• Dietary fiber with a clean-label, functional nutritional profile can be a genuine fat substitute in low-calorie ice cream, according to new research.
The study also suggested that combining multiple types of fiber can bring a multitude of sensory and physiological benefits, with the potential to elevate the category of low-calorie ice cream to near-fat levels.
Dietary fiber promotes gut health and immunity and is mainly found in plants such as fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains. In ice cream, dietary fibers are used as fat substitutes, but their effects on the sensory profile of ice cream have been less well documented.
Dietary fiber also has functional benefits, making it a sought-after ingredient in food products for health-conscious consumers. Recently, nutritional research has found that the Western diet is associated with a lower intake of dietary fiber and an increased risk of chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes and cancer. In the US, for example, low dietary fiber intake is a public health problem.
With health and wellness becoming a topic of major importance to the food and beverage industry in recent years, the potential for low-calorie ice cream is growing steadily.
Good taste and low calorie
But manufacturers often face challenges in creating low-fat options that taste as good as full-fat options on the market. Achieving the right consistency with minimal fat content may require the use of artificial emulsifiers, which would compromise clean label claims.
Italian scientists from the University of Verona and the Free University of Bolzano-Bozen investigated how adding dietary fiber – specifically inulin, acacia, oat and apple – to low-fat vanilla ice cream affected the ice cream's viscosity, freezing point, flavour and colour.
A test group consisting of 12 people, men and women aged between 24 and 49, participated in the evaluation of the sensory properties, who classified the ice cream according to 10 factors – color, opacity, spoon consistency, creaminess, texture, cold sensation, gritty character, melting speed, sweetness and flavor.
The results showed that low-fat ice cream made with inulin was "entirely comparable" with wholemeal ice cream sensory wise, what makes this ingredient "a real potential fat substitute in ice cream production", according to the authors of the study.
Inulin - in the attention of researchers
inulin is a prebiotic fiber that is most often extracted from chicory, but is also found in agave, artichokes, Jerusalem artichokes, bananas, garlic, asparagus, onions, wheat, barley. In the nutritional and supplement space, it is considered a low-fat, low-calorie source of plant-based fiber that has similar gut health benefits to other dietary fibers, such as improving digestive health, lowering blood sugar, reducing cancer risk, and more. Its flavor is neutral to slightly sweet and has excellent water solubility.
The study found that both the inulin-enriched and acacia-enriched ice cream batches were almost indistinguishable from whole-wheat ice cream in terms of color, but the oat- and apple-enriched samples were significantly different. The latter two were also described as stronger and cooler by survey participants, while the acacia-fortified sample was perceived as less strong and cooler compared to the whole sample.
The batch prepared with inulin was also softer and began to melt sooner than the whole version, although the inulin-enriched ice cream, due to its solubility, was the least prone to ice crystal formation even in comparison with wholemeal ice cream.
Encouraging perspectives
The findings of the study by Italian researchers suggest that the correct use of dietary fiber could lead to a high-quality, low-calorie ice cream without resorting to artificial ingredients, while allowing manufacturers to tout the product's health benefits on the packaging.
"Looking ahead, the outlook is encouraging", the authors concluded. “Further research could investigate optimizing fiber combinations to perfectly balance health benefits and sensory pleasure. Understanding the dynamics of fiber interactions and their impact on the freezing and thawing process opens up avenues for innovation, paving the way for a new era of healthy frozen desserts.”
Article Source: Dietary fibers effects on physical, thermal, and sensory properties of low-fat ice cream (Effects of dietary fiber on the physical, thermal and sensory properties of low-fat ice cream). Author: A: Roberta Tolve, Matteo Zanoni, Giovanna Ferrentino, Rodrigo Gonzalez-Ortega, Lucia Sportiello, Matteo Scampicchio, Fabio Favati.
Article written by Gabriela Dan, Editor of Arta Albă
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