Extruded foodstuff and method of making

1 . A method of making an extruded foodstuff comprising:

extruding a substrate through a die mold having metering holes located on a perimeter of said die mold, and compressing members located on said die mold, to form a character from said substrate;

compressing said substrate against said compressing members while said substrate is in said die mold, to dock said character being formed; and

removing said character from said die mold after said compressing said substrate in said die mold.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said removing said character comprises cutting said character from said die mold with a knife.

3 . The method of claim 2 , wherein said compressing said substrate further comprises;

placing a blade of a knife across an opening of said die mold following removal of a previous character; and

compressing said substrate against said blade while compressing said substrate against said compressing members.

4 . The method of claim 1 , and further comprising immersing said character in a solution.

5 . The method of claim 1 , and further comprising exposing said character to compressed air to remove moisture.

6 . The method of claim 1 , and further comprising baking said character.

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said substrate further comprises a wheat based foodstuff.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said substrate further comprises a corn based foodstuff.

9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said substrate further comprises a protein based foodstuff.

10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said extruding said substrate into said die mold further comprises extruding said substrate through at least one compressing member.

11 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said extruding said substrate into said die mold further comprises extruding said substrate adjacent to at least one compressing member.

12 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said extruding said substrate into a die mold further comprises extruding said substrate through at least one metering hole.

13 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said compressing member comprises a docking pin.

14 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said compressing said substrate further comprises extending said compressing members.

15 . The method of claim 4 , wherein said immersing said character in a solution further comprises retaining at least one character in said solution wherein said solution is heated to about 195° F.

16 . The method of claim 4 , wherein said solution comprises of at least one compound selected from the group consisting of NaOH, H 2 O 2 , NaCO 3 and/or Lye.

17 . The method of claim 6 , wherein baking said character further comprises exposing said character to at least three temperature zones.

18 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said character is substantially in the shape of an irregular “S.”

19 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said character is substantially in the shape of an irregular “C.”

20 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said character is substantially in the shape of an irregular hourglass.

21 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said character is substantially in the shape of a dog bone.

22 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said character is substantially in the shape of a triangle.

23 . An apparatus comprising:

a die have at least one die mold;

said die mold having an inside bottom surface and adjacent sidewalls;

first metering holes distributed about a perimeter of said die mold inside bottom surface; and

compressing members distributed about said die mold inside bottom surface.

24 . The apparatus of claim 23 , wherein said sidewalls are angled inward with respect to said inside bottom surface.

25 . The apparatus of claim 24 , wherein said angle is at least fifteen degrees from a plane perpendicular to said inside bottom surface.

26 . The apparatus of claim 24 , wherein said sidewalls further comprise at least a ⅛ inch land.

27 . The apparatus of claim 23 , wherein said first metering holes are at least 0.1875 inches in diameter.

28 . The apparatus of claim 23 , wherein said docking pins further comprise second metering holes.

29 . The apparatus of claim 28 , wherein said second metering holes are at least 0.1875 inches in diameter.

30 . The apparatus of claim 23 , wherein said compressing members are capable of extending and retracting substantially in a direction perpendicular to said inside bottom surface.

31 . The apparatus of claim 30 , wherein said compressing members move in response to a mechanical force.

32 . The apparatus of claim 30 , wherein said compressing members move in response to a hydraulic force.

33 . The apparatus of claim 30 , wherein said compressing members move in response to a pneumatic force.

34 . The apparatus of claim 23 , wherein said compressing members are slidably coupled to an inside bottom portion of said die mold.

35 . The apparatus of claim 18 wherein said compressing members are docking pins.