Ice Cream Novelties

The term ‘novelty’ means something unique. As it related to ice cream, we mean any single-serve portion-controlled product. Worldwide, especially in Europe, ice cream novelties enjoy an even bigger market. Every shape size, and flavour are being offered : from ice cream and frozen yoghurt to sorbets and non fat products.

Methods of Preparation

Ice cream novelties are prepared either on a brine system or through an extrusion system. Using the brine system, semi-frozen ice cream is poured into molds that are placed inside a brine tank to freeze the product at -20 F. The extrusion method enables a manufacturer to produce unusual types of novelties that are impossible to produce on a brine system.

Using the extrusion method, the ice cream must be frozen to certain stiffness so that it retains its form between the time it is extruded until it enters a hardening tunnel.The ice cream is drawn from the continuous freezer at 20-22 F. The external contour of the slice can be almost of any desired shape of the extrusion nozzle. Complex extrusions utilizing more than one flavour or colour can be produced from multiflavour extrusion nozzles supplied by more than one continuous freezer barrel. By placing different extrusion devises inside each other, faces with eyes, noses and mouths can be formed, as well as other intricate designs.

Semisolid ice cream is drawn either vertically or horizontally. As the stiff extruded ice cream flows through the extrusion nozzle, portions of appropriate size are cut off by an electrically heated wire. In vertical extrusion, the flat portion of ice cream falls precisely onto a continuous row of stainless steel supporting plates fastened to a conveyor chain which carries the portions into the hardening tunnel for rapid freezing.The temperature in the hardening tunnel is usually in the range -45 F to -50 F. A 10% ice cream butter fat mix with 85-100% overrun is most commonly used.

i. Chocolate Coatings

More than 1/3rd of all ice cream novelties produced have some kind of exterior chocolate coating. Chocolate bars consist of vanilla ice cream stick which has been dipped in chocolate coating. The composition of chocolate coating can be the following (on weight basis):

Chocolate mass : 65-70 parts

Coconut oil : 27-32 parts

Cocoa butter: 1-1.5 parts

Dextrose : 1-1.5 parts

Lecithin : 0.3 – 0.4 parts

Refined deodorized coconut oil is added as a thinner, to increase the coating ability.The quantity of coconut oil will vary with the amount of chocolate mass. Higher amount of chocolate mass will require more quantity of coconut oil to avoid the excessive viscosity. Coconut oil is preferred since other oils have melting points which are too low for satisfactory use in coatings

ii. Ice Cream Cakes and Pies

These products can be made with freezer attachments designed for filling the cake or the pie plate. The cake plate is usually inserted into a cardboard package the support the form of cake during handling and delivery.Ice cream pies can be modified by using fruit flavoured gelatin, instead of the filling of preserved fruit or fruit ice cream which is ordinarily used. The pie crusts are about ½ inch thick and can be made by hardening vanilla ice cream between two plates. Closed or open pies can be made by this procedure. The pies and cakes can be decorated with whipped cream.

iii. Aufait Ice Cream

Aufait ice cream usually consists of a layer of fruit between two layers of ice cream.

iv. Other Novelties

Variegated or rainbow ice cream is made by mixing several different colours as the product is packaged. The variegated ice cream sundae, and other colourful products are packaged in transparent plastic container to have a good consumer appeal.

v. Cassata Ice Cream

This is essentially ice cream on a sponge cake. Hemispherical moulds of aluminum are used in making this ice cream. The outer layer is usually made of chocolate ice cream. Different varieties of ice cream constitute the middle and inner layer. The ice cream which constitutes the outer layer is first filled in the mould (outer mould) from the freezer. Another mould which is smaller in size, is inserted into the first mould and pressed so that the ice cream occupies the annular space between the two moulds.

This ice cream is hardened and the smaller mould is taken out.Ice cream is now filled again into the mould and another smaller mould of a different size is inserted and pressed lightly. This ice cream layer now forms the middle layer.The ice cream is hardened and the smaller mould taken out. Now a third variety of ice cream is filled into the outer mould and this ice cream constitutes the innermost layer. The mould is hardened and ice cream is taken out by dipping the mould in slightly warm water. Now the three layer ice cream is inverted on the sponge cake to which thin coating of whipped cream has been applied. The whipped cream serves the purpose of an adhesive between the cake and ice cream. This cassata ice cream is transferred to the cold store or hardening tunnel so that it becomes sufficiently hard for slicing into small pieces.

vi. Chocolate Jam Sticks

These are made by coating vanilla sticks with white chocolate and injecting the vanilla portion with a flavoured syrup of jam base which constitutes the innermost core.

A white chocolate coating is made by adding a thinner, cocoa butter and an emulsifier.Usually coconut oil is added as a thinner and lecithin is added as an emulsifier. An appropriate amount of colour (oil soluble) is added to the coating so that it is characteristic of the flavour added to the syrup or jam base. The total solids content of the syrup or jam base is so adjusted that its freezing point is much lower than the vanilla portion. But the syrup should have a sufficiently high viscosity so that it does not drip while eating. A syrup or jam base consists of sucrose, glucose syrup, citric acid, stabilizer, water, fruit pulp or concentrate and flavour.

vii. Quiescently Frozen Stick Items

These items include water ice frozen without overrun in a stick and cream on a stick which has ice cream centre with quiescently frozen outer section.

Water ice: The following formula is suggested for an ice base (on weight basis)

Water : 85-95 parts

Cane sugar : 20-23 parts

Glucose syrup : 5-7 parts

Stabilizer : 0.25-0.35 parts

Citric acid : 0.35-0.50 parts

Brix : 22-24

1. Weigh the stabilizer carefully and mix it with cane sugar in the ratio 1:3 parts by weight and add the required amount of water. Then agitate until it is fully suspended. It is necessary to maintain the temperature of the mixture between 60-70 C to fully dissolve the stabilizer.

2. Add the remaining amount of cane sugar and the required amount of glucose syrup, and agitate until it is fully dissolved. If necessary, homogenize at 100 bars to obtain homogenous mix.

3. Pasteurize at 80-85 C for 20-40 sec and cool the mixture; add citric acid,desired colour and flavour.

4. Ageing for 4 hours to impart a smooth body when gelatin or agar agar is used as a stabilizer.

Pour the mix into the mould and allow sufficient space in the pocket for expansion during freezing. Place the moulds in the brine tank at -25 to -30 C.

On partial freezing, insert the sticks into the mould pockets (the water ice should be just sufficiently firm and hard to hold the sticks).

Freezing us usually accomplished in 15-20 min. The frozen sticks are then taken out by immersing the mould in hot water for a few seconds.For a cream-on-a-stick item, a special filler attachment can be used so that in one operation, a freezer can be used to freeze the ice cream to 100% overrun for the centre, and a second freezer to freeze the ice or sherbet shell to 10-15% overrun for the shell.