Abstract:
A confectionery article is coated by a fatty material, and cereal flakes are positioned on and adhere to the fatty material coating, and additionally, the cereal flakes may be coated also with a fatty material coating. The article is prepared by applying a fatty material to a plurality of surfaces of the ice confectionery article, cooling the fatty-coated article to cool and solidify the fatty layer and keep the fatty-coated article cold during solidification of the fatty layer, and during cooling and prior to the fatty layer solidifying at its surface, so that the fatty layer surface is tacky, applying cereal flakes on the tacky fatty-coated surface to obtain a cooled article wherein the particulate flakes adhere to the fatty layer and separating particulate material which has not adhered to the fatty layer to obtain a cooled coated confectionery article product.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application is a continuation application of application Ser. No. 08/243,816 which was filed May 17, 1994 and which is now U.S. Pat. No. 5,798,131. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to production of articles of ice confectionery coated with a dry particulate material, more particularly in the form of flakes. 
     Articles of ice confectionery coated with solid articulate materials are generally made by machines comprising a conveyor belt for the individual ice portions, a feed hopper above the conveyor belt delivering a curtain of particulate material through which the portions pass and an element for recycling the particulate materials. The recycling element may be a bucket elevator or a trough-equipped drum through which the conveyor belt passes, as described for example in French Pat. No. 2 419 028 or U.S. Pat. No. 4,762,083. The use of moving parts to recycle the particles is not compatible with the coating of brittle particles of a certain size such as, for example, cereal flakes which have to be able to remain intact. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The problem addressed by the present invention was to coat an ice portion with a dry and brittle particulate material, more particularly cereal flakes, in such a way that the portion would be completely covered with particulate material over its upper surface and its sides and in such a way that the particulate material would retain its shape and its crispiness both in storage and on consumption. 
     The process according to the invention is characterized in that the frozen ice portion is precoated at least over its upper surface and its sides with a liquid fatty layer, in that the still soft fatty surface is uniformly covered with particulate material by surrounding the ice portion with a bed of solid particulate material, in that the articles to which the solid particulate material has adhered are separated from the free solid particulate material and in that the substantially intact particulate material is recycled so that it may be reused. 
     The present invention further includes a confectionery article produced by the process and also includes a machine for carrying out the process of the invention. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     In this disclosure, the expression “substantially intact”, as applied to the particulate material, means that most of the particulate material has remained intact and that any fines are eliminated, for example by means of a sieve, before the particulate material is reused. An embodiment of the process of the invention, therefor, is characterized in that before the particulate material is recycled, it is freed from any fines present by sieving. The operation by which the fines are separated is preferred because their presence on the surface of the fatty layer could prevent the particles from adhering which would result in an uneven coating. 
     One embodiment of the process according to the invention is characterized in that the application of the particulate material on the fatty-coated article is accompanied by cooling the fatty-coated article and wherein during the cooling, the particulate material is applied prior to the solidification of the fatty coating at its surface so that the surface is tacky so that the particulate material adheres to the fatty coating surface. 
     In one preferred embodiment, the portions and the particulate material are coated with a liquid fatty layer so as to cover the upper surface, the sides and the butt of the articles. 
     Thus, the particulate material is completely surrounded by a coating which acts as a moisture barrier both with respect to the ice cream and with respect to the surrounding environment. 
     The machine according to the invention is characterized in that it comprises: 
     a unit for precoating the upper surface and sides of the ices portions with a liquid fatty composition, a particle application unit comprising means for forming a bed of particles surrounding the upper surface and the sides of the ice portions coated with fatty composition and means for separating and recirculating excess particles. 
     In one preferred embodiment, the machine according to the invention additionally comprises a final coating unit for coating the ice portions with a liquid fatty composition. 
     The invention is illustrated by the following detailed description of one particular embodiment of the machine according to the invention and its mode of operation given by way of example in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES 
     FIG. 1 diagrammatically illustrates the machine. 
     FIG. 2 illustrates the particle application unit. 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective cross-sectional view of an article of ice confectionery obtained by one particular embodiment of the process according to the invention. 
    
    
     DETAIL DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES 
     The machine according to the invention, as illustrated in the drawing figures is an integral part of an installation comprising—upstream of the machine—a horizontally circulating conveyor belt onto which is extruded a continuous strand of ice confectionery which is frozen, for example in a freezing tunnel, and then cut into portions. The portions are then taken up by a conveyor belt circulating at a higher speed than the first conveyor belt so that the portions are spaced. The temperature of the portions is preferably −35° C. or lower. These operations are carried out conventionally and have not been illustrated. 
     Referring to FIG. 1, the precoating unit  1  comprises a feed hopper  2  for liquid composition  3 , for example a chocolate-flavoured coating, thermostatically controlled to around 38° C. by means of a heating fluid, for example water circulating through a double wall of the hopper. On leaving the hopper, the liquid  3  passes by gravity through an adjustable slot  4  positioned radially in relation to the direction of travel fl of the portions  5 . As it leaves the slot, the liquid composition is distributed into a curtain of chocolate-flavoured coating. The portions  5  are taken up by the lattice belt  6  and passed beneath the liquid curtain of chocolate-flavoured coating discharged through the slot-like nozzle where they are precoated on their upper surface and their sides. The lattice belt  6  is kept under tension by the tension rollers  7  and cleaned by the licking shaft  8  which preferably rotates in the opposite direction to the direction of travel of the belt  6  and which is arranged on its return level. A trough  9  collects the liquid coating which may be recycled to the hopper  2 , for example by means of a pump (not shown). On leaving the precoating unit, the portions are transferred to the particle application unit. 
     As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the particle application unit  10  comprises a solid conveyor belt  11  which is designed to circulate horizontally from left to right and which takes up the precoated portions. The belt  11  is delimited by two vertical guides  12  on either side so that the belt and the guides form a U-shaped channel. Arranged below and in contact with the upper level of the belt  11  is a refrigeration table  13  thermostatically controlled by a fluid, for example glycol-containing water, to a temperature of approximately −20° C. or lower. The function of the table  13  is to solidify the small amount of liquid coating which drops onto the belt and to keep the portions  5  cold. Above the belt  11 , the unit  10  comprises a solid conveyor belt  14  which is designed to circulate horizontally from right to left and which is provided with vertical guides  15  forming a U-shaped channel with the belt  14 . The belt  14  could be replaced by a vibrating chute. A hopper  16  is arranged between the belts  11  and  14 . The hopper  16  comprises a flap  17  and a smooth roller  18  of which the functions will be explained in detail hereinafter. 
     The unit  10  also comprises an elevator consisting of a vibrating screw  19 . The unit  10  further comprises a table  20  formed by self-cleaning rotating rollers on which the leading edge is spaced from the trailing edge of the belt  11 , for example by a distance of  2  to  4  cm, which defines a dropping space  21 . Below the space  21  and the table  20 , a perforated plate  22  acting as a sieve collects the particulate material which is directed towards the vibrating screw  19 . At the end of its return level, the belt  11  is scraped by means of blades  23 . At an intermediate level, the vibrating screw is fed with new particulate material by the hopper  24 . A blower  25  is arranged above the space  21 . 
     In operation, particulate material  26  is discharged from the hopper  16  onto and around the portions  5  transported by the belt  11 . The portions  5  are thus immersed in a bed of particulate material while their upper surfaces and sides are precoated with chocolate-flavoured coating which is still tacky, i.e. has not yet solidified at its surface. The amount of particulate material discharged determines the thickness of the bed on the belt  11 , the desired thickness being of the order of 4 cm. The rate of discharge is regulated by the more or less large opening of the flap  17  and the speed of rotation of the smooth roller  18  which rotates in the direction of the arrow f 2 , i.e, in the direction of the rotating axes of the belt  11 . On leaving the belt  11 , the particulate material which has not adhered to the portions drops into the space  21  and through the openings in the lattice belt  20  driven by the blower  25 . The fines  27 , if any, formed by the breakage of the particles pass through the perforated plate  22  acting as a sieve and are removed in the plate  28 . The particulate material intended to be recycled is elevated by the vibrating screw  19  to the level of the belt  14 . The remains scraped off by the blades  23  are removed in the plate  29 . To compensate for consumption and losses, new particulate material is discharged from the hopper  24  into the vibrating screw  19 . At the top of the vibrating screw, the particulate material is discharged through the hopper  30  onto the belt  14  and then transported towards the hopper  16 . 
     On leaving the application unit  10 , the portions  5  are completely coated over their upper surfaces and their sides with substantially intact particulate material. 
     The particulate material may be selected from the dry and brittle ingredients typically used as additions in confectionery and in chocolate making, such as pieces of cooked sugar, nougatine, dried or preserved fruits and expanded or extruded cereals, more particularly flakes, for example of rice. 
     The process and machine according to the invention are advantageous in the case of additions consisting of relatively brittle flat particles of a certain size or any other particulate material of corresponding dimensions and brittleness. 
     A particularly preferred particulate material consists, for example, of flakes of rice in the form of cooked and toasted petals 2 to 8 mm in size which are brittle and absorb moisture. This material is susceptible to loss of crispiness through hygroscopy, a quality which is considered to be crucial from the organoleptic point of view. It is for this reason that, in one preferred embodiment of the process and machine according to the invention, the portions are completely coated with a fatty composition acting as a moisture barrier. 
     In this embodiment, the portions issuing from the application unit  10  are transferred to the coating unit  31  (FIG. 1) for applying liquid fatty composition, for example chocolate-flavoured coating, on the lattice belt  32 . The belt  32  is driven and kept under tension by tension rollers  33  and cleaned along its return level by the licking shaft  34 . The coating composition  35 , for example a chocolate-flavoured coating at approximately 35° C., is applied in the form of a curtain from the thermostatically controlled hopper  36  to the upper surface and the sides of the portions in the same way as for the precoating unit  1 , the coating is spread and excess coating is removed by means of the blower  37 . The unit  31  also comprises scraped rollers  38  both rotating in the same direction of which the function is to form and maintain a wave of chocolate-flavoured coating which enables a butt of coating to be applied. 
     On leaving the unit  31 , the coated portions are conducted towards a cooling station and packing station, for example of the “flow-pack” type (not shown). 
     In the interests of simplicity, the production of articles in the shape of bars arranged in a line has been schematically illustrated in the accompanying drawings. However, the process and machine according to the invention may of course also be used in the same way for treating individual articles differing in shape, such as “bite-size” articles for example. The portions may be arranged in rows in several lines. 
     The machine according to the invention is of course controlled by a programmable automatic control unit which drives the various conveyor belts in synchronism with one another, with the elements for distributing the coating materials and with the upstream extrusion, cooling and cutting stations and the downstream cooling and wrapping stations. 
     The article capable of being produced by the process and the machine according to the invention, which is illustrated in FIG. 3, comprises a co-extruded core of ice cream flavoured with vanilla  39  and caramel  40  coated with toasted flakes of rice  41  between two layers of milk chocolate  42  and  43  on its upper surface and its sides and a butt of milk chocolate flavoured coating  44 .