Textural and sensory properties of spreads with sucrose and maltitol

Spreads are confectionery products based on sugar, vegetable fat, cocoa powder, milk powder and other ingredients. Basic properties of these products are good spreadability in wide temperature range (from ambience to fridge temperature), rich creamy chocolate taste, and homogenous smooth structure without oil phase migration. Undesirable attribute of these products is their relatively high energy value (2300 kJ/100 g). In recent years, cocoa cream products with reduced energy values have become very popular among consumers and today they are present in the assortment of many confectionery manufacturers. One way to produce spreads with reduced energy value is the replacement of sugar (sucrose) with adequate sweetener. Maltitol is a low-energy poliol capable to qualitatively and quantitatively replace sucrose. Cocoa spreads with maltitol and with the combination of maltitol and sucrose (produced at different temperatures and mixer rotation speeds) have similar texture and rheological properties compared to the spreads with sucrose. The spreads with maltitol have about 15% lower energy value in comparison to the same product with sucrose.