Patent ID: 7029714
Filing Date: 2006-04-18
Classification: A23L

Abstract:
1. A method for cold forming food bars containing large fragile particles of a crisp baked cookie product comprising: (1) breaking a crisp cookie basecake into pieces of a preselected size; (2) mixing the basecake pieces in a mixer with ingredients comprising sugar, filler fat, and coating fat, wherein the sugar is present in an amount ranging from 25%–70% by weight of the cookie basecake, the filler fat is present in an amount ranging from 15%–35% by weight of the cookie basecake, and the coating fat is present in an amount ranging from about 5%–20% by weight of the cookie basecake; (3) maintaining the temperature of the mixer at a temperature sufficient to ensure that the fat ingredients do not stick to the surface of the mixer; (4) mixing the ingredients at a speed such that a majority of the cookie basecake particles of the preselected size will remain intact; (5) feeding the mixed ingredients into a hopper and subsequently forming the mixed ingredients into a slab using a series of heated compression rolls, which rolls press the mixed ingredients into a progressively thinner slab while minimizing breakage of the crisp baked cookie pieces, and wherein the heat of the rolls is sufficient to prevent adhesion of the fat ingredients on the rolls; (6) laying the compressed slab of ingredients onto a conveyor belt which feeds the slab through heated slitter knives or a heated grooved roll positioned to slice or form the slab into ropes of a desired width and height; (7) separating the ropes on a conveyor; (8) cutting the ropes into a desired product length; (9) cooling the product to ambient temperature, enrobing the individual pieces in chocolate or another coating compound; and (10) packaging the enrobed product in containers suitable for retail sale.