Method of producing a simplified cheese spread and products therefrom
Novel cheese products and methods of producing such cheese products that include a biogenerated exopolysaccharide (EPS) formed in-situ and separate from the main cream cheese fermentation. In some approaches, the methods and cheese products herein build a unique texture and/or microstructure that permits the cheese to utilize a simplified ingredient line while still mimicking the desired organoleptic characteristics of more-conventional, full-ingredient cheese.
1 . A method of producing a cream cheese substantially free of xanthan gum, the method comprising:
(a) preparing a cheese curd through fermentation of a dairy liquid;
(b) inoculating a whey protein concentrate-containing dairy liquid having a whey protein content, based on solids, of about 30 to about 70 percent with an exopolysaccharide-producing culture, the inoculated whey protein concentrate-containing dairy liquid being separate from the cheese curd fermentation of step (a);
(c) fermenting the inoculated whey protein concentrate-containing dairy liquid of step (b) for a time and temperature to produce an exopolysaccharide-containing dairy liquid; and
(d) blending the cheese curd obtained in step (a), one or more stabilizers that are substantially free of xanthan gum, and the exopolysaccharide-containing dairy liquid obtained in step (c) to form the cream cheese that is substantially free of xanthan gum, wherein the cream cheese exhibits a cohesiveness of about 30 to about 40 percent, calculated by dividing a firmness of the cream cheese measured in pascals at 37° C. by a firmness of the cream cheese measured in pascals at 25° C.
2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising separating a whey stream from the cheese curd of step (a) before combining the cheese curd with the exopolysaccharide-containing dairy liquid of step (c).
3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more stabilizers include one or more of locust bean gum, guar gum, carrageenan gum, and mixtures thereof.
4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the cream cheese is free of xanthan gum.
5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the cream cheese has a fat-to-protein ratio of about 4:1 to about 5:1.
6 . The method of claim 5 , wherein the dairy liquid of step (a) and the whey protein concentrate-containing dairy liquid of step (b) include amounts of protein and fat to achieve the fat-to-protein ratio of the cream cheese.
7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the cream cheese has about 20 to about 25 percent fat.
8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the exopolysaccharide-producing culture is Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus, Lactobacillus lactis ssp. cremoris, Lactobacillus helveticus, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus paracasei, Streptococcus thermophilus, Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis , or any combination thereof.
9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the blended combination of step (d) has a target yield stress of about 60 to about 90 pascals after about 40 to 80 minutes of mixing.
10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the whey protein concentrate-containing dairy liquid of step (b) is inoculated with about 0.0005 to about 0.2 weight percent of the exopolysaccharide producing culture.
11 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the cream cheese has a firmness of about 6,000 pascals to about 7,000 pascals at about 25° C., and a firmness of about 2,000 pascals to about 3,000 pascals at 37° C.
12 . A cream cheese substantially free of xanthan gum, the cream cheese made by a process comprising:
(a) preparing a cheese curd through fermentation of a dairy liquid;
(b) inoculating a whey protein concentrate-containing dairy liquid having a whey protein content, based on solids, of about 30 to about 70 percent with an exopolysaccharide-producing culture, the inoculated whey protein concentrate-containing dairy liquid being separate from the cheese curd fermentation of step (a);
(c) fermenting the inoculated whey protein concentrate-containing dairy liquid of step (b) for a time and temperature to produce a microbial derived exopolysaccharide-containing dairy liquid; and
(d) blending the cheese curd obtained in step (a) and the microbial derived exopolysaccharide-containing dairy liquid of step (c) with one or more stabilizers, wherein the one or more stabilizers are substantially free of xanthan gum, to form the cream cheese substantially free of xanthan gum, wherein the cream cheese exhibits a cohesiveness of about 30 to about 40 percent, calculated by dividing a firmness of the cream cheese measured in pascals at 37° C. by a firmness of the cream cheese measured in pascals at 25° C.
13 . The cream cheese of claim 12 , wherein the cream cheese exhibits a firmness profile at about 5° C. of about 50,000 to about 60,000 pascals, at about 25° C. of about 6,000 to about 7,000 pascals, and at 37° C. of about 2,000 to about 3,000 pascals.
14 . A cream cheese substantially free of xanthan gum, the cream cheese comprising a blended mixture of:
a cheese curd obtained in a first fermentation;
a fermented dairy liquid obtained in a second fermentation different from the first fermentation, wherein the fermented dairy liquid comprises an exopolysaccharide obtained in situ by fermenting a whey protein concentrate-containing dairy liquid having a whey protein content, based on solids, of about 30 to about 70 percent with an exopolysaccharide-generating culture; and
one or more stabilizers, the one or more stabilizers being substantially free of xanthan gum;
wherein the cream cheese includes about 20 to about 25 weight percent fat and about 2 to about 5 percent protein provided from casein and whey protein, has a fat-to-protein ratio of about 3:1 to about 5:1, and
the cream cheese exhibits a cohesiveness of about 30 to about 40 percent, calculated by dividing a firmness of the cream cheese measured in pascals at 37° C. by a firmness of the cream cheese measured in pascals at 25° C.
15 . The cream cheese of claim 14 , having a firmness of about 6,000 pascals to about 7,000 pascals at about 25° C. and a firmness of about 2,000 pascals to about 3,000 pascals at 37° C.
16 . The cream cheese of claim 14 , wherein the cream cheese has a bimodal particle size distribution.
17 . The cream cheese of claim 16 , wherein the bimodal particle size distribution has a mean particle size of about 1 to about 8 microns, a D10 particle size of about 0.2 to about 0.4 microns, a D50 particle size of about 0.5 to about 1.0 microns, and a D90 particle size of about 15 to about 30 microns.
18 . The cream cheese of claim 16 , wherein a first mode of the bimodal particle size distribution has a mean particle size of about 0.3 to about 3 microns and the second mode of the bimodal particle size distribution has a mean particle size of about 20 to about 90 microns.
19 . The cream cheese of claim 14 , wherein the protein forms a continuous protein phase with the exopolysaccharide dispersed as particulate contained within the continuous protein phase.
20 . The cream cheese of claim 14 , wherein the cream cheese includes about 0.02 to about 0.25 percent guar gum and about 0.05 to about 0.5 percent locust bean gum and no xanthan gum.
21 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the whey protein concentrate-containing dairy liquid has a whey protein content, based on solids, of at least about 45 percent.