17
Natural and Artificial Flavorings
Exercises and Experiments
Exercise 1: Sensory Characteristics of Spices
Place a sample of each of the spices listed in the Results Table on a separate small white plate or shallow cup and label with name or number. Prepare a diluted sugar syrup by blending two parts water with one part sugar and stirring to dissolve, then add 2 percent (baker’s percentage) of each ground spice to the sugar syrup and stir until dispersed. Use 2 grams spice (approximately 1 tsp/5 ml) for every 100 grams of syrup.
Evaluate the appearance and aroma of each dry spice and record your notes in the Results Table. Evaluate the taste and trigeminal effects of each spice by tasting the spices dispersed in syrups. Cleanse your palate between samples with unsalted crackers and water. Evaluate all attributes for seeds using dry whole seeds. In Additional Comments column of Results Table, list any memories or food products that the spice brings to mind (your mom’s apple pie, your favorite cookies, baked ham, Italian sausage, etc.).
After you have completed the Results Table, review it to see if you have adequately described each spice. In particular, be sure you have adequately differentiated the following spices, which are easily confused: nutmeg and mace; allspice and cloves; anise and fennel.
Two rows are left blank, for the evaluation of additional spice samples, if desired.
Results Table Sensory Characteristics of Dry Spices
Spice / Appearance / Aroma (Dry Spice) / Flavor (Spice in Syrup) / Additional comments1 / Cinnamon
2 / Nutmeg
3 / Mace
4 / Ginger
5 / Cardamom
6 / Allspice
7 / Cloves
8 / Anise seed
9 / Fennel seed
10 / Caraway seed
11
12
Use information from the preceding table and from your textbook to answer the following questions. Select one from the choices in bold or fill in the blanks.
1 The spice with the sweetest aroma was cinnamon/cardamom/cloves.
2 The spice with a trigeminal effect that numbed the tongue was allspice/cloves.
3 The trigeminal effect of ginger can be described as
4 Select any two spices of your choice that are quite different from each other:
Describe in one sentence how they differ.
Answer:
5 Select any two spices of your choice that you feel could be easily substituted for one another because they are most similar in flavor:
Describe in what specific ways they are similar, and describe any differences.
Answer:
6 Were there any spices that you were able to identify only by association with food products? If so, list the spices below and list the food product that you associate each with.
Answer:
Exercise 2: Identifying Spices by Smell Alone
Fill small wide-mouth dark bottles with a layer of ground spices, some with one spice per bottle, others with a blend of spices. Top with a cotton ball, to hide the spice from view, and label each bottle on the bottom with its contents. Cover each bottle and shake gently, to stir up volatile molecules. Uncap and sniff, and see if you can identify the spice from smell alone. Repeat until you are able to identify all spices and all spice combinations.
Experiment 3: How Different Vanillas Affect the Quality of Custard Sauce
Objectives
Demonstrate how different brands and types of vanilla affect the
• Appearance of vanilla custard sauce
• Flavor strength and quality of vanilla custard sauce
• Overall acceptability of vanilla custard sauce
Products Prepared
Vanilla custard sauce made with:
• Pure vanilla extract (Madagascar; control product)
• Imitation vanilla flavoring
• Vanilla bean (Madagascar)
• Other, if desired (Tahitian vanilla bean, blend of pure extract and imitation flavoring, double the amount of pure vanilla extract, double the amount of vanilla bean, double the amount of imitation vanilla flavoring, additional brands of pure extract, additional brands of imitation flavorings, etc.)
Materials and Equipment
• Scale
• Stainless-steel saucepans, 2-quart or equivalent
• Whisk
• Watch or clock
• Instant-read thermometer
• Heat-resistant spatulas
• Stainless-steel bowls
• Ice water bath
• Vanilla custard sauce (see Formula), enough to make 16 fl. oz. (500 ml) of each variation
Formula
Vanilla Custard Sauce
Yield: 2 cups (1⁄2 liter)
Ingredient / Pounds / Ounces / Grams / Baker’s PercentageMilk, whole / 8 / 240 / 50
Heavy cream / 8 / 240 / 50
Sugar, regular granulated / 4 / 115 / 25
Egg yolks (6 yolks) / 4 / 115 / 25
Vanilla extract or flavoring (1 1⁄2 tsp/7.5 ml) / 0.25 / 7 / 1.5
Total / 1 / 8.25 / 717 / 151.5
Method of Preparation (with vanilla extract)
1 Place milk, heavy cream, and sugar into 2-quart stainless-steel saucepan and bring just to a boil.
2 Using a wire whisk, gently stir egg yolks. Temper scalded milk mixture into yolks by slowly adding approximately 1⁄2 cup (125 milliliters) of it into yolks.
3 Add yolk/milk mixture back into scalded milk. Record start cook time here:
4 Cook mixture over low heat until it coats back of spoon (nappe) or until it reaches 180°F (82°C), stirring constantly with a heat-resistant spatula.
5 Immediately remove from heat and transfer to a stainless steel bowl. Record end cook time here:
6 Place bowl in ice water bath.
7 Add vanilla extract/flavoring and continue to cool, stirring gently.
Method of Preparation (with vanilla bean)
1 In step 1, add 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped, to milk-cream mixture.
2 In step 5, after removing sauce from heat, remove split vanilla bean.
3 In step 7, omit vanilla extract.
Procedure
1 Prepare vanilla custard sauce using the formula given or using any basic vanilla custard sauce formula. Prepare one batch of sauce for each variation.
2 Calculate total cook time, in minutes, and record in Results Table.
3 Cool samples in ice water bath, all to same temperature (about 40°F/5°C).
4 Use cost information to determine the cost per batch for the vanilla used in each product and record in Results Table. If you do not have costing information available, use the following values:
• Pure vanilla extract, one-fold: $1.00 per ounce (30 grams)
• Pure vanilla extract, two-fold: $1.75 per ounce (30 grams)
• Imitation vanilla extract: $0.25 per ounce (30 grams)
• Vanilla bean (Madagascar): $1.00 each
Results
Evaluate the sensory characteristics of completely cooled products and record evaluations in the Results Table, which follows. Be sure to compare each in turn to the control product, evaluating each of the attributes listed in the Results Table. For your evaluation of flavor strength and quality, consider the following:
• Immediate vanilla impact
• Lingering vanilla middle notes
• Sweetness
• Alcohol taste
Enter overall acceptability, from highly unacceptable to highly acceptable, on a scale of 1 to 5. Add any additional comments, as necessary.
Results Table Vanilla Custard Sauces Made with Different Types and Amounts of Vanilla Flavoring
Type and Amount of Vanilla / Total Cook Time (in minutes) / Appearance / Flavor Strength and Quality / Overall Acceptability / Cost of Vanilla per Batch / Additional CommentsPure vanilla extract (control product)
Imitation vanilla flavoring
Vanilla bean
Sources of Error
List any sources of error that might make it difficult to draw the proper conclusions from your experiment. In particular, consider any differences in how long sauces were cooked, how vigorously they were stirred when cooled, and what temperature they were cooled to.
Answer:
State what you could do differently next time to minimize or eliminate each source of error.
Answer:
Conclusions
Select one from the choices in bold or fill in the blanks.
1 The difference in appearance between the sauce made with pure vanilla extract (control product) and vanilla bean was small moderate large. One difference was that the sauce made with vanilla bean was lighter darker in color. Other differences include the following:
Answer:
2 The difference in the flavor profile and flavor strength between the sauce made with pure vanilla extract and vanilla bean was small moderate large. For example, the sauce made with vanilla bean was lower higher the same in flavor strength. Based on these results, when making custard sauce, 1 vanilla bean of the quality and size used in this experiment is equal to less than more than equal to 1⁄4 ounce (7 grams) or 11⁄2 teaspoons (7.5 milliliters) of the vanilla extract used in this experiment. These results will will not likely hold if a different grade or size vanilla bean, or a different vanilla extract, is used.
3 The difference in flavor quality between imitation flavoring and pure vanilla extract was small moderate large. I would describe these differences as follows:
Answer:
4 The difference in cost per batch between vanilla beans and pure vanilla extract was small moderate large. In my opinion, the quality difference between vanilla bean and pure vanilla extract justifies does not justify the use of more expensive vanilla bean in this product because
5 The difference in cost per batch between imitation flavoring and pure vanilla extract was small moderate large. In my opinion, this price difference justifies does not justify the use of less-expensive imitation vanilla flavoring in this product because
This same conclusion probably holds for other products that are similar to custard sauce, such as (list two or three products similar to custard sauce)
This same conclusion probably does not hold for products that are much different from custard sauce, such as
6 Other noticeable differences between sauces were as follows:
Answer: