Posted on 07/02/2008 7:52:25 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
How do you keep the ice out of ice cream? Antifreeze.
A UW-Madison scientist has discovered an edible antifreeze that can keep ice crystals from forming inside ice cream containers, a real turnoff to late night snackers who just want their fix of Rocky Road without digging through a layer of frost.
According to the UW-Madison news service, food science professor Srinivasan Damodaran mixed gelatin with papain, a natural enzyme from fruit that cuts proteins into smaller pieces. When blended into ice cream, the antifreeze works to keep ice cream smooth.
Frozen foods get crystallized because of temperature fluctuations, such as when the freezer door is opened and closed repeatedly or the freezer defrosts.
Food giant Unilever developed an antifreeze protein from fish that's used in ice cream products, but the additive is still pending approval in Europe, and consumer sentiment against genetic engineering might prevent the Unilever product from being widely accepted, the news report said.
Damodaran said a gelatin-based antifreeze is from animal collagen, the same protein used to make gelatin desserts such as Jell-O.
"A lot of people study antifreeze proteins because they have so much technological value," Damodaran said in the news release, since the gelatin-based antifreeze can be used in a wide variety of frozen food, including meat.
"So much texture is lost to ice crystal damage in meat tissues," he said.
"We used ice cream as the model to show this antifreeze works," Damodaran said. "Now it's up to the companies, manufacturers and consumers to decide if they want to have it in their products."
A true late-night snacker would never let the ice cream sit long enough in the freezer to go through that many frost cycles. If there are ice crystals in your ice cream, you’re slacking!!!
Douse the ice cream with chocolate syrup, a banana, nuts and whipped cream....and you won’t even care about the damn crystals.
Ain’t Science wunnerful!
Great idea, horrible name. Don’t call it edible antifreeze. Call it something that sounds edible. Antifreeze sounds like poison.
Even crystal retardant is better.
Probably won’t happen. People will stop tossing the 1/2 full carton and going out and buying a new one.
Doesn’t Cool Whip already have anti-freeze in it?
Or just skip the ice cream and eat that stuff.
We had a vanilla ice cream cone at McDonald’s yesterday, and it was the best I’ve had anywhere. It was more like homemade than any bought ice-cream I’ve ever had. Hope there wasn’t any of this anitfreeze in it!
If they use anti-freeze in icecream, maybe this can of Prestone tastes good.
Once in a great while I’ll have a chocolate “Frosty” from Wendy’s. That’s my guilty little sin...
Husband is one of those skinny guys with the metabolism of a hummingbird, so ice cream is part of his diet every day.
I hate that about him, LOL!
I’m a purist. I like a few scoops of vanilla with hot fudge on top. No nuts, no whipped topping, no cherry. I LOVE that feeling of cold ice cream and hot fudge in my mouth. :)
You keep ice cream in the freezer? When I buy it, it never lasts long enough to make it there.
America once again proves it is tops in the world in snack food technology.
That is what I was thinking! My ice cream would be long gone before any ice crystals had a chance to form.
Ethanol as in Virginia Gentleman or Jameson does the same thing.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.