Engineering healthier frozen dairy desserts
Ice cream and other frozen dairy desserts are incredibly popular in the United States. But 71% of adults in the nation are overweight or obese. The U.S. food industry is developing food products that can help consumers reach their weight and health goals. A growing trend is incorporating air into food products. The goal is to consume fewer calories during a meal yet still feel satisfied. This is a promising approach for frozen dairy desserts, such as ice cream, as it could lead to healthier products with fewer calories, lower fat and higher protein compared to traditional products. If done well, high-overrun frozen dairy desserts — those with higher levels of air in them — could benefit consumers as well as the frozen dairy dessert industry.
A research team at the University of Wisconsin–Madison is using a standard ice cream freezer, similar to those used by frozen dessert manufacturers, to make batches of ice cream with overrun from 100% to 175% using a standard ice cream mix. Batches are assessed for various structural properties (air cell size, ice crystal size, fat globule size), melting properties, sensory characteristics and shelf life. They found that frozen desserts manufactured with higher overrun had better shape retention after melting at ambient conditions, among other findings.
The team received additional grant funding from the National Dairy Council/Dairy Management Inc. and Wisconsin’s state-funded Dairy Innovation Hub initiative to continue their research. Manufacturers can use the data to develop tasty frozen dairy desserts with higher air content, including low-calorie, low-fat and high-protein options.
Link to full statement on website: http://landgrantimpacts.tamu.edu/impacts/show/5886