Better Tasting

Better Tasting
Better-for-You Ice Cream

By Angela M. Miraglio, R.D.
Contributing Editor

Frozensweet treats date back to ancient times, when only royalty had the resources toindulge in them. Today the aura of indulgence and decadence persists when onethinks of ice cream, despite its mass production and wide availability. Buthealthy-eating trends and public-health messages to curb fat, sugar and caloriesfrequently land ice cream on the taboo list of foods to be consumed only onspecial occasions, if at all. Yet, in 2004, the International Dairy FoodsAssociation (Dairy Facts 2005 Edition)reported that production of frozen dairy desserts was nearly 1.6 billiongallons, including 994 million gallons of regular ice cream and 430 milliongallons of low-fat and nonfat offerings. This translates to about 15.4 pounds percapita for regular ice cream and 7.8 pounds per capita for low-fat and nonfatproducts.

In terms of type, hard frozen predominates the regular icecream market with almost 90% of the production, while soft serve prevails in thelow-fat and nonfat category with almost 70%. Vanilla ranks as the most popularflavor at 33%, followed by chocolate at 19% and nut and/or caramel at 7%.

Elements of ice cream

The Codeof Federal Regulations gives detailed definitions of composition, ingredientsand manufacturing conditions for ice cream and frozen desserts. Basicrequirements in the Standard of Identity include a solids level that is not lessthan 1.6 pounds of total solids to the gallon, and a weight of not less than 4.5pounds to the gallon with a minimum of 10% milk-fat before the addition of bulkyingredients and 10% nonfat milk solids, with defined ratio of milk-fat to nonfatmilk solids when the milk-fat is higher than 10% (21CFR, Pt. 135, Sec. 110).

Nutritional modifiers for ice cream define some “better-for-you”options for consumers. A reduced-fat ice cream is at least 25% lower in totalfat than a regular ice cream identified on the label, while a light ice cream isat least 50% lower in total fat or has 33% fewer calories than the referencedproduct. To be labeled low-fat, an ice cream must contain no more than 3 grams offat per one-half cup serving; to be labeled nonfat, the ice cream must contain less than 0.5grams total fat per one-half cup serving.

Ingredient and processing modifications result in varyinglevels of fat, sugar and calories. The simplest modifications involve the amountof aeration, or overrun, and the level of milk-fat used to create super-premium,premium and regular ice cream. Regular ice cream meets federal requirements for overrun.Premium ice cream has a low overrun and more milk-fat than regular ice cream andcontains higher quality ingredients. Super-premium ice cream, as the name implies, contains a highfat content and the best quality ingredients with a very low overrun. Butqualifying for any of the “better-for-you” nutritional descriptorsnecessitates additional ingredient and processing changes.

Lowering the sugar load

Neweringredients and greater understanding of the ice cream matrix greatly improveson the original versions of “no sugar added” and diet ice creams. Manychoices for nonnutritive sweeteners and bulking agents help product developersachieve a creamy, good-tasting carbohydrate-modified ice cream.

Almost any non-nutritive sweetener will sweeten the mix.Aspartame and sucralose represent the most popular choices because they mostclosely mimic the profile of sugar. But adding bulk and replacing thefreeze/thaw functionality of sugar requires a selection of othercarbohydrate-based ingredients. Initially the main options included calorie-equivalentmaltodextrins, and lower-calorie polydextrose and polyols, which have thepotential of creating gastrointestinal distress in susceptible individuals. Somenew ingredients overcome some of the negatives and add even more functionality.

One new product offering from SPI Polyols, New Castle, DE, isa specialty maltitol syrup. “It is a polysaccharide sugar and corn syrupreplacer with an improved taste over conventional sugar replacers used in today’snosugar- added formulations,” says Clement Opawumi, senior food scientist, atthe company. “Sensory analysis conducted at Penn State showed that there wasno significant difference between no-sugar-added ice cream made with ourmaltitol syrup and regular full-sugar ice cream.” He adds that maltitol syrupis not new, but this patent-pending version was especially developed for icecream by creating different polymer lengths, so it more closely matchestraditional sweeteners like sucrose and corn syrup.

According to Opawumi, this maltitol syrup offers manyadvantages when developing no-sugaradded formulations, especially its improvedtaste and texture with only 3 calories per gram on a solids basis, compared to 4calories per gram in sucrose and corn syrup. And, he adds, “It is much bettertolerated than sorbitol or lactitol.” Product literature cites a laxationthreshold of greater than 100 grams per day.

One of the maltitol syrup’s greatest advantages is itsfunctionality. “It is similar to sucrose and corn syrup in molecular weight;therefore, it behaves like sucrose and corn syrup in applications,” Opawumi explains. “It is 90% as sweet as sugar and itsfreeze-point depression is similar to sucrose and corn syrup.” He continues,“Freeze point affects the shelf life of the finished product. If the freezingpoint is too low, the ice cream is too soft; if the freezing point is too high,texture is hard or gummy. Usually, a combination of sorbitol or lactitol,maltodextrin and polydextrose with a high intensity sweetener is used to get theright freeze-point depression.”

Opawumi adds while this maltitol syrup can be used by itselfin a nosugar- added formulation, it also works well with high-intensitysweeteners, such as sucralose or acesulfame potassium. “It provides bulk and requires no processing changes—ifyou can use corn syrup and sucrose, then you can use Maltisweet™ IC.”

Oligofructose dietary fiber offers another choice for addingbulk and some extra nutritional value when replacing sugar. “In ice cream, youuse the fructooligosaccharide because it is more soluble than the longerchaininulin,” says Hilary Hursh, technical project leader, Orafti, Malvern, PA. “Plusthe oligofructose is sweeter. Our oligofructose dietary fiber, with the newtrade name Beneo, can replace a portion of the sugar. It can replace the bulk ona one-for-one basis, but you need to use high-intensity sweeteners with it. Thereis some calorie reduction because it has half the calories of sugar.” Itprovides only 30% the sweetness of sugar, but works well and has synergy withhigh-intensity sweeteners and polyols. With polyols, it masks the cooling, andwith high-intensity sweeteners, it masks the off-flavors and allows formulatorsto use less.

“An advantage is that this oligofructose depresses thefreezing point and helps to decrease ice crystals’ formation,” Hursh adds. “This adds stability to ice cream. There is some effect on viscosity—a slight increase but itis not significant in processing. It can be added by dry blending with otheringredients, and it has no effect on overrun.”

Lower fat options

Theintroduction of an all-natural fat substitute in the early 1990s led to theintroduction of the first fat-free frozen dessert with full-fat ice creamcharacteristics. Made from micro-particulated whey protein, this fat substituteimparts creaminess, inhibits ice crystal growth, and maintains texture, mouth-feel and melt due to its small, spherical, deformable globules averaging 1micron in diameter. However, providing acceptable flavor in a fat-free systemproved difficult, and slowly the return of a small amount of fat to createlow-fat products with better flavor prevailed. Today, reduced and low-fat icecreams rely on combinations of various ingredients to replace fat’s functionsinstead of a specific fat-substitute ingredient.

Recreating richness

A “better-for-you”ice cream that re-creates the total sensory experience of ice cream stands thebest chance for long-term success. The primary sensory experience of ice creamcenters on creaminess and smoothness. Unfortunately, the key ingredients thatcreate and control those attributes during processing and storage are the onesproduct designers target for reduction when trying to improve ice cream’snutritional profile. The answer proposed by several ingredient manufacturers liesin the right blend of stabilizers and emulsifiers to create small crystals andthe right texture.

The new generation of “light” ice cream products isdriving interest in the ice cream market, says Don Heffner, market manager forfrozen dessert, Kerry Bio-Science, Hoffman Estates, IL. He notes: “Theseproducts seem to appeal to people because they have a somewhat lower caloriecount and fat level, while at the same time delivering acceptable taste andtexture characteristics similar to full-fat ice creams. Some of these productsuse a low-temperature extrusion process which helps to give the product bettertexture due to smaller ice-crystal formation. The use of a sound emulsifier andhydrocolloid system is still important to give the products full-fat appearanceand maintain freeze/thaw capabilities for adequate shelf-life.”

Gwen Meyer, technical director for dairy applications, KerryBio-Science, Hoffman Estates, IL, points out, “People eat with their eyes aswell as their mouth. Texture is important to appearance and mouth-feel. What wesee, the flavor release, smoothness and creaminess all contribute to the senseof quality and go hand in hand with the process.”

Product designers need to look at a number of considerationsin formulating successful products. “The choice of emulsifier is critical,”Meyer says. “In lower-fat products, it is possible to emulate higher fatcontent by the selection and recommended use levels of certain emulsifiers. Theability to properly aerate light ice cream products is also affectedgreatly by the choice of emulsifier systems. The choice of hydrocolloids is alsovery important to air-cell stability, in addition to their water-bindingproperties. Low-fat ice cream products, in general, have weak-mouth-feelissues and often do not scoop well. Proper selection of emulsifiers andhydrocolloids can mitigate these issues and produce a product with full-fat icecream characteristics. Heffner says, “Kerry has over 200 pre-existing texturesystems that have been developed and sold for use in ice cream and frozendessert products over the past 30 years on a global basis. We use these as starting points when we begin to work with acustomer.”

Other suppliers also offer stabilizer/ emulsifier combinationsdesigned to balance the system in sugar- and fat-reduced ice cream and frozendesserts. “We offer stabilizer blends that make up for the downfallswhen you take out fat, such as texture, mouth-feel, melt-ability and extrusion,”says Erin Chavez, senior applications specialist, Degussa Texturant Systems,Atlanta, GA. “The other use is with polyols, where stabilizers help with theheat-shock stability of these formulations with slightly depressed freeze point.”The company offers products specifically for low-fat and no-sugar-added products.”She explains that from a manufacturing viewpoint, these stabilizers help withseveral issues: “For example, when fat is removed the matrix of the icecream becomes less stable to melt-back. The correct use of stabilizer andemulsifiers helps build back this structure to delay the meltback and also helpswith firm and dry extrusion during manufacture.” The company also offershighly functional blends of emulsifiers and stabilizers “designed specificallyto give the texture of slow-churn ice cream,” she says. “Our stabilizermimics the mouth-feel, so you end up with a product that is very creamy anddecadent in reduced-fat formulations. The slow-churn process results in small crystals that make theproduct smooth and creamy.” She adds that these products are for those whocannot afford to add the expensive equipment required for slow churning.

Another option for consideration when trying to manipulate icecrystal size comes from Danisco USA, Inc., New Century, KS, which offers “astabilizer system that is a blend of emulsifiers and hydrocolloid gums thatcreates the smallest ice crystals and maintains them,” says Mike Parsons,director of dairy sales at Danisco. “This means the shelf life is extended,and you can cut back on fat and solids.” He explains that the use levels andspecifics of the blend depend on what the customer wants and the desired levelof calorie or fat reduction. “There is a patent pending on the process. We usecommon emulsifiers not traditionally used in ice cream, such as propylene glycolmonoesters and different hydrocolloids, depending on the price point,” he states.

StabilEase, a new ingredient from Blue Pacific Flavors, Inc.,City of Industry, CA, is “a natural cream flavor system that has the addedbenefit in ice cream of reducing the quantity of ice crystals to create acreamier flavor and smoother texture with a more fatlike taste,” according toWalter Postelwait, vice president and general manager. The technology behind theingredient was originally invented for beverages to prevent agglomeration inacid milk beverages. “When we investigated its freeze/thaw properties,” hecontinues, “we found it had a unique ability to lower the ice crystallizationin the frozen beverage.” The company then took the original technology andmade some modifications to create a product that reduces ice crystals andenhances creaminess in frozen products. He says it can be used in light ice creams to add back textureand fatty taste while improving the nutritional profile. In premium ice cream,it can reduce costs by allowing a milk-fat reduction. However, it is not intendedto replace the emulsifiers in a formulation. This amber, viscous, pourable liquid gets addedpost-pasteurization along with other flavors at a recommended use level of 0.20%to 0.45% by weight. He says, “It is all-natural and is labeled in the finishedproduct as ‘natural flavors and water.’”

Other systems combine high-intensity sweeteners withingredients that provide the texture and taste of full-fat, full-sugar icecreams. Tate & Lyle, London, England, UK, uses sucralose in its sweetener“solution system” to achieve 40% overall caloric reduction, 85% fatreduction, 55% sugar reduction and reduced glycemic carbohydrates when comparedto leading full-fat ice cream, according to product literature.

Cargill Inc., Minneapolis, recently introduced two sweetenersystems for dairy products—one that blends acesulfame potassium, aspartame,calcium sulfate, carrageenan, cellulose gel, cellulose gum, erythritol, guargum, maltodextrin, mono- and di-glycerides, polydextrose and salt, and onewithout the high-intensity sweeteners. Both reduce calories and sugar in icecream formulations, but the one with the high-intensity sweeteners gives the opportunity for ano-sugar-added label claim, depending on the formula.

Healthier additions

Productdevelopers rely on additions and inclusions to craft many of the truly indulgentice cream flavors. For example, consumers in Consumer Insight Panels sponsoredby the Hazelnut Council, Seattle, WA, described hazelnuts as “indulgent,distinctive, exotic, European, nostalgic, special and crisp,” and consideredice cream, chocolate and hazelnuts a perfect combination. Confectionary and baked goods also add an indulgent note toice cream—plus calories, sugar and fat. Frequently, to make label claims, better-for-you ice creamsneed nutrient-modified versions of such goodies. “We make a variety of nosugar added and low fat items that are used as inclusions in ice cream, such asbaked brownies, cookies, variegates and panned items,” Richard Hauber, director of research and development, frozendesserts, Kerry Sweet Ingredients, New Century, KS, says. “For no-sugar-addeditems, we use high-intensity sweeteners, usually sucralose alone or incombination with aspartame. For bulking, we use a lot of polyols andpolydextrose; sometimes we use inulin. We choose polyol analogues functionallyaccording to what is being replaced so we can get the same characteristics.

While removing excess calories, sugar and fat predominates the“better-for-you” ice cream world, ice cream’s attributes gives industrypause to consider it as a vehicle for adding healthy ingredients to the diet. For example, probiotics represent a healthful addition to somedairy products. “This year in our Danisco Knowledge Award contest, the secondor third place winner was a student from Cal Poly who created an ice cream barwith probiotics, which we showed at WWFE last October,” notes Parsons. “And we have had some interest in it fromcompanies. In Europe, probiotics are accepted, but not so much here.” Hecautions that the viability of probiotics in frozen desserts is still an unknownbut, hopefully, studies currently underway will answer this question soon.

Oligofructose can bring nutritional and health benefits beyondreplacing sugar in ice cream. “One nutritional benefit is that it is a solublefiber,” Hursh says, “and a nutrient content claim as a ‘goodsource of fiber,’ which is 2.5 grams, can easily be accomplished in ice cream.In addition, it is a prebiotic fiber so it is good for digestive health. Aprebiotic is more stable than probiotics in a variety of processing and storageconditions.” She explains much research in the area of calcium absorption andbone health allows for a structure/function claim on labels. “With Beneo Synergy 1, studies showed a 20% boost in calciumabsorption with a 2 gram serving. So with the calcium content of ice cream, this is a goodapplication. Some recent studies also show an increase in bone density. Overallthe benefit is an increase in dietary fiber and calcium absorption with lowercalories. Also, because you replace sugar, the ice cream has a low glycemiceffect,” she states.

In fact, a recent study funded by food-ingredients companiesand conducted by scientists at Leatherhead Food International, Surrey, England,demonstrated that ice creams made with 15% oligofructose produced a glycemicresponse that was 70% lower than that produced after eating traditional icecream in 12 healthy volunteers. Hursh says, “Our P95 is a powdered version of the one thatwas used in the GI studies and our Synergy 1 is used for calcium claims. Withthe P95 you need 3.75 grams/serving to make a calcium structure-function claim.”

Another interesting concept for adding nutrition and healthbenefits to ice cream with an indulgent flair also comes from the Kerry SweetIngredients group—an omega-3- infused chocolate coating. Beyond itsheart-healthy fortification, this rich chocolate coating can add visual appeal,texture and indulgence to a variety of frozen desserts. Other possibilities foradding nutrition include using high antioxidant fruit juices and purees asvariegates and flavoring.

As for the future role of “better-for-you” ice cream in enhancing healthful attributes of our diets,Parsons says: “Ice cream is seen more as an indulgent treat. It will takemore education to get people to accept it as a healthy food. For years industryhas been apologetic about ice cream and forgot about its nutritive value. So aswe get more recognition of its inherent nutritive value, then we will get morerecognition and acceptance of it as a vehicle for healthy ingredients.”

Angela M. Miraglio, M.S., R.D., is a Fellow of the AmericanDietetic Association from Des Plaines, IL. Her firm, AMM Food & NutritionConsulting, provides communications and technical support to the food andbeverage industry. She can be reached at [email protected].

Non-dairy Delights

Soy ingredients offer opportunities tocreate an ice cream experience for people who avoid dairy for health orreligious reasons. “There is increased market demand here and globally forsoy-based frozen desserts. The retail market is pushing $100 million in U.S.sales,” says Tom Woodard, vice president for business development, Devansoy,Carroll, IA.

“Most of the good-quality soy-based products, such as soysmoothies, soy drinkable yogurt and other soy drinks, are very well accepted byhealth-conscious consumers,” says Mian N. Riaz, Ph.D., interim director, FoodProtein R&D Center, and head, Extrusion Technology Program, Texas A&MUniversity, College Station. He adds the number of supermarkets carryingsoy-based frozen products is good proof that consumers are buying theseproducts.

Soy-based frozen desserts also use soybean or another healthyfat to replace some or all of the dairy fat and, depending on the soy ingredientused, can add fiber and isoflavones to the mix, thus adding to a healthierprofile, according to Jeff Liebrecht, a consultant with Innovative FoodSolutions, Columbus, OH, who provides technical support to Devansoy. He adds that Devansoy’s ingredients are closer to the wholebean and thus retain many of its qualities. Woodward says, “All our productsare non-GMO. We have organic as well as conventional ingredients.”

“Most frozen desserts use soymilk as an ingredient. Someother soy ingredients can also be used, such as soymilk concentrates or powder,tofu and isolated soy protein,” Riaz says. “Most of the processes are verysimilar to traditional dairy processing. The processor may need to slightlyadjust their processing conditions (temperature) depending upon what kind of soyingredients are being used in the formulation (regular soymilk, or soymilkconcentrates, isolates, etc.).”

The biggest challenge is to achieve the desired overrun,Liebrecht says, which is difficult because soy protein is different from dairy.He states, “You address it with stabilizers and emulsifiers (and use)different ones and blends.” Soy-based frozen desserts are denser, richer andcreamier, similar to premium ice cream, with ice crystal formation being controlled through stabilizers.