wt.% 2-C16:0 g) > 10 wt.% 2-C18:0 h) > 1 wt.% H3 i) > 5 wt.% H2M j) > 1 wt.% H2U k) > 8 wt.% H3+H2M+H2U l) (H3+H2M+H2U) / (HM2+M3) wt.% ratio > 0.3 m) > 1 wt. % SSS calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat as in ingredient in cheese, preferably meltable / molten cheese, more preferably plant-based cheese, most preferably meltable plant-based cheese.

[0048] The current invention further relates to a food product, preferably any food product which may be typically served with and / or can benefit from the addition of (plant-based) cheese. Such food product can be any food product, such as meat-based, fish-based, vegetarian or vegan. Preferable food products include (ready-made) pizza, pasta, lasagna, croque monsieur, cheese burger, gratin, fondue, hot dog, waffle, sandwich, wrap, baked cheese, tortilla chip or cheese sauce. In a preferred embodiment, the food product is pizza. In a more preferred embodiment, the food product is a vegetarian or vegan pizza.

[0049] The current invention further relates to a method of preparing a plant-based cheese, wherein the method preferably comprises the steps of: contacting vegetable fat, (modified) starch(es), water and optionally beta-carotene mixing the ingredients, preferably under shear, thereby providing a homogenous mixture providing a plant-based cheese analogue.

[0050] In a preferred embodiment, in the contacting step, the dry ingredients (e.g. (modified) starch(es), optionally beta-carotene) are suspended or dissolved in water, followed by the addition of vegetable fat.

[0051] In another preferred embodiment, in the contacting step, a pre-mix is made from the dry ingredients (e.g. (modified) starch(es), optionally beta-carotene), followed by the addition of vegetable fat and water.

[0052] Brief description of the Figures

[0053] Figure 1A-C. Photographs of multiple cheese compositions spread on a pizza (i.e. comparative example 1-3 and examples 1-6), both prior to and after heating.

[0054] Examples

[0055] Example 1 : Appearance of cheese after heating on a pizza

[0056] Method

[0057] A variety of cheeses were made as described in Table 1 (comparative examples 1-3 and ex. 1-12). An overview of the fatty acid composition of fat A and fat B can be found in Table 2. The cheeses were grated and spread on a pizza made from a commercially available pizza set, including tomato sauce (AH Pizzadeeg Tomatensaus)The pizza was heated (oven set at 180 °C) until the cheese melted (15-20 minutes). Translucency and color of the cheeses was analyzed visually and scored from 1-5, wherein: 1= very bad 2= bad 3= acceptable 4= good 5= excellent

[0058] Table 1 0

[0059] Table 2

[0060] Results - Visual scoring

[0061] Table 3

[0062] As can be seen in Table 3, cheeses made according to comparative examples 1 , 2 and 3 resulted in a less desirable result in terms of translucency. In said examples, the cheese was considerably translucent after baking. The cheeses generally also had less desirable structure and mouthfeel. In terms of color, comparative examples 2 and 3 outperformed comparative example 1 , with comparative example 3 performing best i.e. overall appealing color and / or a color that is as (or close to) traditional (dairy) cheese. However, due to rather considerable levels of translucency, these cheeses (i.e. comparative examples 1 , 2, 3) were overall scored as bad i.e. the least desired among all examples evaluated in this experiment. Better were cheeses prepared according to examples 1 , 2 and 3. These examples resulted in cheeses with acceptable translucency, as well as acceptable structure and mouthfeel.

[0063] Similarly as for comparative examples 1 , 2, 3, higher beta-carotene levels resulted in cheese with a better color. Overall, these cheese were considered acceptable-good. Even better were the cheeses prepared according to examples 4, 5, 6. The cheeses prepared according to these examples remained non-translucent after baking and were considered to have the best structure and mouthfeel. Similarly as for the other (comparative) examples, higher beta-carotene levels resulted in cheese with a better color. Overall these cheeses were considered good-excellent.

[0064] Cheeses prepared according to examples 7, 8 and 9 result in cheeses with acceptable translucency, as well as acceptable structure and mouthfeel. Similarly as for all other examples, higher beta-carotene levels result in cheese with a better color. Overall, these cheeses are considered acceptable. Slightly better are the cheeses prepared according to examples 10, 11 , 12. The cheeses prepared according to these examples also result in cheeses with acceptable translucency, as well as acceptable structure and mouthfeel. Although the overall score was the same as for examples 7, 8, 9, cheeses prepared according to example 10, 11 , 12 are reported more acceptable than examples 7, 8, 9 and clearly much better than cheeses prepared according to examples 1 , 2, 3. Cheeses prepared according to example 10, 11 , 12 are however not considered that desirable to be rated an overall score of 4.

[0065] Generally, it was observed that using the fat of the invention in the cheese composition results in higher overall scores. In addition, in was also observed that even that even higher overall scores were reached when the fats of the invention were used in combination with a colourant, beta-carotene.

Claims

Claims1 . Plant-based cheese comprising:- 5 - 35 wt.% of a vegetable fat;- 10 - 40 wt.% starch; water, wherein the wt.% are calculated on the weight of the total plant-based cheese, and wherein the vegetable fat comprises:- a combined sum of C12:0 and C14:0 (M) of <55 wt.% calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat; and- a combined sum of C16:0 and C18:0 (H) to the combined sum of C12:0 and C14:0 (M) in a wt.% ratio (H / M) calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat of between 0.3 and 5.

2. Plant-based cheese according to claim 1 , wherein the combined sum of C16:0 and C18:0 (H) is >15 wt.% calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat; preferably 20-60 wt.%.

3. Plant-based cheese according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the wt.% ratio (H / M) calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat is0.3 to 2.0; preferably 0.5 to 1 .9.

4. Plant-based cheese according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the combined sum of C12:0 and C14:0 (M) is at least 20 wt.%, preferably between 25 - 53 wt.%, calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

5. Plant-based cheese according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the vegetable fat comprises more than 7 wt.% C18:0, preferably at least 30 wt.%, calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

6. Plant-based cheese of any one of the preceding claims, further comprising 0.1-2 wt.% betacarotene.

7. Plant-based cheese according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the vegetable fat is a non-hydrogenated fat and / or does not contain palm oil or palm oil derived fats or fractions thereof.

8. Plant-based cheese according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the vegetable fat is one or more selected from the group consisting of coconut, rapeseed, linseed, sunflower, shea, soy, cocoa, allan blackia fats, glyceryl tristearate and fractions or any combination thereof.

9. Plant based cheese according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the vegetable fat comprises <5 wt.% of tropical oil calculated on the total weight of the vegetable fat.

10. Plant-based cheese according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising 0.1-10 wt.% of a plant-based protein.11 . Plant-based cheese according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the starch is a modified starch.

12. A food product comprising the plant-based cheese according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the food product is pizza, pasta, lasagna, croque monsieur, cheese burger, gratin, fonde, hot dog, waffle, sandwich, wrap, baked cheese, tortilla chips or cheese sauce.

13. Use of a vegetable fat as defined in any one of claims 1 to 11 as a cheese ingredient, preferably a meltable cheese ingredient.

14. A method of preparing a plant-based cheese according to of any one of claims 1-10 comprising the steps of:- contacting vegetable fat, starch, water and optionally beta-carotene- mixing the ingredients, thereby providing a homogenous mixture- providing a plant-based cheese analogue.

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