Genetic Profile and Toxigenic Potential of Bacillus cereus Isolates from a Norwegian Ice Cream Production Plant.

Members of the B. cereus group are spore-forming organisms commonly associated with spoilage of milk and dairy products. We have determined the genetic identity and growth characteristics of 57 B. cereus isolates collected from a Norwegian ice cream production plant. Our findings revealed persistence of B. cereus spp. strains for up to 19 months, suggesting the plant's susceptibility to long-term colonization. One of the mesophilic isolates, NVH-YM303, carried a complete cereulide synthetase operon. To assess the potential food poisoning risk associated with the presence of cereulide-producing strains in the production line, we examined the production of cereulide in ice cream and milk at different temperatures by NVH-YM303 and by the emetic psychrotrophic B. weihenstephanensis strain BtB2-4. Our findings revealed that NVH-YM303 produced higher levels of cereulide in ice cream as compared to milk. Furthermore, it was observed that NVH-YM303 produced more cereulide in ice cream at 25 °C compared to 15 °C. Conversely, BtB2-4 produced more cereulide in ice cream at 15 °C than at 25 °C. The results obtained in this study contribute to knowledge important for risk assessment of the potential hazards posed by the presence of B. cereus within ice cream production facilities.

Consumer Acceptance of Novel Lucuma Fruit Ice Cream in the US Market.

This study explored the use of lucuma fruit powder in an ice cream formulation for the US market. Six ice cream prototypes were developed using five different lucuma fruit powder variants. A central location test was conducted with frequent ice cream consumers (n = 106) to assess acceptance, attribute intensity rating, ideal intensity levels, and purchase intent against a control sample with caramel flavor. The mean overall liking score for all lucuma ice creams was moderate. The overall, aroma, and flavor liking scores were significantly higher (p < 0.05) for lucuma ice cream samples, whereas the control sample was liked significantly more for texture. The Terrasoul variant of lucuma ice cream was the most liked among all samples, and the control was liked the least. Only the Terrasoul ice cream sample was successful in delivering significantly strong caramel, fruit, and sweet flavor levels; the other lucuma ice cream samples were more comparable to the control. The inclusion of lucuma powder increased powdery mouthfeel perception, negatively impacting texture liking. Consumers perceived all ice cream samples to be weak in flavor and fell short of delivering ideal levels. The US consumers had low-moderate food neophobia scores for lucuma fruit, with 57% showing interest in buying lucuma ice creams.

Bacterial cellulose infusion: A comprehensive investigation into textural, tribological and temporal sensory evaluation of ice creams.

The study examines how adding bacterial cellulose also referred to as Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast (SCOBY) to ice cream affects the textural, tribological, and sensory attributes, particularly texture and mouthfeel perception. Analytical assessments were performed on three types: SCOBY-added ice cream and two reference samples (control and guar gum-added ice creams). Evaluations included physicochemical properties, textural and tribological characteristics, and dynamic sensory mouthfeel using the temporal dominance of sensation (TDS) methodology. SCOBY ice cream showed higher probiotics content, lower pH, and higher acidity than reference samples. The addition of SCOBY increased hardness and altered the textural properties. TDS analysis highlighted distinct temporal dominance patterns, with guar gum ice cream presenting a pronounced mouth/residual coating pre-swallowing, while SCOBY and control ice cream exhibited a thin/fluid perception. The frictional factor at 37 °C was positively correlated with the melting rate, graininess, and thin/fluid perception while negatively correlated with firmness, smoothness and mouthfeel liking. Additionally, the mouthfeel liking was higher with firm, smooth and mouth/residual coating sensations and lower with grainy and thin/fluid perception. In summary, incorporating SCOBY in ice cream formulations can provide health benefits and meet consumer preferences for natural ingredients, while ensuring careful optimization of mouthfeel.

Using food to color food: photostability of canistel pulp and its application as a food dye.

The use of foods to color other foods (coloring food) should be considered in food production. In this study, freeze-dried canistel (Pouteria campechiana (Kunth) Baehni) pulp underwent a photostability test. A blue LED light with a maximum intensity of 420 nm was utilized to induce photodegradation of the pulp. After irradiation, the samples were analyzed using photoacoustic spectroscopy. Different concentrations (2%, 4%, and 6%) of the pulp were employed as coloring food in ice cream, and the ice cream was thoroughly characterized. Photoacoustic spectroscopy provided valuable insights into dehydrated canistel pulp, revealing two stages of photoreaction involving carotenoids (violaxanthin and ξ-carotene) and demonstrating photostability under visible LED irradiation. The ice cream made with natural food dye produce elevated levels of bioactive compounds and retained a stable color throughout storage. All ice creams exhibited thixotropy. Ice creams with higher pulp concentrations displayed greater resistance to shear stress and, in sensory tests, received the highest scores, attributed to their intense yellow color. Dehydrated canistel pulp holds significant potential for use as food coloring in the industry due to its photostability. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13197-024-05991-5.

Designing novel ice creams using nut oil emulsion gels based on blueberry pectin and CaCl2 as fat replacers: Insights from physicochemical and sensory properties.

This study aimed to utilize blueberry pectin and calcium chloride to design a gel network structure for loading nut oils (peanut and walnut oil, respectively). The optimization of emulsion gel preparation was conducted through orthogonal experiments, utilizing the oil-holding ratio and gel strength as critical indicators. The emulsion gel was applied to the ice cream production. It was revealed that the peroxide value of the nut oil emulsion gels was significantly lower than that of nut oils. Both nut oil emulsion gel ice creams exhibited higher expansion rates, lower melting rates, and decreased hardness than the nut oil ice creams. Notably, walnut oil emulsion gel ice cream demonstrated a melting rate similar to traditional butter-based ice cream. Emulsion gel ice cream has higher fat globule instability and viscosity. Overall, the comprehensive emulsion gel ice cream indicators were comparable to conventional butter ice cream and notably superior to peanut and walnut oil ice cream. Using emulsion gel as a fat substitute in ice cream was feasible. The implications of these results were significant for advancing the utilization of nut oil emulsion gel within the ice cream industry.

Pain to cold food ingestion following root canal therapy: where is the source?

Two cases of pain evoked by cold food ingestion, following root canal therapy, are presented. The source of pain was detected when cold application to the vestibular, periapical area corresponding to the teeth involved evoked strong pain of about 30-second durations. In the first case, the patient suffered from strong pain in the mandibular right area over the last 4 months. After successive root canal therapy of three mandibular right teeth, the spontaneous pain eased significantly, but strong pain evoked by cold food ingestion persisted. Cold application to the vestibular periapical area of teeth involved identified the source of pain, which was abolished by 80 mg/day of slow-release propranolol. In the second case, cold allodynia developed after root canal therapy. The root canal therapy was performed for prosthetic reasons with no prior pain. Pain could be duplicated by cold application to the vestibular area of the treated tooth. The patient preferred no treatment when the source of pain was explained. In both cases cold application did not produce any pain in other intraoral locations, including the contralateral vestibular area or the mid soft or hard palate. Pain mechanisms, neurovascular and neuropathic, which differ for each case are discussed.

Physicochemical property characterization, amino acid profiling and sensory evaluation of plant-based ice cream incorporated with soy, pea and milk proteins.

This study examined the effects of incorporating milk protein concentrate (MPC), pea or soy proteins isolates (PPI and SPI) on the physicochemical, sensorial properties, and amino acid composition of ice creams containing 7% protein, in comparison to dairy ice cream as a reference. As protein ingredients, PPI exhibited higher water and oil holding capacity but lower surface hydrophobicity than SPI and MPC. Viscosity of the mixes were proportional to the firmness of ice cream, and both were highest with use of PPI. MPC ice cream had most similar physical and sensory properties to reference. PPI and SPI ice cream mixes showed higher extent of fat coalescence than MPC and reference. PPI and SPI conferred structural stability to ice cream with lower melting rate and better shape retention, and ability to delay ice recrystallization during temperature flocculation as compared with SMP and MPC. Confocal laser scanning microscope images indicated that higher extent of protein aggregation and more air cells were found in PPI ice cream. Sensory and amino acid profile results revealed that PPI and SPI ice creams were inferior in taste, texture, and essential amino acids like methionine. This study offers insights for the development of high protein frozen desserts.

Innovation: ice cream in the recovery room rules out chylothorax after thoracic lymphadenectomy and affords same-day chest tube removal.

Objectives: Early removal of chest tubes reduces pain and morbidity. This study aimed to remove chest tubes immediately after robotic pulmonary resection with complete thoracic lymphadenectomy by administering ice cream to rule out chylothorax. Methods: This quality improvement study utilized prospectively gathered data from one thoracic surgeon. Patients were given 3.6 fl oz of ice cream in the recovery room within 1 h after their operation. Chest tubes were removed within 4 h if there was no chylous drainage and air leak on the digital drainage system. Results: From January 2022 to August 2023, 343 patients underwent robotic pulmonary resection with complete thoracic lymphadenectomy. The median time to ingest the ice cream was 1.5 h after skin closure. The incidence of chylothorax was 0.87% (3/343). Two patients were diagnosed with chylothorax after consuming ice cream within 4 h of surgery. One patient, whose chest tube remained in place due to an air leak, had a chylothorax diagnosed on postoperative day 1 (POD1). All three patients were discharged home on POD1 with their chest tubes in place, adhering to a no-fat, medium-chain triglyceride diet. All chylothoraces resolved within 6 days. None of the remaining patients developed chylothorax postoperatively with a minimum follow-up period of 90 days. Conclusions: Providing ice cream to patients after pulmonary resection and complete thoracic lymphadenectomy is an effective and reliable technique to rule out chylothorax early in the postoperative period and facilitates early chest tube removal. Further studies are needed to ensure that this simple, inexpensive test is reproducible.

Exploring the potential utilization of copigmented barberry anthocyanins in ice cream: Focusing on foaming aspects, and melting attributes.

Anthocyanins have emerged as promising substitutes for synthetic dyes owing to their color profiles, and potential health-boosting properties. The primary aim of this investigation was to assess the impact of copigmented, and un-copigmented barberry anthocyanins, employed at different concentrations (1, 3, and 5% w/w) as colorants in ice cream. The secondary goal was to investigate the influence of barberry anthocyanins on ice cream foaming characteristics, and melting point. The samples' physicochemical, textural, and organoleptic characteristics, total phenolic, and anthocyanin content, and antioxidant activity were determined. By increasing barberry extract concentrations in the samples, the pH levels (5.81) decreased, and overrun increased(30.0 ± 1.15%), respectively. Furthermore, the textural analysis showed that increasing barberry anthocyanins within the ice cream formulation correlated with an increase in sample hardness (113.72 ± 1.34 N). The control sample (vanilla ice cream) had the highest value of melting rate (1.09 ± 0.03 g/min), whereas the specimen containing 5% of copigmented barberry anthocyanins exhibited the lowest rate of melting (0.50 ± 0.01 g/min). The start time of melting of control sample was 1098 s and by increasing the concentration of copigmented barberry anthocyanins from 1 to 5%, this time increased from 1405.2 s to 1831.2 s (P < 0.05). In conclusion, barberry anthocyanins reduced the melting rate as a crucial attribute for ice cream.

Chasing the chill: Unveiling the dynamic flavors and textures of ice cream formulations.

In this study, nine commercial ice creams and four prototypes were assessed. For the sensory analysis, quantitative descriptive analysis (QDA), and temporal dominance of sensations (TDS) methodology were used. According to the QDA results, full-composition ice cream showed significantly higher differences (p < .05) in terms such as vanilla and sweet flavors, brightness, creamy texture and appearance, and viscosity, exhibiting longer melting times. Functional ice creams showed significantly higher differences (p < .05) in terms like viscosity, creamy texture, and appearance. On the other hand, agave fructans in prototype ice creams were found to be able to reduce fat, but not fat and sugar simultaneously, showing a significant decrease (p < .05) in terms such as hardness, crystallized texture, gummy texture, and porosity. Based on the PCA results, the analysis accounted for 75.28% of data variability. Full-composition ice creams and one functional ice cream were related to terms such as viscosity, fatty sensation, creamy texture and appearance, dense, gummy, among others. The rest of the commercial ice creams were related to vanilla and caramel flavor and smell, artificial aftertaste, aerated, porosity, among others. Prototype ice creams were related to hard texture, salty and milk flavor, and crystallized texture. Based on the results of the TDS method, all formulations were found to be significantly dominant (5%) in terms such as vanilla flavor and sweet flavor at the beginning of the test. Formulations containing butyric fat and/or vegetable fat, or agave fructans were significantly dominant (5%) in fatty sensation.

Probiotic-Enriched Ice Cream with Fermented White Kidney Bean Homogenate: Survival, Antioxidant Activity, and Potential for Future Health Benefits.

This study investigated a novel probiotic-enriched ice cream containing fermented white kidney bean homogenate to explore its potential health benefits in the future. We assessed the viability of various probiotic strains during ice cream production and storage, focusing on their potential to reach the gut, and evaluated overall antioxidant activity using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2'-Azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), and total polyphenol content (TPC) assays. The incorporation of fermented white bean homogenate significantly increased antioxidant capacity compared to the control group. Notably, strains such as Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GG and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 299v demonstrated the most pronounced effects on antioxidant activity, suggesting potential synergistic benefits between probiotics and bioactive compounds in fermented white beans. Although all probiotic strains experienced decreased viability during storage, certain strains, particularly L. plantarum 299v and Lacticaseibacillus casei DN-114001, showed promising survival rates even after 6 months. These results suggest the potential for developing probiotic ice cream containing viable bacteria capable of reaching the gut and contributing to a healthy gut microbiota. Overall, this study highlights the potential of probiotic-enriched ice cream with fermented white kidney bean homogenate to combine the established benefits of probiotics for gut health with the enjoyment of consuming ice cream.

Experience and the nutritional relevance of protein-enriched ice cream in patients with heart failure - A pilot study.

Background: Patients with heart failure have a greater risk of malnutrition and need an enhanced intake of nutrients. Purpose: The purpose of the study was to describe how patients admitted to a cardiac intensive care unit with heart failure, experience the intake of a protein-enriched ice cream, served as an in-between meal, and to explore this diet supplement's nutritional relevance in these patients. Method: In the pilot study, interviews, and collection of diaries with both a qualitative and quantitative approach were used. Inductive, qualitative content analysis was performed of the interviews while data from the diaries were analysed with descriptive analysis. Results: The enriched ice cream supplement was perceived as appealing and tasty despite the patients illness and malaise. Different opinions about consistency were experienced according to the patients' individual condition and they made further flavour suggestions. The patients ingested between 500 and 2550 ml each of the ice cream during the study period. Conclusion: The patients' experiences can be valuable in order to improve the in-between meal/food snack thus improving the nutritional status of weak patients lacking appetite. The method used requires to be further developed to assess nutritional relevance for patients when consuming a protein-enriched ice cream.

Study of alginate-encapsulated phycoerythrin in promoting the biological activity of synbiotic ice cream with Lactobacillus casei.

This study examines the effect of phycoerythrin (PE) from a cyanobacterial Nostoc strain encapsulated with alginate as a potential prebiotic to produce synbiotic ice cream products with Lactobacillus casei. It was found that the addition of the encapsulated PE affected, mostly favourably, the physicochemical properties, antioxidant activity, probiotic survival, volatile compound contents, and sensory acceptability of the synbiotic ice cream samples before and after aging at the freezing periods of one day to eight weeks. Thus, it confirms the prebiotic potential of PE for synbiotic ice creams with L. casei.

Reformulating ice cream to improve postprandial glucose response: an opportunity for industry to create shared value.

Ultra-processed foods are associated with metabolic dysfunction and driving chronic diseases. The Metabolic Matrix is a tool used to reformulate products to promote positive metabolic outcomes. The Kuwait Danish Dairy Company (KDD) has used this tool to develop a no-added-sugar products. This clinical trial tested the glycaemic response of a no-added-sugar ice cream in individuals with type 2 diabetes. The hypothesis was that the no-added-sugar ice cream would have a substantially better postprandial glycemic response than conventional ice cream in patients with type 2 diabetes. In this randomized cross over designed study, postprandial glycemic response was measured after 300 grams of no-added-sugar ice cream or normal ice cream was consumed. Despite similar composition and palatability, the postprandial responses were better with the no-added sugar ice cream, albeit that the natural sugar in the product still resulted in a marked postprandial glycaemic response. This finding emphasizes the necessity of clearly communicating to both patients and healthcare professionals that "no-added-sugar" does not equate to "zero total sugar." The path to improved metabolic health involves not only product improvement but also transparent messaging to enable informed dietary choices. Reformulation resulting in palatable no-added sugar products provides an opportunity for companies to Create Shared Value by addressing the important social problems such as obesity and type 2 diabetes, by creating scalable solutions, that are profitable. Clinical trial registration:ClinicalTrials.gov, identifiers NCT06135935.

Ice cream cone fortified with spent coffee ground: Chemical composition, quality and sensory characteristics, and in vitro starch digestibility.

The objective of the study was to evaluate the effect of the incorporation of spent coffee grounds in ice cream cones on the quality, sensory characteristics, and in vitro starch digestibility. The incorporation of spent coffee grounds in ice cream cones increased the content of dietary fiber and phenolic compounds. However, the quality and texture characteristics decreased with the addition of spent coffee grounds. The in vitro starch digestibility decreased significantly, resulting in a significant increase in resistant starch content. Fitting starch digestibility using the LOS-plot model revealed the presence of two sequential first-order digestion rates. Sensory analysis revealed that the panelists well accepted ice cream cones fortified with spent coffee grounds. The results suggest that spent coffee grounds are a potential ingredient for the formulation of food matrices with reduced starch digestibility, which contributes to the prevention of chronic degenerative diseases such as type II diabetes.

Imaging the 3D microstructural changes of ice cream during meltdown.

Ice cream is a multiphase frozen dessert that often melts during distribution and upon consumption. The meltdown phenomenon is one of the concerns in the quality preservation of ice cream for consumer convenience in the frozen food industry. In this context, X-ray tomography was used to visualise and quantify 3D ice crystal and air bubble evolution during the meltdown of ice cream. Two ice cream products, namely I and II, with varying air volume fractions, were evaluated for this study. The results indicated a small mean diameter of 66.43 ± 2.07 µm at 0 min and decreased to 45.74 ± 3.92 µm during 10 min of the meltdown of ice cream II. A large mean diameter of ice crystals of 75.02 ± 3.14 µm was found in ice cream I, at 0 min that decreased significantly (p < 0.05) to 54.30 ± 2.63 µm during 10 min of the meltdown. The air bubbles were also observed to decrease in mean diameter. The 3D datasets on the ice crystals and air bubbles described in this work provide more insight into the 3D microstructural evolution during the meltdown and are useful in controlling the sensory quality attributes of ice cream desserts.

Development and Characterization of New Plant-Based Ice Cream Assortments Using Oleogels as Fat Source.

The objective of this study was to develop candelilla wax oleogels with hemp seed oil and olive oil and use them as a fat source in the development of new plant-based ice cream assortments. Oleogels were structured with 3 and 9% candelilla wax and characterized by oil-binding capacity, peroxide value and color parameters. The oil-binding capacities of 9% wax oleogels were significantly higher than those of 3% wax oleogels, while peroxide values of oleogels decrease with increasing wax dosage. All oleogel samples are yellow-green due to the pigments present in the oils and candelilla wax. Physicochemical (pH, titratable acidity, soluble solids, fat, protein) and rheological (viscosity and viscoelastic modulus) parameters of plant-based ice cream mixes with oleogels were determined. Also, sensory attributes and texture parameters were investigated. The results showed that titratable acidity and fat content of plant-based ice cream samples increased with increasing wax percentage, while pH, soluble solids and protein values are more influenced by the type of plant milk used. The plant-based ice cream sample with spelt milk, hemp oil and 9% candelilla wax received the highest overall acceptability score. The hardness of the plant-based ice cream samples increased as the percentage of candelilla wax added increased.

Metabolomics analysis of potential functional metabolites in synbiotic ice cream made with probiotic Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. boulardii CNCM I-745 and prebiotic inulin.

Probiotic lactic acid bacteria have been widely studied, but much less was focused on probiotic yeasts in food systems. In this study, probiotic Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. boulardii CNCM I-745 was employed to prepare ice cream added with and without inulin (1%, w/v). Metabolomics analysis on the effect of inulin showed 84 and 147 differentially expressed metabolites identified in the ice cream samples from day 1 and day 30 of storage (-18 °C), respectively. Various potential functional metabolites were found, including citric acid, ornithine, D-glucuronic acid, sennoside A, stachyose, maltotetraose, maltopentaose, maltohexaose, maltoheptaose, cis-aconitic acid, gamma-aminobutyric acid, L-threonine, L-glutamic acid, tryptophan, benzoic acid, and trehalose. Higher expression of these metabolites suggested their possible roles through relevant metabolic pathways in improving survivability of the probiotic yeast and functionality of ice cream. This study provides further understanding on the metabolic characteristics of probiotic yeast that potentially affect the functionality of ice cream.

Fabricating Pea Protein Micro-Gel-Stabilized Pickering Emulsion as Saturated Fat Replacement in Ice Cream.

Unsaturated fat replacement should be used to reduce the use of saturated fat and trans fatty acids in the diet. In this study, pea protein micro-gels (PPMs) with different structures were prepared by microparticulation at pH 4.0-7.0 and named as PPM (pH 4.0), PPM (pH 4.5), PPM (pH 5.0), PPM (pH 5.5), PPM (pH 6.0), PPM (pH 6.5), and PPM (pH 7.0). Pea protein was used as a control to evaluate the structure and interfacial properties of PPMs by particle size distribution, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), free sulfhydryl group content, and emulsifying property. PPM (pH 7.0) was suitable for application in O/W emulsion stabilization because of its proper particle size, more flexible structure, high emulsifying activity index (EAI) and emulsifying stability index (ESI). The Pickering emulsion stabilized by PPM (pH 7.0) had a uniform oil droplet distribution and similar rheological properties to cream, so it can be used as a saturated fat replacement in the manufacture of ice cream. Saturated fat was partially replaced at different levels of 0%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, and 100%, which were respectively named as PR0, PR20, PR40, PR60, PR80, and PR100. The rheological properties, physicochemical indexes, and sensory properties of low-saturated fat ice cream show that PPM (pH 7.0)-stabilized emulsion can be used to substitute 60% cream to manufacture low-saturated fat ice cream that has high structural stability and similar melting properties, overrun, and sensory properties to PR0. The article shows that it is feasible to prepare low-saturated fat ice cream with PPM (pH 7.0)-stabilized Pickering emulsion, which can not only maintain the fatty acid profile of the corn oil used, but also possess a solid-like structure. Its application is of positive significance for the development of nutritious and healthy foods and the reduction of chronic disease incidence.

The effects of blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L.) and jujube fruit (Ziziphus jujube) on physicochemical, functional, and sensorial properties, and probiotic (Lactobacillus acidophilusDSM 20079) viability of probiotic ice cream.

The effects of blueberry (BB) and jujube fruit (JF) on the quality parameters, functional, probiotic (Lactobacillus acidophilus DSM 20079) viability, and sensorial properties of probiotic ice cream were investigated. No statistical differences were discovered regarding titratable acidity and L. acidophilus DSM 20079 counts between all samples. However, the ice creams preserved the survivability of probiotic bacteria during the storage period. The probiotic ice creams had counts of viable L. acidophilus DSM 20079 ranging from 8.42 to 8.80 log CFU/g which met the minimum required to achieve probiotic effects after 60 days of storage. Probiotic ice cream with BB or JF had significantly lower L* values than the control, and the BB addition caused the greatest decrease. The addition of both fruits clearly enhanced the total phenolic content and antioxidative activity in ice cream. The incorporation of BB or JF into the ice creams did not statistically affect the overrun value, while the addition of both fruits dramatically affected the first dripping time and increased hardness. Overall, sensory attributes were not significantly altered by the fortification of either fruit relative to the control, so these fruits can be added at higher concentrations to ice cream formulations for further studies.