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Tag: shelf-life

Bakery Foods: Citri-Fi Citrus Fiber Improves Moisture Retention, Emulsification and Freshness also Gluten-free - Bread, Cookies, Muffins, Cakes
February 1, 2024
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Bakery

“C is for Cookie” as in Soft-baked Cookies

The bakery world offers a variety of cookies including the soft-baked cookie type. Despite the cookie description, baking these soft morsels come with hard formulation challenges. Some market offerings soften the texture but they all have their own caveats – tooth pack, darkening, microbial risk and questionable labeling. However, another option is citrus fiber. Citri-Fi® citrus fiber binds the water and oil which softens the texture over time while supporting a clean and natural food label.

“C is for cookie and that’s good enough for me.” These satirical words stem from the iconic Cookie Monster. Though he originated in the USA, this monochromatic blue puppet is recognized all around the kiddie world preaching the good word about cookies! These delicious, sweet morsels come in a variety of flavors, shapes and sizes. They are available with candied toppings, filled with sweetness, enrobed with chocolate or come in different textures. One popular bakery format hot out of the oven includes soft-baked cookies.

Soft-baked Cookie Challenges Bakers Face

Baking soft cookies comes with an array of challenges. Bakers are fighting physics constantly including water migration. If water remains unbound, it tends to seep from the food and free itself into the air. As a result, cookies lose their moisture turning into hard hockey pucks over time. If too much water is left in the cookie, then it becomes a live petri plate inviting microbials to feast also shortening the shelf-life. And even if the water is locked up, bakers risk tooth packing from the chewy matrix. Adjusting the soft-based cookie formulation to avoid these pitfalls also requires a label consideration. Today, consumers tend to seek out food labels that are more natural and cleaner.

For these reasons, bakers tap their toolboxes for potential solutions. Sweeteners like molasses and other sugar syrups are used to help soften the texture. At the same time, these natural food ingredients tend to cause a darkening effect impacting the sweetness and color. And too much sweetener runs the risk of causing tooth packing.

Food starches and food gums are another option to help soften the baked good texture. However, incorporating these ingredients incorrectly leads to gumminess. And depending on the hydrocolloid, some fall suspect to consumers due to their ingredient labeling.

Lastly, some bakers produce only organic bakery products. Because of this, they seek out certified organic ingredients such as flour, eggs and sugar. Many texturizers used to soften cookies may not have organic status. And depending on the region, most of these food ingredients are designated an E-number which is purposely avoided when formulating natural soft-baked cookies in regions like Europe.

Citrus Fiber – Improving Soft-baked Cookie Texture

The market offers another solution to aid in softening and extending shelf-life - Citri-Fi citrus fiber. This natural upcycled ingredient is produced from byproduct of the citrus juicing industry. Unlike other similar ingredients in the market, the process used is free from chemical modifications. Citri-Fi's fibrous matrix binds water and oil. As a result, in soft-baked cookies, the texture retains the softness post-bake and over time on the shelf.

Citrus fiber’s moisture retention is its signature benefit which also streams across other baked good categories including gluten-free baking. Citri-Fi, at 0.5% to 1% usage, is typically added to the dry mix such as flour, sugar and salt. And when hydrated, the ingredient activates locking in the water. The batter remains cohesive and non-sticky helping to reduce the loss during handling. During the baking process, the soft-baked cookies maintain their shape without significant spread. And the cookies remain soft and chewy over time.

Citri-Fi is non-allergenic, gluten-free and non-GMO Project Certified. This natural food ingredient has no E-number. Now, Fiberstar offers USDA certified organic citrus fiber - Citri-Fi 400 series. Labeling options include citrus fiber, dried citrus pulp or citrus flour which resonate well in the natural and clean label markets.

Please contact us for more information about using citrus fiber to improve the texture in soft-baked cookie and other types of baked goods.

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Keto Toast with Eggs - Protein and Fiber - Bakery Foods: Citri-Fi Citrus Fiber Improves Moisture Retention, Emulsification and Freshness also Gluten-free - Bread, Cookies, Muffins, Cakes
October 12, 2021
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Bakery

Keto Ingredients: Keeping it Fresh with Citrus Fiber

Many looking to shed a few pounds gravitate to the keto diet which is a popular low carbohydrate regimen consisting of high fats and protein intake. Because these bakery foods use keto ingredients such as nut and seed flours and dairy proteins, they tend to dry out and stale which shortens the shelf-life. Citri-Fi® citrus fiber holds onto water and provides emulsification at low usage levels (<1%) to improve the freshness over time in these type of baked goods.

Can you imagine giving up pastries, potato chips or strawberry licorice? Some people do to lasso their health back into line. According to the CDC, the obesity prevalence in the USA is 42.4% in 2017 – 2018 (Adult Obesity Facts | Overweight & Obesity | CDC). Though the statistics are ominous, most individuals look into the mirror before calculating their BMI to determine whether they need to diet. Because of this, many adopted new meal plans such as the Keto diet. By definition, this diet curbs carbohydrates so that the majority of the keto ingredients comprise of 70% fat, 20% protein and 5% or less simple carbohydrates. (Catching the keto wave | 2019-04-02 | Baking Business).

Keto foods popularized quickly due to the quick results – weight loss. Eating a keto diet long term, eventually puts the body into ketosis which in the end forces the body to shed pounds. At first this sounds like the holy grail. However, one slip-up or “cheat day” could cause the individual to bounce out of ketosis and start gaining weight. Not only is abiding to the diet a challenge, but creating keto-friendly bakery foods poses another dilemma.

Keto Bakery Crux and Key Success

Bakery foods like breads, pancakes and cookies rely on grain-based flours like wheat. As mentioned, grain-based flours are forbidden due to the high carbohydrate content. As a result, bakers result to using keto ingredients such as nut and seed flours, egg white protein and collagen. Although proteins do provide binding, they lack innate carbohydrates like starches which typically help bind water in the keto bakery. Foods with protein bases tend to be denser and dry out faster. And this leads to staling, breakage and shorter shelf life.

Citri-Fi® citrus fiber is one natural ingredient that holds a lot of water and provides emulsification. The high fiber content of both insoluble and soluble fiber in the form of pectin works well in keto bakery products. At low usage levels (<1%), this natural fiber improves the moisture retention which helps extend freshness over time. Because of this, Citri-Fi is an ideal keto ingredient since it provides water management versus using caloric food starches.

Sugar is the other culprit in keto bakery. In traditional bakery products, sugar is used not only for the sweetness factor but also to help bind water. Without it, water releases causing the baked good to dry out. Citri-Fi citrus fiber along with non-caloric or high intensity sweeteners, which are keto friendly ingredients, will help retain the moisture while creating a tasty product.

Keto Bakery Opportunities

In the end, the keto diet will continue to be a niche trend for those looking to tip the scales the other way. However, over time, many stray off the diet because they get burned out with the limited keto food options. As a result, they cheat and consume carbohydrates which resets their ketosis condition. Bakery and snack manufacturers have the opportunity to create gateway foods to keep their consumers on track with their goals. Today, the market is exploding with new high protein ingredients which can be used in a variety foods including baked goods, bars, shakes, beverages and savory snacks to name a few.

About Citri-Fi Citrus Fiber

Citri-Fi is non-GMO project certified, allergen-free and gluten-free. It qualifies as a dietary fiber under the FDA which makes it an ideal keto ingredient for bakery. Labeling options include citrus fiber, dried citrus pulp or citrus flour which resonate well in the clean label market. Citri-Fi also has no E-number.

If you have questions about Citri-Fi citrus fiber in keto bakery foods, please contact us!

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