Abstract:
Snack mixes in the form of loose blends of individual pieces, especially crackers, pretzels, and/or cereal pieces with the pieces including shaped and sized pieces that collectively, can be used to as puzzle member pieces for assembly into a pattern such as form figurines for enhanced play value such as for children. The present methods of preparation involve preparing shaped pieces adapted for assembling into puzzles and blending those shaped pieces to provide loose blends of individual pieces whereby an edible snack blend can be provided having enhanced play value.

Description:
[0001]     This application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e)(1) of a U.S. provisional patent application, Ser. No. 60/638,901, filed Dec. 23, 2004, which is incorporated herein by referenced in its entirety. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present invention relates to food products and to their methods of preparation. More particularly, the present invention relates to snack mixes in the form of loose blends of individual pieces, especially crackers, pretzels, and/or cereal pieces with the pieces including shaped and sized pieces that collectively, can be used to form figurines for enhanced play value such as for children. The present methods of preparation involve preparing shaped pieces and blending those shaped pieces to provide loose blends of individual pieces whereby an edible snack blend can be provided having enhanced play value.  
         [0003]     Snack mixes come in a wide variety of ingredients, flavors, and size and shape of ingredient pieces. For example, a wide variety of granola mixes are well known that comprise cereal ingredients, especially rolled oats sweetened with a binder to form larger pieces. The granola or granola pieces can be admixed with a variety of other ingredients such as dried fruit pieces, for example, raisins or dried apple bits, nuts (such as peanuts or other nut pieces), and candies such as small chocolate pieces.  
         [0004]     Also well-known are blends of pretzels, together with other cereal base ingredients such as fried bread slices, crackers and like. Illustrative of those types of a snack mixes are those various blends and flavors available under the Gardetto&#39;s™ brand. These snack mixes comprise blends of individual dried pieces of several types of individual taste, size, shape and texture such as small pretzel pieces (such as having chunky exterior salt pieces), fried toast, bagel or bread slices or bread sticks having seasonings (such as garlic or with Italian seasoning), or other cereal based pieces such as biscuits of ready-to-eat cereals. Additionally, the loose blends can the supplied with an additional topical flavor such as a cheese flavor, a Cajun flavor, or savory flavor.  
         [0005]     Another well-known snack blend is available under the Chex brand. Such blends include as their principal ingredient, a ready-to-eat cereal piece in the form of a biscuit fabricated from a grid or matrix of cooked cereal dough. In addition to the characterizing biscuit cereal piece, the blend can additionally include such other common cereal pieces such as pretzels or crackers. The individual pretzel pieces have common pretzel shapes such as a simple rod, although more complex pretzel shapes, such as a heart shape, have also been used. Generally however, the pretzel shapes involve a string or strand of pretzel of substantially uniform diameter although the strand itself can be configured into a variety of shapes. The crackers are likewise, usually of simple geometric shapes such as a rod or square flat cracker. Another supplemental shape is a disk shaped piece such as 48 garlic toast slice. In certain television commercials, these simple shapes have been combined in great number to depict various shapes and characters in elaborate displays that often simulate animation.  
         [0006]     While such as snack mix blends are popular with adults, these snack mix blends have lesser appeal to children. As is well-known, children, especially younger children, enjoy playing with their food. While playing with children&#39;s food is discouraged in some cultures, increasing the play value of foods especially those either specifically targeted two children or stylized as “all-family” (and thus including children) can be an important feature or benefit for such foods.  
         [0007]     Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide improved snack mixes of enhanced play value especially for children or as “all-family” snack mix offerings. Surprisingly, such mixes can be provided by including to such conventional mixes quantities of individual pieces that are designed for and can be used to create shapes and figures. The novel shapes that add play value van be creative biscuit and/or pretzels or other shelf stable products fabricated from doughs.  
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0008]     In its principle product aspect, the present invention provides a snack mix in the form of a loose blend of individual pieces suitable for arranging to form a puzzle. The snack mix includes a quantity of a first dry two dimensional shaped planar piece for forming a puzzle pattern; and,  
         [0009]     a quantity a second of dry shaped rod piece for forming a puzzle pattern. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0010]      FIG. 1A  is a plan view of a figurine puzzle assembled from pieces of the snack mix of enhanced play value of the present invention.  
         [0011]      FIG. 1B  is a plan view of a figurine puzzle assembled from pieces of the snack mix of enhanced play value of the present invention  
         [0012]      FIG. 2  is a plan view of a face puzzle assembled from pieces of the snack mix of enhanced play value of the present invention  
         [0013]      FIG. 3  is a plan view of a face puzzle assembled from pieces of the snack mix of enhanced play value of the present invention  
         [0014]      FIG. 4  is a plan view of a face puzzle assembled from pieces of the snack mix of enhanced play value of the present invention  
         [0015]      FIG. 5  is a plan face of a figurine puzzle assembled from pieces of the snack mix of enhanced play value of the present invention  
         [0016]      FIG. 6  is a plan view of a face puzzle assembled from pieces of the snack mix of enhanced play value of the present invention  
         [0017]      FIG. 7  is a plan view of a face puzzle assembled from pieces of the snack mix of enhanced play value of the present invention  
         [0018]      FIG. 8  is a plan view of a clover flower puzzle assembled from pieces of the snack mix of enhanced play value of the present invention  
         [0019]      FIG. 9  is a plan view of a shamrock flower puzzle assembled from pieces of the snack mix of enhanced play value of the present invention  
         [0020]      FIG. 10  is a plan view of a daisy flower puzzle assembled from pieces of the snack mix of enhanced play value of the present invention  
         [0021]      FIG. 11  is a plan view of a face puzzle assembled from pieces of the snack mix of enhanced play value of the present invention  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0022]     The present invention provides an snack mix food product and methods for their preparation in the form of a loose blend of individual pieces. The present snack mix food product blend includes a quantity of at least one conventional characterizing base type pieces and a quantity of at least two novelty shaped food pieces. The novelty shaped pieces can be a shaped planar piece such as a cracker and a shaped rod piece such as a pretzel. Each of these product components as well as methods for enhancing the play value is described in detail below.  
         [0023]     A wide variety of snack mixes are well known. Generally, these snack mixes are in the form of a loose blend of individual dry pieces each weighing about 0.1 to 4 g each. The dry pieces typically have a water activity value to provide extended room temperature shelf stability (when appropriately packaged) generally ranging from about 0.2 to about 0.65. Popular snack mixes are usually identified by at least one well known and characterizing type pieces. For example, the conventional identifiable base piece could be crackers, popped popcorn, peanuts (or other nuts such as almonds or cashews), raisins, pretzels, fried snack products, or ready-to-eat cereal pieces. Well know combinations are can also be used, e.g., caramel coated popped popcorn (sometimes colloquially referred to as “ready-to-eat popcorn”) admixed with peanuts.  
         [0024]     Often, the base characterizing type ingredient is a well known and often a branded type piece that can be distinguished by the consumer by well known flavor, shape, type or other product attributes. For example, a wide variety of snack mixes are well known under the ChexMix® brand. Such products include as their characterizing or readily identifiable base type piece the familiar grid pillow ready-to-eat-cereal (“R-T-E”) pieces that is well known and associated with the Chex® brand of R-T-E cereals. While several cereal types are known under this brand such as those prepared from a cooked cereal dough of rice flour, corn flour, wheat flour, each cereal piece regardless of the cereal flour from which fabricated is in the form of the familiar grid pillow piece. In other embodiments, the base characterizing piece can be the familiar “O” shaped R-T-E cereal pieces widely recognized and associated with the Cheerios® brand. In still another embodiment, the characterizing base type pieces can the cornucopia shapes that are sold under the Bugles® mark (see US design 202,609 “Puffed Snack Food Products” issued Oct. 26, 1965 to V. E. Weis). In still other embodiments, the identifying base type ingredient might be corn chips, i.e., a fried snack pieces fabricated from a corn masa dough. Thus, the base characterizing ingredient is most often a cereal base piece such a R-T-E cereal, a cracker, a pretzel, a dried bread piece, a cookie, a fried snack especially fried puffed snacks (e.g., the puffed cornucopia shaped pieces described above) or mixtures thereof. While in the balance of the present description particular attention is made to the grid pillow R-T-E cereal pieces as the base identifying type piece, the skilled artisan will appreciate that the invention is applicable to snack mixes having one or more other base identifying type pieces. The base mix can include variations of the characterizing base ingredient. For example, for Chex™ brand mix product, the mix can include a grid pillow cereal pieces fabricated from a cooked corn based cereal dough as well as similarly shaped biscuit pieces but fabricated from a wheat based cooked cereal dough. In still other variations, the base characterizing type pieces can include candies or confections, nut pieces (e.g., peanuts or chocolate covered peanuts), dried fruit or fruit based pieces (e.g., raisins or chocolate coated raisins), regular pretzels, an the like.  
         [0025]     Snack mixes blends typically additionally include at least one and often several other types of pieces admixed or blended with the identifying base types pieces to form a loose blend. Since moisture will migrate within a packaged loose blend, the pieces are selected such as to have the desirable taste, texture and stability features when admixed with dissimilar pieces but of generally equivalent water activity values. For example, the snack mix can include a variety of component to provide a dry blend having a water activity value of 0.40 or less. If the base pieces have a water activity value of 0.3, then good results are obtained when care is exercised to select those ingredients that have a water activity value ranging from about 0.25 to 0.35. Also, the secondary piece types are selected to be relatively robust to resist excessive piece breakage. For this reason, especially frangible pieces such as potato chips or R-T-E cereal flakes, e.g., corn flakes, are generally not employed. Often, the secondary pieces will include a small pretzel piece (i.e., within the above described pieces weight range) generally of simple shapes, e.g., a short rod. Also, the secondary pieces will frequently include a cracker, i.e., a baked planar piece fabricated from a cereal dough. Of course, some mixes will include two or more shapes such as two pretzel shapes or two cracker shapes or include other secondary types of ingredients. However, while the shapes of the secondary pieces can have individual aesthetic appeal, their shapes are not generally related to the shapes of the other ingredients to have play value and especially not to have puzzle type play assembly kit play value. Such planar products will have a length and a width and a thickness. Good results are obtained when the thickness has an aspect ratio to either length or width of 1:5 or less.  
         [0026]     The present snack mix blends includes a quantity of at least one such conventional identifying base type pieces. Good results are obtained when the snack mix blends include about 10% to 80%, preferably about 20% to 60% of the identifying type pieces. In the preferred embodiment, at least a portion of the identifying base type ingredient is a R-T-E cereal piece. In a more preferred embodiment, the R-T-E cereal pieces is a grid pillow or biscuit R-T-E cereal piece.  
         [0027]     The present snack mix blends include a quantity of at least two novelty shaped pieces at least one of which is a two dimensional or planar piece such as a cracker or cookie and at least on of which is a three dimensional or rod (tube or cylinder) or string type piece such as a pretzel that together with the base characterizing ingredient allow for the user to assemble puzzles from such piece collections. Thus the present snack blends include a quantity of first novelty shaped planar pieces and a quantity of a second rod novelty shaped pieces. Each quantity of shaped first and second novelty shaped pieces can be present in the present snack mix blends ranging from about 10% to 60%, preferably about 10% to 30%.  
         [0028]     In additional preferred embodiments, the present snack mixes can additionally comprise at least a third novelty or puzzle shaped piece which can be either a second rod or a planar piece that is different in shape from the first or second or characterizing pieces.. In still other embodiments, the snack mix blends include at least two shaped rod novelty shaped pieces and at least two shaped planar novelty or puzzle pieces or even more differently shaped rod or planar pieces.  
         [0029]     The novelty shaped pieces should relate to each other as individual components of a puzzle, model or kit. To better describe the relationship of the shaped pieces, reference is now first made to  FIG. 1A  and  FIG. 1B .  FIG. 1  depicts an arranged assembly of puzzle or model pieces generally designated by reference numeral  10 . For convenience of description, such arrangements will be referred to herein as puzzles. In the embodiment of puzzle  10  depicted in  FIG. 1A , it can be seen that the snack mix blend includes at least a quantity of a first shaped novelty rod piece such as the limb shaped piece  12 . Conveniently, rod piece  12  can be a shaped pretzel. In a preferred embodiment, the limb shaped puzzle piece  12  should be sufficiently reminiscent of a limb to function as limb member puzzle piece of figurine puzzle  21  but also ideally is of a shape sufficiently flexible as to function as limb member in a variety or orientations and capacities. In  FIG. 1A , for example, it can be seen that limb rod piece  12  has a shape reminiscent of a traditional Irish cross design including a head portion  13  (comprising a circle with an exterior three cross or cross points) and a depending post or stand portion  15 . Piece  12  can function as an arm limb puzzle piece or as a leg member or as a sword. In the particular, Irish cross design piece  12  can have pieces  14  and  16  as arm limbs while like pieces  18  and  20  serve as leg limbs. Also,  FIG. 1  shows that piece  12  can be oriented with the head portion  13  extended outward to serve for child play purposes as a foot or hand or with the port portion  15  outwardly extending such that head portion  13  serves as shoulder for play purposes.  
         [0030]      FIG. 1  also depicts that the snack mix includes a quantity of at least a second novelty shaped planar piece  22  such as the head or face piece  24  depicted. In particular, face piece  22  is a planar baked shaped cracker having opposed major sides including a first major side having a least three incisions  26  (two eyes and a mouth) thereon to compose a face patterns. Incisions  26  preferably extends through the cracker piece  24  such that the opposed major face (not shown) likewise composes a face pattern. In preferred variations, the snack mix will have a number ratio of eye pieces to mouth pieces of about 2:1.  
         [0031]      FIG. 1  also illustrates that the snack mix can include a second shaped rod piece  30  such as the “E” letter shaped depicted. The letter shaped pretzels  30  are preferably selected from the group consisting of letter in the shape wherein the letter shaped piece, whether upper or lower case, is selected from the group consisting of B, C, D, E I, J, M, L, S, O, P, T, V, X, Y, Z and mixtures thereof. Generally, the letter shaped pieces are those most commonly occurring in the language of the target consumer population. For example, for English speaking consumer populations, the mix can then include the consonants “S” and “T” as well as the vowels “E”, “I” and “O”. Such letters are selectively employed since these letters can also function as not only word puzzle pieces but also as puzzle elements. For example,  FIG. 1  depicts that pretzel element  30  can also be used as a crown or hat feature for the figurine puzzle  21 . While Latin alphabet letters are preferred herein, the skilled artisan will appreciate that letters from other common language groups can also be used including letters from Greek (especially the letters Γ, Θ, Ψ, Π, Σ, Λ, T, X), Cyrillic (especially the letters          , Γ,          ,          , M, O, Π, P, C, T,          , III, Φ,), Hebrew, and/or Arabic and mixtures thereof. The specific letter from the Greek and Cyrillic alphabets are likewise selected for their dual functionality. Also, both upper and lower case letters are contemplated. Preferred herein are block (especially sans serif versions) letters rather than script letters.  
         [0032]     In still other embodiments, the snack mix blends can additionally include additional shaped puzzle type pieces. For example,  FIG. 1B  depicts that a shield shaped cracker piece  28  an be used as a body member or as a figurine accoutrement as in  FIG. 1A . Other variations include the particular shield shaped piece  30  having a scalloped free edge or border or other peripheral outline design. The same design can be imaginatively used as face cracker. Conveniently, the cracker pieces can each include one or more docking holes  34  or other cracker surface feature that if desired can be sized and positioned and shaped to provide an ornamental feature or arrangement (as more fully described below).  
         [0033]      FIG. 1  also illustrate that the identifying pieces such as the grid pillow R-T-E cereal piece  38  can now be more playfully employed by virtue of the inclusion of the novelty pieces described above. For example, in  FIG. 1B , the figurine  21  is seen standing on a small hill assembled from pieces  38 .  
         [0034]     Referring now briefly to  FIG. 2 , it can be seen that in another embodiment, the snack mix can include shaped novelty or puzzle pieces for assembling a face type puzzle  40  rather than a figurine. In this embodiment, a shaped cracker  42  in the form of an oval is used as an eye puzzle piece. Cracker  42  includes a docking hole  34  that is positioned to provide a eye pupil feature whose suggestiveness is enhanced by including a surrounding surface ridge feature  44  to cracker  42 .  FIG. 2  also depicts that the snack mix for a face puzzle in addition to eye puzzle pieces  42  should include a shaped novelty piece  46  for a mouth feature such as the hemi-oval shape of piece  46 .  FIG. 2  likewise illustrate that mixes comprising simple geometric shapes such as piece  48  having a triangle shape can now be more playfully employed by virtue of the inclusion of the novelty pieces described above such as to be used a nose member of face puzzle  40 .  
         [0035]     Referring now to  FIG. 3 , it can be seen that the snack mix identifying piece such as R-T-E cereal piece  38  can now be playfully employed as a puzzle piece member. Snack mix blend&#39;s pretzel member can be seen in  FIG. 3  to be provided by the scalloped rod pretzel piece  50 . In  FIG. 3 , two pretzel shaped pieces  50  serve as eyebrow members for face puzzle  40 . Referring now briefly to  FIG. 4 , it can be seen that a single shaped pretzel piece  50  can serve as a mustache member for face puzzle  40 .  
         [0036]     Reference is now made to  FIG. 5  which depicts a face puzzle  60 .  FIG. 5  depicts that in another variation, the snack mix blend can include the identifying shaped piece such as grid biscuit piece  38 . The face puzzle and snack mix containing the puzzle&#39;s members can include a shaped cracker puzzle piece members such as mouth or hemi-oval shaped cracker  46 . The snack mix also includes the first shaped pretzel member  50 . In this variation, the snack mix blend can include a quantity of a second shaped pretzel type such as the petal shaped pretzel  52  depicted. Pretzel pieces  52  can be arranged and oriented to serve as eye members in face puzzle  60 .  
         [0037]     Referring now to  FIG. 6 , there is shown a face puzzle  66 . Face puzzle  66  is assembled using shaped pretzel type  50  as eyebrow members or pieces, with petal shaped pretzel pieces  50  serving a eye puzzle member pieces, with grid shaped identifying piece  38  serving a nose face puzzle member and additionally comprising a letter shaped pretzel such as the “C” shaped pretzel member  68  serving as a mouth puzzle member. In this variation, the snack mix can include three types of shaped pretzel novelty or puzzle member pieces in addition to the identifying shaped type piece.  
         [0038]     Reference now is made briefly to  FIG. 7  that depicts a face puzzle  70  that is similar to face puzzle  66  except substituting common geometric shape such a triangle shaped cracker piece  48  as nose puzzle member. Also, face puzzle  70  adds an extra scalloped pretzel rod piece  72  to add a whimsical cigar feature.  
         [0039]     Reference is now made to  FIG. 8-10 .  FIG. 8  illustrates a flower puzzle  80  such as the specific clover food puzzle  82 . The flower puzzle  80  can be assembled from and can include three shaped pretzel pieces  52  having a peddle shape together with one or more scalloped rod pretzel shaped pieces  50 .  FIG. 8  illustrate that a sub-set of shapes can be used to assemble more than a single shape.  FIG. 9  illustrates that with a slight variation using an additional piece of shape  52 , a flower puzzle of the beloved shamrock can be constructed. This use feature is also illustrated in  FIG. 10  that depicts a more complex flower puzzle that utilizes the pretzel pieces  50  and  52  s well as identifying shaped piece  38   
         [0040]     Finally, reference is made to  FIG. 11  which shows a puzzle face  
         [0041]     All manner of puzzles can be devised to practice within the scope of the present invention. For example, a wide variety of face puzzle for all manner of creatures. Also, various figurine puzzles whether for animals, vehicles plants, or monuments using a simple set of shaped pretzel and or planar members especially crackers. Of course, other shaped planar, or two dimensional, dry food pieces especially cookies can be used. For example, the planar or rod shaped pieces can be candies, licorice, dried marshmallow or other dried aerated confections, jelled candies or gelled fruit juice pieces, puffed shaped fried snack pieces, fruit pieces fabricated from dried fruit purees, formed dried meat snacks, and mixtures thereof. Also, other shaped rod or tubular, or three dimensional products, can be used in substitution for the pretzel, e.g., bread sticks or puffed fried shaped rod or tubular snack pieces such as fried corn puffs. It will be appreciated that such pieces are shelf stable (generally having a water activity value of 0.45 or less, e.g., about 0.1-0.45 to allow for extended shelf stability when packed in a moisture barrier food packaging. Depending upon the particular type of piece, the pieces can be flexible or stiff, deformable, frangible, chewy or crunchy. While particular attention is made for mixes that are suitable for consumption as a snack mix, in other variations, blends can be marketed for consumption as cold or ready-to-eat breakfast cereals.  
         [0042]     The present snack mix blends can additionally comprise a seasoning flavoring to all or a portion of the pieces. For example, a dried cheese flavoring (0.5% to 4% of the snack mix) can be topically applied to a quantity of the identifying shaped piece such as the grid pillow piece  38 . Thereafter, these seasoned pieces can be admixed with quantities of the other shaped pieces to form the present snack mix blend of enhanced play value. Other seasoning flavors, e.g., barbeque, Cajun, Italian, jerk or Caribbean, Mexican, pizza, salsa, savory, and/or soy can be applied. In other variations, a sweetener especially a high potency sweetener (e.g., aspartame, sucralose, acetylsulfame, e.g., ace-K, and mixtures thereof) can be included such as by topical application. If desired all or a portion of the pieces can additionally include a sugar coating especially of low calorie coating such as provided by tagatose). In still other variations, the novel shaped pieces can be flavored or seasoned, e.g., with topically applied salt or fabricated from a flavored cereal composition.  
         [0043]     In other variations, the snack mix can additionally comprise one or more additional or supplemental shelf stable (especially having a water activity value of less than 0.44 preferably less than 0.4) adjuvant pieces such as dried marshmallow bits or marbits, dried confections especially dried aerated confections, raisins or other dried fruit pieces, dried meats, nuts and nut pieces, dried bread (e.g., garlic bread slices), popped popcorn (especially sugar coated or caramel popcorn) and mixtures thereof. If present such adjuvant pieces can comprise about 1% to 30% of the present snack mix blends. It will be appreciated that certain of these adjuvant added components can be compositionally similar to those novel shaped pieces described above but lacking the specific puzzle shape.  
         [0044]     The present snack mixes can be conveniently packaged in familiar food packaging especially bas or pouches fabricated from sealed moisture loss resistant flexible packaging film. A quantity e.g., 30 g to 3 kg, can be disposed within a suitable container or bag for either retail sale or for food service sales (e.g., kindergarten cafeterias). In less preferred embodiments, the food packaging can be a tin or a can. While such stronger containers can provides more robust storage protection, the containers can be expensive.  
         [0045]     While the invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiment, but on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.