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Grained and Ungrained Confections The higher the sugar content of fondant, the higher the water activity, with the greater danger of mold growth and yeast fermentation. gives out heat. If this is not removed by cooling, the syrup temperature will rise, affecting the crystal size and amount of crystals formed. Generally the higher the crystallization temperature the larger the sugar crystals which are formed. This leads us to specific grained confections, which hopefully will reinforce these general factors. FONDANTS AND CREMES Fondants are the simplest of grained confections.They are normally based on sugar, although sugarfree ones based on maltitol or other polyols are being made.Their structure consists of sugar crystals dispersed in a saturated solution of sugar and other carbohydrates such as invert sugar and corn syrup. Those other carbohydrates are sometimes essential to the shelf stability of the product. Normally there is 50–60 percent sugar crystals dispersed in 40–50 percent syrup. Fondant recipes consist of three main ingredients: sugar, water and corn syrup. These are combined with other ingredients such as invert sugar, fructose, sorbitol and glycerol. Sometimes mold-inhibiting chemicals, such as sorbic acid, are added where a formulation gives a product with a water activity greater than 0.65.You can avoid this by using the correct formulation, if possible. Even with this simple recipe, there are many variables. Moisture Content The water content of the finished fondant is the most critical variable, because it affects the efficiency of using it, and its shelf life. Generally water content is in the range of 12–15 percent but should be controlled accurately, i.e., within ± 1 ⁄2 percent of that specified. Type of Corn Syrup Corn syrups now cover a wide range of compositions. The major components are dextrose, maltose and dextrins — mainly consisting of long molecular chains of dextrose. The quantity of dextrose plus maltose on a dry solids basis is expressed as dextrose equivalent (de). Now that enzymes are also used to produce corn syrup, it is possible to change the ratio of dextrose to maltose and achieve higher de. High-maltose and high-dextrose corn syrups can also be produced. In addition, it is possible to produce high-fructose syrups, which are sweeter.These are increasingly used in confectionery, although mainly in the beverage industry. High-de syrups have less dextrins in them; they are particularly important in fondants because they affect the viscosity and the crystallization of sugar from the fondant syrup. Low-de corn syrups lead to more viscous fondant syrups with slower crystallization of sugar from them, and high-de corn syrups do the opposite. The choice of corn syrup therefore is a very important variable. Amount of Sugar The sugar content of the recipe,which increases the ratio of sugar to corn syrup, is a key variable.The higher the sugar content the more sugar crystals are formed and the harder the fondant, for a given water content. Amount of Other Materials The quantities of humectants, such as sorbitol, glycerol and invert sugar, are also important.They reduce the viscosity of the fondant syrup, increase sugar crystallization rates and lower water activity. Commercially available fondants are generally made to simple recipes, using sugar, water and 42 de acid-converted corn syrup. They are often referred to by the ratio of sugar to corn syrup, e.g., 8:1 fondant contains eight parts of sugar and one part of corn syrup.The soluble solids of the ➤ 46 55 th PMCA Production Conference, 2001
syrup in the finished product are below 75 percent. Because this recipe is unstable a small quantity of sorbic acid or potassium sorbate is added to inhibit mold growth. The higher the sugar content of fondant, the higher the water activity, with the greater danger of mold growth and yeast fermentation. This is why you sometimes find black spots of mold on the surface and inside high-sugar fondants. This will not happen with a 3:2 fondant using standard 42 de corn syrup.There are many ways of eliminating this using the newer corn syrups and incorporating ingredients that lower water activity, such as sorbitol or glycerol. Making Fondant Making fondant can be broken down into a number of steps as shown in Figure 8. Essentially, the cooking temperature controls the final moisture content of the fondant and must be controlled accurately, including compensating for the effect of atmospheric pressure on the cooking temperature, cooking higher on dry days when the pressure is high and lower on wet days when the pressure is low. Figure 9 shows a typical cooking-temperature compensation chart for a sugar syrup, indicating the cooking temperature required for a specific water content. The crystallization temperature and the mixing or shear rate control the size distribution of the sugar crystals. In general, the higher the syrup temperature when it is mixed to cause sugar to crystallize, the larger the crystals produced. Generally, also, the faster the syrup is mixed, the smaller the crystals. When you make fondant either by hand or by machine, there is not just one size of sugar crystal produced but a whole range. The sugar crystals, in addition to sweetness, contribute texture and surface area, which considerably govern the viscosity of the fondant and affect its use. The human Grained and Ungrained Confections Steps for the Manufacturing of Fondant Water Sugar Corn syrup Syrup making moisture content 75–78% Cooking to control moisture content 12/14% Cooling 115˚—190˚F High shear mixing to crystallize syrup To store or next process Figure 8 Barometric Pressure Accurate recipe weighing. Proper dissolving of sugar before adding corn syrup. Cooking temperature compensated for atmospheric pressure. Final moisture of syrup. Temperature cooled down to, without agitation or precrystallization. Crystallizing temperature. Flow of cooling water to keep this at required temperature. Mixing speed. Storage temperatures and RH (normally 100˚F and 65% RH) palette can only detect particles greater in size than 12–16 microns. Below this all particles taste smooth, just like water. Bigger particles control the detectable texture of the product. When they reach 50 microns and above, they start to become sandy and too coarse to be pleasant. Generally, fon- ➤ The human palette can only detect particles greater in size than 12–16 microns, below this all particles taste smooth, just like water. in inches Moisture Content 29.42°F 29.67°F 29.92°F 30.17°F 30.42°F 30.67°F 30.92°F 14% 236.5 236.8 237.2 237.6 238.2 238.5 239.0 13% 238.8 239.1 239.5 240.0 240.5 240.8 241.3 12% 240.8 241.2 241.5 242.0 242.4 242.8 243.4 11% 243.1 243.5 244.0 244.4 244.8 245.8 246.2 10% 245.8 246.2 246.6 247.0 247.5 248.0 248.5 9% 248.6 249.0 249.5 250.0 250.5 251.0 251.4 8.5% Figure 9 250.1 250.5 251.0 251.5 251.9 252.4 252.8 55 th PMCA Production Conference, 2001 47
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Page 3 and 4: If we take a simple syrup, add air
Page 5: Concentration The concentration of
Page 9 and 10: to cool and set before demoulding,
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2001 Grained and Ungrained Confections - staging.files.cms.plus.com

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