What’s The Ingredients Of Cream Cheese

Apart from being the most important ingredient in cheesecake, cream cheese is also used in preparing dips and spreads. Read on to know more about cream cheese ingredients.
Cream cheese is one of those popular dairy products with a myriad culinary uses. It has a smooth, creamy texture with a mild, sweet flavor. Easy to spread, cream cheese is used as dips, toppings and spreads. It is a perfect accompaniment for bagels, crackers and breads. It is added to salads and is also used in various other recipes. Cream cheese is the main ingredient in cheesecakes and cream cheese frosting.
What is Cream Cheese
Most of us are familiar with cream cheese, which is loved for its smooth and creamy texture. The history of cream cheese dates back to seventeenth century France. It believed that this type of cheese has also been used in England since the eighteenth century. However, in case of the United States, cream cheese is said to be prepared for the first time, during 1872. The credit for this goes to the American dairyman William Lawrence. Later, the American food processing company called ‘Kraft foods’ started producing and marketing this product under the brand name ‘Philadelphia’.
As per the FDA, cream cheese is defined as a soft white cheese with a minimum of 33% milk fat content and maximum of 55% moisture content. Even the pH range of this cheese has to be between 4.4 to 4.9. Nowadays, you may find cream cheese in many different versions including the low fat and no fat varieties. These include solid blocks that are packed in foils and creamy spreads in containers. The latter versions can be spread easily, even if it is kept inside the refrigerator. This is achieved by whipping in air in the cheese. Cream cheese differs from most of the other cheese types, as it is not matured and is meant for fresh use with a shorter shelf life.
Cream Cheese Ingredients
Being a dairy product, it can be inferred that cream is made of milk. Pasteurized and homogenized cow’s milk is primarily used for this purpose. Cheese culture like lactic acid bacteria is added to this milk, for fermentation. This mixture is heated to the right temperature and is further processed to produce cream cheese. This is the basic method of cream cheese preparation. Apart from milk and cheese culture, commercial cream cheese contains various other chinafooding additives and preservatives. This includes salt and stabilizers, like guar gum, carrageenan gum, xanthan gum and carob gum. Some of the latest versions of cream cheese contain different flavorings like that of fruits, herbs, salmon, etc.
Homemade Cream Cheese
Even though cream cheese is available in the market in various versions, you may prepare this dairy product at home too. All you have to do is to get two liters of pasteurized milk, a cup of plain curd and 200 grams of fresh cream. Boil the milk and let it cool for some time. Add the cream, when the milk is still lukewarm. After a short while, add the beaten curd and leave it covered for around three hours. The next step is to heat the mixture over low heat, till it starts breaking. The right temperature (80 to 85 degree Celsius) is very important for making cream cheese with the right texture. So, wait till the milk breaks completely . Once done, strain the contents using a cheesecloth. Add enough cool water into the cheese to make it cool. Now, fold the edges of the cloth, so as to form a bag with cheese inside. Squeeze out the water (stop squeezing as and when the water turns milky). Now blend the cheese till it becomes smooth and creamy. This is one of the easiest methods for making cream cheese.
Now you have a basic understanding about cream cheese food thickeners ingredients. If you are interested in using homemade cream cheese, you may try the above said recipe. In case, you run short of cream cheese, you may try its substitutes. These include a well blended mixture of equal amounts of ricotta cheese and plain yogurt. Another cream cheese substitute can be prepared by combining ? cup of margarine and eight ounces of low fat cottage cheese. Even though cream cheese is nutritious, moderate use is always recommended.

What’s Xanthan Gum

Xanthan gum and guar gum are the most common food additives used to make gluten free recipes. What is xanthan gum?Xanthan gum is one of the most common food additives. It is widely used as a thickening and stabilizing agent in the production of cosmetics and food items. Xanthan gum is derived from corn sugar. It is known for its excellent binding properties. As a food additive, it does not affect the color and flavor of the food.
How is Xanthan Gum Made
Xanthan gum is made by mixing corn sugar and bacteria called Xanthomonas campestris. The name ‘xanthan’ is derived from the name of the bacteria ‘Xanthomonas’ that are used to bring about fermentation of corn syrup. You don’t get corn syrup just by pressing corn kernels. The pulpy cornstarch has to be separated from corn kernels. Cornstarch is broken down into glucose when you add natural enzymes to it. You can obtain corn syrup by heating the sugars. Xanthan gum is nothing but fermented corn sugar polysaccharide. The bacteria Xanthomonas campestris, used to ferment corn sugars, help transform the complex molecules of corn sugar into simple molecules. Then a colorless viscous matter finally obtained is known as xanthan gum. Properties of xanthan gum and that of cornstarch are quite similar. The colorless slime or xanthan gum is used as a stabilizing or thickening agent in various food products or cosmetics.
Uses and Properties of Xanthan Gum
Xanthan gum plays an important role in offering smooth texture to ice creams. It helps prevent formation of ice crystals in ice creams. In salad dressings, sauces and pastry fillings, it acts as a stabilizing agent. In food industry, it is mainly used as a substitute for egg yolk. It is commercially used to produce egg substitutes that contain egg white. It acts as a fat substitute. It keeps you satiated when added to no-fat, or low fat dairy products. It also exhibits emulsifying properties of egg yolk. Xanthan gum is also used for thickening of soups.
Xanthan gum comes in liquid or powder form. Its properties are not affected by heat and it gets easily dissolved in hot or cold water. It is mainly used in the production of gluten free food products. Bread, cake, pasta, which contain xanthan gum as an ingredient, give a nice feel while eating. Xanthan gum thus, acts as a wheat gluten substitute in various flour-based food products. People with gluten allergy and those diagnosed with celiac disease can enjoy food products with xanthan gum.
What is Guar Gum
Some people are allergic to corn and corn-based products like xanthan gum. They can enjoy food products that contain guar gum, gum arabic, locust bean gum, gum tragacanth or carrageenan. Guar gum is a kind of natural food thickeners. Compared to cornstarch, very small amount of guar gum is required when used as a thickening agent. It is used in ice-creams, puddings, soups, etc. Guar gum is a very good binder and plasticizer. It is used to produce various processed foods that have characteristic creamy textures. It was also used to produce diet pills that were meant to create a sense of fullness. The FDA has banned the use of guar gum in diet pills or diet shakes, as this has led to stomach problems. Guar gum is obtained from guar seeds. Guar belongs to the group of important ‘cash crops’ of Pakistan and north India.
Those who are interested in baking and want to use xanthan gum as a binding agent, can order it online. Or they can buy it from a health food store or organic food store. You should look for it in gluten-free sections. You can always find xanthan gum in GNC and Whole Foods.

Fruit Pectin

Fruit pectin, or pectin is a heteropolysaccharide, a complex carbohydrate made up of D-galacturonic acid chains. It has been used in the food industry for quite sometime now mainly as a gelling agent for jams, jellies and candies. Because of its compact chain structure, it helps in binding and thus popular. If you have ever wondered why fruits taste in a peculiar manner, then that is because of the presence of little to more amounts of pectin in them and thus the name, fruit pectin.
What is Fruit Pectin?
As I mentioned, fruit pectin has been a popular gelling agent for a long time now. It is present in few of the fruits and vegetables especially oranges, apples, peaches and carrots, peas and potatoes from which it is extracted and used as a coagulating agent. However, fruits are the best source for obtaining fruit pectin wherein it has been sold as a powder or liquid in the market today apart from the natural extraction. Pectin is also the part of plant cell walls wherein it gives a proper cell shape and rigidity.
For natural extraction of pectin from fruits, you would have to first gather them. The thing with it is that fruit pectin can be extracted by boiling high fruit pectin fruit peels or rinds for a few minutes say about 10 minutes to get the thicker consistency required. However, if you happen to boil for more than 20 minutes, the pectin which you will obtain is of liquid consistency and can be used for fruit juices.
As I said, you get it in the market as well. However, it depends on where you stay. You can buy it online as well by taking into consideration all the safety measures. Apple pectin is excellent and has been the most popular fruit pectin till date. Probably this answers your question, where to buy fruit pectin. In case, you fail to get it anywhere, then there are few food thickeners fruit pectin substitutes which would come to your rescue. In alternation to fruit pectin, you can use cornstarch, gelatin or tapioca which act a binders and used in many a recipes.
If you check, pectin is a whitish to light brownish color powder which has to be mixed with water so that it acts as a gelling agent. It is because of the fruit pectin ingredients that it helps in stabilizing and thickening of the jams, candies and jellies and acts as a good food additive. If you make these food items on a regular basis, then you would be using probably the ready-made mix available in the market. Next time though, check the ingredients and you will realize that pectin is the essential one amongst all!
Not only this, but fruit pectin consumption is said to be of help in arthritis pain relief to a great extent. It is said to act as a cleansing agent as well which helps get rid of toxic from the body and hence a reliable solution to bowel problems like constipation and diarrhea. Many have used fruit pectin to pass drug test too. It has been observed that consumption of fruit pectin prior to drug test for smoking, marijuana or other drugs, helps get negative test results. For this, however, some states have banned their use.
What is pectin? Now you know the gist. Fruit pectin is definitely one of the food additives you should be aware of.

How to Cook Gluten-Free With Xanthan Gum and Guar Gum?

Xanthan (ZAN thun) gum and guar (gwar) gum are used in gluten-free cooking to bind, thicken and emulsify gluten-free ingredients. If you don’t add one of these gums to most of your gluten-free baked goods, they will likely end up as a pile of crumbs!
But is one gum better than the other and how much gum do you really need to use for best baking results?
Xanthan Gum
Xanthan gum is a corn-based, fermented product. It’s made by fermenting corn sugar with a microbial called “Xanthomonas campestris.” It’s used extensively in the food industry to make products thicker and it’s a common ingredient in gluten-free recipes.
If you use too much xanthan gum in a recipe you may notice a heavy, gummy or even slimy texture in your baked goods- so measure carefully when using xanthan gum.
People with allergies or sensitivity to corn may be advised by their physician to avoid xanthan gum. Also, xanthan gum generally costs almost 3 times as much as guar gum.
Guar Gum
Guar gum comes from the seed of bean-like (legume) plant, sometimes referred to as the Indian tree. It is high in soluble fiber. According to Bob’s Red Mill Guar Gum product literature ” food thickeners Guar Gum has eight times the thickening power as cornstarch.” Like xanthan gum, measure carefully when using guar gum in gluten-free recipes or you may end up with heavy, stringy baked goods.
Guar gum is a high fiber product and has been associated with gastrointestinal upset in some people.
General Tips for Using Xanthan Gum and Guar Gum in Gluten-Free Cooking
a. Bread and pizza dough recipes: Add 1 teaspoon xanthan gum or guar gum per cup of gluten-free flour used in bread and pizza dough recipes
b. Cake, muffin and quick bread recipes: Add 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum or guar gum per one cup of gluten-free flour used
c. Cookie and bar recipes: Add 1/2 teaspoon (or less) xanthan gum or guar gum per one cup gluten-free flour used
Note- For best results follow recipe recommendations when using food additives xanthan gum or guar gum.

Food Industry Uses of Sodium Alginate

Sodium Alginate is an interesting ingredient in a majority of food products that the urban world is consuming. It is a compound comprised of alginate and sodium derivative. However, not many would have expected it to come from typical seaweed. Kelp or brown seaweeds are where alginates can be extracted from. The extract undergoes a complex process and eventually becomes the ingredient that the food industry is so familiar with. When it is extracted from brown algae, it then becomes purified carbohydrate and results into a thick substance.
The Many Uses of Sodium Alginate in Food
What is responsible for its many uses are its special properties particularly its ability to thicken easily and become viscous quickly once it is dissolved in cold or hot water. Another beneficial property is that it forms into a gel once in contact with calcium. In contrast with agar-agar gel, sodium alginate can thicken even when dissolved with a cold solution.
Sodium alginate is popularly used as a kind of food additives in popular foods like ice cream and caviar. It is used as a flavor and taste enhancer. It is also a common ingredient used for increasing the thickness of gravy and tapioca. Processed foods too have a high percentage of sodium alginate. Its thickening properties are so essential in the cooking industry especially in syrups, sauces, and some milk products.
Apart from its thickening properties, sodium alginate is also used as n effective anti-settling or stabilizer for milkshakes and ice creams. As an ice cream stabilizer, it is known to replace ingredients such as carrageenan and starch. What makes it useful in ice cream making is that it can prevent ice crystals and make the product tastier. It also helps in emulsifying and stabilizing a variety of salad dressing, tomato ketchup, canned products, and pudding jam. When used in dairy products such as all purpose cream, dry cheese, and refined cheese, it prevents the finished product from sticking to the product.
Furthermore, it can be used for creative cuisine applications. Chef Ferran Adria, a Catalan Chef popularized a process known as spherification process which greatly involves the use of food thickeners sodium alginate. This process involves the formation of a gelatinous wall surrounding a liquid sphere. These spheres will then magically burst in the mouth.
The compound is also commonly used as an ingredient for making vermicelli and noodle since it offers a strong cohesiveness property giving way for lesser breakage. Thus, it makes noodles more flexible and more fun to eat.

Carboxy Methyl Cellulose-CMC(E466)

Application
 Carboxy Methyl Cellulose-CMC(E466) is used as a stabiliser, thickener, film former, suspending agent and extender. Applications include ice cream, dressings, pies, sauces, and puddings. It is available in various viscosities depending on the function it is to serve.
CMC is used to thicken dry mix beverage, syrups, ripples and ice cream, and also to stabilise ice cream, batters and sour milk. It gives moisture retention to cake mixes and water binding and thickening to icings. Food additives CMC tends to give clear, slightly gummy, solutions. It is generally soluble in cold water but difficult to disperse in hot.
Chemistry
 Carboxy Methyl Cellulose-CMC(E466) is extracted from plant tissue, mainly wood pulp and cotton, but because it is chemically modified it cannot be classified as a natural food ingredient. Native cellulose is inert and insoluble, but modification makes it soluble.
Properties
CMC is soluble in cold water to give clear and colourless solutions with neutral flavour.
Viscosity production is the primary property of CMC.
With instant products, CMC is used to provide the required rapid build-up of viscosity, for example in powdered beverages.
The viscosity produced by CMC contributes to the stabilisation of frozen products such as ice cream, water ices and ripples. Benefits include the conservation of texture and inhibition of ice crystal formation, a slow meltdown and an improved resistance to dripping and better heat shock resistance.
The thickening effects of CMC can be used in products such as salad dressings and tomato sauces. Food thickeners CMC properties that make it suitable for these applications include its rapid solubility in both hot and cold water, its good water binding and good tolerance to low pH levels.
For soft drinks CMC provides body or mouth feel to low calorie drinks sweetened with intense sweeteners, to more closely match the mouth feel obtained with sucrose or glucose syrup, and to inhibit ‘neck ringing’ by flavour oils in beverages.
Bakery products also benefit from incorporation of CMC. In cake mixes and batter mixes, CMC can improve the volume yield as a result of its viscosity drop during baking and improve the suspension and distribution of ingredients such as fruit. CMC can also provide improved yields and improved moistness after storage, and be used to increase yield or retard staling and hence prolong shelf life.