Spoonable smoothie and methods of production thereof

Abstract

Disclosed is a spoonable smoothie with fibrous, non-chalky, non-gritty texture. The spoonable smoothie has more than 34% by weight of a combination of fruit and vegetable sources, a texturant, a protein source, a vitamin source, and a mineral source. In some embodiments, the spoonable smoothie may be produced via high-pressure processing or thermal processing. In some embodiments in which high-pressure processing is employed, acid whey may be used to help obtain the non-chalky, non-gritty texture. In other embodiments in which thermal processing is employed, order of ingredients may be used to help obtain the non-chalky, non-gritty texture. In those thermally processed embodiments, the texturant and the protein source may be separately hydrated to control the competition for water absorption between the texturant and the protein source.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A spoonable smoothie comprising:
 between about 34% and about 45% by weight of a combination of fruit and vegetable sources, based on a total weight of the spoonable smoothie;   a texturant including at least one of pectin, rice flour, tapioca flour, locust bean gum, or a combination thereof;   a protein source; and   one or more of a vitamin source and a mineral source.   
     
     
         2 . The spoonable smoothie of  claim 1 , wherein the protein source comprises whey protein isolate. 
     
     
         3 . The spoonable smoothie of  claim 1 , wherein the protein source comprises acid whey. 
     
     
         4 . The spoonable smoothie of  claim 1 , wherein the spoonable smoothie includes the mineral source and the mineral source comprises calcium citrate. 
     
     
         5 . The spoonable smoothie of  claim 1 , wherein the spoonable smoothie has a degree of Brix between about 14 and about 18. 
     
     
         6 . The spoonable smoothie of  claim 1 , wherein a zero shear viscosity of the spoonable smoothie is between about 4500 Pa·s and about 98,000 Pa·s when the spoonable smoothie is submitted to a flow ramp test on a rheometer at a constant temperature of 5° C. 
     
     
         7 . The spoonable smoothie of  claim 1 , wherein a yield stress of the spoonable smoothie is between about 15 Pa and about 1620 Pa when the spoonable smoothie is submitted to flow ramp test on a rheometer at a constant temperature of 5° C. 
     
     
         8 . The spoonable smoothie of  claim 1 , wherein a firmness of the spoonable smoothie is between about 115 Pa and about 1,790 Pa as when the spoonable smoothie is submitted to a frequency sweep test on a rheometer at a constant temperature of 5° C. 
     
     
         9 . The spoonable smoothie of  claim 1 , wherein a refrigerated shelf life of the spoonable smoothie is at least about 45 days. 
     
     
         10 . A method of producing a spoonable smoothie comprising:
 hydrating a protein source to form a first mixture;   separately hydrating a pectin, an amount of a sweetener, and an amount of a texturant to form a second mixture;   separately shearing a fruit source and a vegetable source;   cold mixing and shearing together the second mixture and the sheared fruit source and vegetable sources to form a third mixture;   adding the first mixture to the third mixture and cold mixing and shearing together to form a final mixture;   heating the final mixture in a first heat exchanger;   cooling the final mixture in a second heat exchanger;   cold filling the final mixture into a package; and   sealing the package.   
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the protein source comprises whey protein isolate. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the texturant comprises at least one of locust bean gum, tapioca flour, and rice flour. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 10 , further comprising adding a mineral source to the first mixture. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein the mineral source comprises calcium citrate. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 10 , further comprising adding a vitamin source to the third mixture. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the vitamin source comprises thiamine hydrochloride. 
     
     
         17 . A spoonable smoothie comprising:
 between about 15% and about 25% by weight of a dairy component, based on a total weight of the spoonable smoothie;   more than 20% by weight of a combination of fruit and vegetable sources, based on the total weight of the spoonable smoothie;   a texturant including at least one of pectin, rice flour, tapioca flour, and locust bean gum; and   a protein source.   
     
     
         18 . The spoonable smoothie of  claim 17 , further comprising one or more of a vitamin source and a mineral source.