Cocoa refining

Codex has also defined the various types of cocoa butter ia commercial trade (10). Press cocoa butter is defined as fat obtained by pressure from cocoa nib or chocolate Hquor. In the United States, this is often referred to as prime pure cocoa butter. ExpeUer cocoa butter is defined as the fat prepared by the expeUer process. In this process, cocoa butter is obtained direcdy from whole beans by pressing ia a cage press. ExpeUer butter usuaUy has a stronger flavor and darker color than prime cocoa butter and is filtered with carbon or otherwise treated prior to use. Solvent extracted cocoa butter is cocoa butter obtained from beans, nibs, Hquor, cake, or fines by solvent extraction (qv), usuaUy with hexane. Refined cocoa butter is any of the above cocoa butters that has been treated to remove impurities or undesirable odors and flavors. 

Characteristic Press cocoabutter ExpeUer cocoa butter Refined cocoa butter... 

Refining. The next stage in chocolate processing is a fine grinding in which a coarse paste from the mixer is passed between steel rollers and converted to a drier powdery mass. Refining breaks up crystalline sugar, fibrous cocoa matter, and milk soflds. 

Control of the polymorphic forms in cocoa butter is further compHcated by the presence of other fats such as milk fat. The fat in a chocolate can be likened to the mortar between the bricks in a mason s wall. The soHd particles in a weU-conched chocolate bed down better than the soHds in a coarsely refined and poorly mixed one (30). 

Reference spectra catalogs, 23 140 Reference states, for thermodynamic properties, 24 687-688 Re-fermented wines, 26 301 Refined brown sugars, 23 453 Refined cocoa butter, 6 359... 

Refined cocoa butter - [CHOCOLATE AND COCOA] (Vol 6) - [CHOCOLATE AND COCOA] (Vol 6)... 

Another refinement in the classification of types of experiments depends on the initial load of cocoa butter. For small amounts, the mixture appears in a homogeneous single phase. On the other hand, when the initial amount increases, two phases are present. 

Refined cocoa butter is the fat obtained by any of the means described above that has been treated as indicated above and also by neutralizing and/or bleaching. 

Little information has been published on the climatic and geographical factors affecting the composition of CBA fats. It can be assumed, however, that components which vary in cocoa butter with location, etc., also change in other confectionery fats, although these effects are nullified somewhat by refining and fractionation. Comprehensive details of the acylglycerol and fatty acid composition of illipe butters from several Shorea species are presented with description of cultivation and harvesting in Blicher-Mathiesen (1994) and some details of the cultivation and uses of shea have been described by Ruiz Mendez and Huesa Lope (1991). 

Detection of stigmastadienes in virgin olive oil at levels in excess of 0.15mg/kg is regarded under EC regulations as evidence of the presence of refined oils. The test is highly sensitive stigmastadiene levels in unrefined cocoa butter are well below 0.1 mg/kg whereas in refined butters up to several hundred mg/kg may be present. 

The quantitative determination of sterenes has been used to detect added CBEs or refining in cocoa butter and to establish the presence of CBAs in retail chocolates (Crews et al., 1997). The high quantity of triterpene alcohols in shea butters means that dehydration products of these sterols are formed in detectable levels when shea is bleached. These triterpene sterenes, which have not be characterized, can be detected in the stearin fraction used in CBEs (Crews etal., 1999). 

It is a complex mixture of acetone-insoluble phosphatides that consists chiefly of phosphatidyl choline, phosphatidyl ethanolamine, and phosphatidyl inositol combined with various amounts of other substances such as triglycerides, fatty acids, and carbohydrates. Refined grades of Lecithin may contain any of these components in varying proportions and combinations depending on the type of fractionation used. In its oil-free form, the preponderance of triglycerides and fatty acids is removed and the product contains 90% or more of phosphatides representing ah or certain fractions of the total phosphatide complex. Edible diluents, such as cocoa butter and vegetable oils, often replace soybean oil to improve functional and flavor characteristics. Lecithin is only partially soluble in water, but it readily hydrates to form emulsions. The oil-free phosphatides are soluble in fatty acids, but they are practically insoluble in fixed oils. When ah phosphatide fractions are present, Lecithin is partially soluble in alcohol and practically insoluble in acetone. 

Nucleation of fats may either be enhanced or inhibited by the presence of these minor components. Dimick (57) has argued that the phospholipids in cocoa butter, with higher melting point than the cocoa butter TAG, crystallize first and subsequently catalyze formation of cocoa butter TAG. The appearance and chemical composition of cocoa butter crystals formed from refined cocoa butter (phospholipids removed) was different from that of the initial crystals formed in nonrefined cocoa butter. Recent studies where these minor components have been separated and then added back to the purified TAG have shown that they invariably inhibit nucleation (21). 

Refined de-oiled lecithin can also be blended with carriers such as cocoa butter, hard butters, medium-chain triglycerides, or other diluents to obtain products with more functionality and different physical characteristics. Up to 40% phospholipids may be incorporated in these carriers without the use of solvents. These products are usually stabilized against autoxidation by the addition of antioxidants (33). De-oiled lecithin should be packaged as soon as possible to prevent moisture... 

Continuous interesterification processes exist but to date none have been commercialized. Interesterification is generally performed in small batches by specialty processors. An alternate method of increasing interest is directed interesterification using enzymes. The process is generally applied to palm-oil-based materials such as cocoa butter substitutes and to coconut oils. There is some concern about the effectiveness of interesterification with physical refined oils as low levels of FFA must be present or the reaction will not proceed as planned (5). Although not a hazardous process, interesterification is often included in the hydrogenation section of the refinery because of the similarity of the reactors. 

Timms (21) has heat of fusion to 17.7-22.3 kcal/kg for milkfat, 24-31 kcal/kg for fully hardened milkfat, 26-29 kcal/kg for cocoa butter in the p polymorph, 22.6 kcal/kg for refined, bleached, and deodorized (RBD) palm oil, 29.7 kcal/kg for RBD palm kernel oil, 26.0 kcal/kg for RBD coconut oil, 31.6 kcal/kg for fully hardened palm kernel oil, and 31.2 kcal/kg for fully hardened coconut oil. The heat of fusion is an empirical physical property dependent on the thermal history or tempering of the oil. 

The fine ground chocolate powder or paste is conveyed into refining equipment where the rest of the cocoa butter, emulsifying agent (lecithin) and the flavourings are added. 

Roast the cocoa, grind it. Macerate in alcohol the cocoa, cloves, mace, and vanilla and distill after 48 hours. Rectify. Add 1 gallon of tincture of vanilla and 400 lb. of refined sugar which has been dissolved in a sufficient quantity of water to bring the total quantity of liqueur to IOO gallons. The tincture of vanilla adds, in addition to flavor, a light yellow color which is much admired. 

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