Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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The in~ention relates to ice confections and processes
for their preparation.
In the ice confection industry there is a great demand
for novelty products, and for new features of structure,
texture and composition to enlarge the range of confections
which can be economically produced. One known method
of providing novelty ice confections is to incorporate
fruit and fruit flavours into ice confections such as ice
cream. It is also known from UK Patent ~pecification No.
1,284,179 (~S Patent 3,67i,268) to produce ice cream products
comprising pieces of gelled fruit puree scattered therein.
The present invention aims to provide novelty ice
confections which have interesting new -textures and
appearances to please the consumer, and which at the
same time are technically convenient to manufacture.
Such an advantageous new feature for novelty ice
con~ection products has been ~ound: use of gel beadlets,
for example those described in UK Patent Specifications
Nos 1,302,275 and 1,484,562. Gel beadlets can affect the
texture and appearance of ice confections and gives a wide
range of new products
The invention therefore provides an ice confection
which includes gel pieces and is characterised by possessing
at least a zone comprising a major proportion of gel beadlets,
and a minor proportion of an interstitial ice-containing
phase T~e con~ection (or zone thereof which contains the
major proportion of gel beadlets) can for example consist
of a frozen mass o~ gel beadlets
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In a number of convenient embodiments the ice
confection can contain an adjacent zone or zones free
of the gel beadlets. The beadlets in such a case can be
confined to one or more layers or zones of the ice
confection. ~hey can be interspersed with a frozen
interstitial ice containing phase, which can comprise
an exudate of the gel beadlets (~hich may form sponta-
neously)or an added fruit-flavoured or fruit-containing
pulp, sauce or puree.
In one convenient for~ of the invention the gel
beadlets can be in contact with each other, forming a
zone in an ice confection, or forming an entire ice
confection. In other forms according to the invention
the beadlets are separated from contact with each other
by the interstitial phase.
A preferred example is a lolly on a stick. It can be
made according to the inven-tion by filling a mould with
gel beadlets; inserting a stick; freezing the beadlets which,
particularly if there is some exudate on the surface of the
beadlets, makes the beadlets adhere to each other; removing
the formed lolly on a stick from the mould; and packaging
it. I~ desired, the beadlets can be of differen-t
colours.
Variants of the above-described lolly on a stick can
be produced. ~or example, the mass of gel beadlets may be
only partly frozen and the unfrozen centre sucked out and
replaced by another ioe confection, for example ice crea~
or a water ice mixture for subsequent further freezing.
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By this method the resulting ice confection has an outer layer
of frozen gel beadlets and an inner layer or core of ice cream or
water ice. In the same or another example of an ice confection
according to the invention, the adhesion between the beadlets can
be facilitated by addition of a quantity of ice confection mixture
to the mass o~ beadlets before freezing, for example a flavoured
freezable puree or sauce, such as a Eruit puree or fruit sauce.
In an alternative confection gel beadlets can form a centre
filling with surface marbling to increase adhesion to an outer
layer of water ice or ice cream. The size of the gel beadlets is
preferably in the range 0.5mm to 15mm, particularly 4mm to 8mm,
; e.g. 5mm.
For use as a zone of an ice confection or as an entire ice
confection, the gel beadlets are also preferably fruit flavoured.
; 15 For all uses in ice confections the gel beadlets preferably
contain sufficient freezing point depressants that they are in a
compressible gel state and bitable at the temperatures of ice
confections when eaten, e.g~ from -5C to 10C. Suitable freezing
point depressants are sugars Similarly the gel beadlets must not
be so firmly gelled that they are organoleptically unacceptable.
Thus, in general, in the zone of the ice confection containing the
gel beadlets, the beadlets have a compressible gel consistency
while being interspersed with a frozen interstitial phase, e.g.
; that derived from the exudate mentioned above or from the fruit
sauce or puree mentioned above.
A particularly surprising aspect of the invention is that at
least such gel beadlets, i.e. gel beadlets sufficiently soft to be
organoleptically acceptable, are pumpable. This is very
convenient since by means of pumps they can.................
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readily be moved f'rom one location to ano-ther. This
enhances the advantage that the gel beadlets have over
other techniques of incorporating gel systems as zones in
ice confections that is that the gel beadlets do not have
to be prepared during or at the site of preparation of the
ice confection,
Accordingly the invention provides a method of forming
a packaged ice confection which comprises pumping gel
beadlets to an ice confection freezing zone, and freezing
; 10 the gel beadlets supplied to the freezing zone to form an ice
confection comprising the gel beadlets, The ice confection
can then be packa~ed, ~he gel beadlets can suitably
form either an outer layer of the confection or the
whole mass of the confection. ~he irregular texture
of the moulded product can then facilitate mould release.
The gel beadlets can conveniently be pumped to a
doser, for example a standard piston-syringe filler or
volumetric doser, in ~hich case the process can comprise
dosin~ the beadlets into a mould in the ice confection
freezing zone, and freezing an ice confection comprisi~g
at least a zone of the beadlets, in the ~ould,
To ~or~ a ~win-layer product having an outer layer
of gel beadlets (e,g, as desoribed above)~ the beadlets
can be ~illed into a mould optionally in admixture with an
2~ amount of the interstitial phase, e,g, a minor amount of
~or example 5~40%~ conveniently up to about 20%~ for example
10~, based on the volume o~ the beadlets, The mass of beadlets
or beadlets plus interstitial phase (e,g, the fruit puree
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or sauce) can then be partly ~rozen to form a frozen outer
layer or shell, and the unfrozen inner layer suc~ed out and
replaced by a corresponding volume of another ice confection
mixture, e.g. ice cream or water ice mixture, before the
composite is further frozen. Usually a lolly sticl; ~
also be inserted. The frozen product is then packaged.
Of course this procedure can be varied so that the inner
layer is composed of the mass of gel beadlets and the outer
layer is of another composition.
A suitable shape of mould for use is a mould of
substantially trapezoidal or oblong shape such as those
conventionally used to prepare ice lollies.
Alternative novelty mould shapes can be used : for
example a shape to ~ive the moulded product the general
outline o~ an orange segment.
To be pumpable and organoleptically acceptable, the
gel beadlets are preferably entire, i.e. are gelled
throughout. For other purposes within the scope of
the invention, the gel beadlets can be gel capsules
containing a much more liquid centre.
Preferably, although not necessarily, the gel contains
~ruit pulp. Pre~erred gel beadlets for mechanical ease
of handlin~ are algi~ate or low-methoxy pectate beadlets.
Beadlets of these materials can be made with such a
consistency that they retain their discrete beadlet ~orm
durin~ the processing steps involved in producing the ice
confections according to this invention Suitable gel
furmulations have been described in, for instance, ~ Patent
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Specification No, 1,369,198, German OS 24 59 898 and ~
Patent Specification No, 1,484,562, A very suitable alginate
gel is for example l~anucol D~ (Trade Mark) froD Alginate
Industries Ltd, Alginate gels can suitably be used at for
example 0.4-2% by weig~rt gel content.
A preferrecl technique for preparing gel beadlets is as
indicated in UK Patent Specification No, 1,48g,562 in which
extruded droplets of sodium alginate or low-methoxy pectate
are dropped or thrown into a bath of calcium ions.
The gel beadlets used in making ice confections according
to this invention can suitably be substantially spherical.
However, interesting variation can easily be imparted to
the products within the scope of this invention when the
beadlets used are of some other shape than substantially
spherical. They may for example be only roughly spherical
or of a de~inite non-spherical shape.
The invention is further illustrated by the
following Examples.
Example 1
A mix of the ~ollowing formulation.
Parts by weieht
Sodium alginate (e.g. Manucol 0.509b
DM (I~rade ~ark)
Sucrose 30 00%
Glucose 5. ooo,b
;~ 25 Fruit (e.g. Blackcurrant) puree10.00%
Trisodium citrate 0. 25%
a2 4 0 . 04%
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Parts by weight
Colo~r and flavour to taste
Water to 100.00%
is fed through an internal e~trusion tube of a.pparatus as
5 shown and described in UK Pa.tent Specification No. 1,484,562
a.nd the droplets formed a.re a.].lowed to ~all into an aqueous
ea.lcium-ion bath eontaining 5% ea.leium la.etate, 2% malie
acid and 20//o sucrose. The gel beadlets formed are pumped
to a moulding and freezing station and frozen to form a
lolly as described above: the lolly produced is then
pa.ckaged in a paper or foil wra.p.
Exa.mple 2
Gel bea.dlets are formed a.s described in Example 1 except
for the formulation whieh is a.s follows:
Pa.rts by weight
Sodium a.lginate (Manucol D~ _ O
(Trade Mark)) ~~
Guar gum 0 05%
Na2HP04 0.04 //o
Sucrose 25.00%
Trisodium citrate 0. 03%
Colour and raspberry flavour to ta.ste
Water to 100~ ooo,b
The bea.dlets formed are blended in a standard ribbon
. ... blender with a fruit sauce containing 75/~ raspberry puree, 50,h
~alie aeid, sugar, stabilizer, eolouring, flavouring and water
to give a te~ture, flavour and colour to taste. ~he relative
: amounts o~ baadlets and sauce used are about 90:10 by
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volume The mixture is pumped to a standar~ piston-
filling volumetric doser and placed in a mould of
trapezoidal shape The mixture is then frozen in a
freezing apparatus, until an outer shell is frozen.
The unfrozen mi2ture from the core is then sucked out.
Ice cream is then dosed into the centre of the remaining
frozen shell, a stic~inserted, the whole is hardened,
and the composite con~ection re~oved from the mould and
packaged in a paper or foil wrap, or an at least partly
transparent paper, foil, cellulose fil~ or plastics film
wrap,to give an ice confection having an attractive beadletted
appearance and interesting novel texture and mouth-feel
as perceived by the consumer. In this Example, both the
beadlet component and the interstitial component of the
confection contain ice when the produce is frozen at
conventional ice confection freezing temperature. Both
phases are bitable and relatively soft ea-ting It is clear
that interesting variation can be achieved by altering the
solids content of one or both components, and the gel
strength of the beadlets.
Example 3
This Exa~ple relates to another fruit-flavoured
beadletted ice confection containing a core of ice crea~.
It is ~ade by a procedure si~ilar to that of Exa~ple 2, with
the following ~odifications. The alginate-containing mix
had instead -the following for~ulation:
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Sodiu~ alginate (Manucol DM) ~Trade Mar~) 0.30,b
Low-~ethoxy pectin 0.3~0
Sucrose 24.00,h
~alic acid. 0.4//o
S Trisodiu~ citrate o.lo,b
Colour and raspberry flavour to taste
Deicnised water to 100. 0,~0
~he gel beadlets ~ada fro~ this ~ix by a procedure si~ilar
to that of Exa~ple 1 were used to form the outer layer of
a co~posite ice confection as in Exa~ple 2 but using as
interstitial phase the following fruit sauce for~ulation:
raspberry puree 60%; sucrose 17.95%; ~alic acid lo,h;
sodiu~ citrate 0.25%; 0.5% Manucol DM sodiu~ alginate;
colour and flavour to taste, and water to 100%.
It is found that the beadlets of this Exa~ple are
intrinsically fruitier in taste than those of E~a~ple 2
but deionised water is needed in their for~ation.
In the final ice con~ection product ~ade according to
tbis Exa~ple 7 the inner core of ice crea~ can if desired
be left visible around the stick. The outer layer o~
beadlets and interstitial phase can if desired be about one
beadlet thick overall, and two beadlets thick at the end
opposite the stick.
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