Comparison of overrun and microstructure of ice creams produced using tabletop and commercial batch freezer machines

Abstract

Ice cream was prepared using both a tabletop and a commercial batch freezer, with identical ingredients and formulations, to compare overrun and microstructure during the freezing process. Both machines exhibited similar trends in overrun throughout the manufacturing process. Peak overrun was observed when the ice cream temperature reached approximately −4 C. Although the peak overrun values differed between the machines, a significant positive correlation was observed. Cryo-scanning electron microscopy images showed that air cells and ice particles became finer as freezing progressed in both machines. These findings indicate that tabletop ice cream machines are suitable for fundamental research, as they exhibit freezing behavior similar to that of commercial machines. The results also suggest that the maximum overrun values for commercial machines may be estimable based on data obtained from tabletop machines.