Baking & Snack - October 2016 - 88

MIXING

Temperature sensors that work in conjunction with the mixer through a PLC can
help control mix time.
WP Bakery Systems

difficult to achieve, and the process takes more time, which
in turn heats up the dough.
Rapidojet employs an unconventional method of temperature control through the way it hydrates and mixes
instead of the mixing tools, according to Ken Schwenger,
president, Bakery Concepts. "Instead of a metal tool forcing liquid and dry ingredients together, Rapidojet injects
any free-falling powder or grain with any blend of highpressure liquids, which creates a homogenous bond," he
said. "Because it instantly hydrates and develops the gluten
structure, mix time can be reduced by 50% or more, and
the bakery needs substantially less glycol and ice."
Rapidojet contributes 2 F° maximum increase in temperature to the combined flour and water. "The bakery can
more easily control the final product temperatures by the
incoming water temperature," Mr. Schwenger said.
Features like variable speed drives, such as those offered
with mixers from Tonelli Group, also aid in temperature
control because the mixing process itself becomes more
precise, which then prevents too much friction and unnecessarily heating the dough. "We're keeping the mixing
time down and, therefore, keeping the temperature down
as well," said Kevin Wilkinson, North American Sales,
Tonelli Group.

Process effects
Regardless of the type of mixer used for developing artisan
dough, one idea remains: The mixing process can often af-

88 Baking & Snack October 2016 / www.bakingandsnack.com

fect the success of the dough downstream and also the finished artisan product.
"The quality of the various mixing stages - mixing,
kneading, falling down - is of prime importance for
the subsequent stages in the process," Mr. Dangel said.
"The geometry and speed of the tools, as well as the
mechanical action that incorporates air in the dough,
directly impact the structure of the dough and consequently other stages, such as fermentation."
Mr. Grutter agreed, noting that mixer manufacturers generally recognize the importance of
sophisticated but adjustable controls, mechanical
features and special tweaks.
Sometimes, a baker should simply consider how
the artisan dough comes together, just as much as
the type of equipment being used. For example, continuous mixers from Reading Bakery Systems can prepare artisan doughs through lower shaft speeds, gentler
mixing and possibly longer mix times, according to Jim
Warren, vice-president, Exact Mixing, Reading Bakery
Systems. For European-style breads and rolls that are
becoming more popular in the US, Mr. Warren said,
mixers tend to be larger, based on the production rate.
"Slower shaft speeds are common, and shaft configurations that gently fold the dough are used instead of
stretching and developing the dough," he explained.
For its horizontal mixers, Tonelli Group equips them
with variable speed drives and a recipe management system that enables more precision of the mixing steps. "I
call it process control management," Mr. Wilkinson said.
With the Tonelli system, the process entails mixing
by phase or step. In step No. 1, the baker starts at a low
RPM to incorporate ingredients. Step No. 2 ramps up
the speed. In step No. 3, the baker can increase the speed
even more and add ingredients while mixing. Step No. 4
slows the mixer back down for additional ingredients.
Mr. Wilkinson indicated that Tonelli's process control management can house up to 15 steps per recipe,
all programmable through the HMI interface. "In each
step, we can have a mixing RPM and a phase time or
step time, and various automatic ingredients and/or
manual ingredients," he said.
Referring to the concept of kneading rather than
mixing, Mr. Morabito emphasized that it's an important
factor to consider when creating artisan breads. "When
you're properly kneading, the mix time is much shorter
than when you're mixing or going around too fast," he said.
"If you can optimize the kneading, your mix times can be
nice and short," he said, suggesting one minute on low and
four to five minutes on high.
AMF offers a number options that help in adapting a
horizontal mixer to the artisan process, including sponge
doors and various minor ingredient feed systems, in-

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Baking & Snack - October 2016

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