EXPLORING A POSSIBILITY OF USING ULTRASOUND IN THE TECHNOLOGY OF CONFECTIONERY PRODUCTS

The unconventional methods of processing raw materials and semi-finished products have been widely used in various sectors of food industry over recent time. This contributes to intensification of production, prolonging the period during which new products retain freshness, thereby making it possible to implement resource- and energy saving technologies. It is a relevant task to explore a possibility to use ultrasound in the technology of flour-based confectionery products, specifically sponge cakes. Here we propose a technology for whipping up mélange with sugar using a mixer whose bowl is installed in an ultrasonic tub filled with water. The effect of ultrasound on quality indicators of egg-sugar mixture (foaming ability, foam stability, its microstructure), as well as on sponge-cake semi-finished products, has been investigated. It was established that the foaming capacity of examined samples exposed to ultrasound increased by 35 %. In addition, the maximum value of foaming capacity in a sample exposed to ultrasound required an almost twice shorter time than that in the control sample. Our comparative analysis of foam stability after 60 minutes of aging has shown that the mélange‒sugar mixture exposed to ultrasound had proven to be the most stable, 90 %. It was determined that exposing an egg-sugar mixture to ultrasound resulted in obtaining foam with almost uniform bubbles of small size, located close to each other. We have established the optimum parameters for whipping the egg-sugar mixture of sponge cake dough in an ultrasound field: ultrasound power is 0.6 kW, water temperature in an ultrasonic tub is 26 °С, the time to whip up mélange with sugar is 6.5 min. It has been proven that the use of ultrasound in the technology of sponge-cake semi-finished products promotes the intensification of foaming process of egg-sugar mixture; makes it possible to whip all the components simultaneously, which greatly simplifies the process of making sponge cakes; and improves porosity of finished products, as well as contributes to a more uniform pore distributio