Baking & Snack - November 2022 - 58

PIZZA PROCESSING
" Gluten-free and veggie-based crusts are by nature challenging
to produce particularly when the production rate
demands are high, " noted Jerry Murphy, vice president of
sales, Gemini. " This requires specialized equipment with
the need to do extensive testing. "
BFY crusts have taken off, but there's plenty of demand
for more indulgent crusts as well. Stuffed crust remains a
big opportunity for pizzamakers, with Datassential reporting
that 56% of consumers are interested in the crust while
only 19% of pizza-serving operators offer it.
To make these stuffed crusts, an extra-large dough portion
is die cut or pressed before a ring of cheese is deposited,
Mr. Hagedorn explained. The extra dough is then
wrapped around the cheese down the line before baking.
" The difficult thing is the cheese, because most mozzaPrecision
sauce
applicators help
pizzamakers improve
consistency and
reduce waste.
Gemini Bakery Equipment
Traditional sheeting lines are also advancing to better
handle BFY doughs.
" Our philosophy when designing machines and systems
is very simple: The machine must adapt to the dough and
not the dough to the machine, " Mr. Kelly said.
Fritsch's Impressa line accomplishes this through its
SoftProcessing principle that gently sheets the dough. A
dough band is formed using a 5-roller dough sheet former,
and then a satellite head and cross roller ensure the band is
calibrated to the desired dough thickness.
Sheeting lines are also eliminating the need for certain
processing ingredients to simplify production and meet
new crust standards. Rondo's MIDOS dough band former
offers a specially developed roller system that doesn't require
any process flour or oil, for example.
And Rademaker's Pizza Base line sheets dough without
WHILE THE PROLIFERATION OF
NEW PIES MAY BE A PIZZA LOVER'S
DREAM, IT CAN BE A NIGHTMARE
FOR MANUFACTURERS THAT HAVE
TO HANDLE MORE DELICATE CRUSTS,
TOPPINGS AND MORE.
oil or pans and has a working width of 600 to 1,600 mm.
The line's no-stress sheeting and laminating technology enables
bakers to achieve a wide variety of dough structures.
A dough ball system can accommodate trickier doughs
as well. Gemini Bakery Equipment has developed a highspeed
rounder/divider to produce pizza dough balls from
4 to 18 ounces for a variety of speeds and weights. To accommodate
unique dough types, different proof times are
applied to the dough ball before final processing.
58 Baking & Snack November 2022 / www.bakingbusiness.com
rella you have to handle at less than 40 degrees, " he warned.
" If you do it too soft, you tend to have a meltdown problem
when you bake it. So the less pressure you can use, the less
temperature involved, you're less likely to have leakage. "
Stuffed crusts can even feature a full layer of cheese
throughout the entire pizza, such as Arlington, Va.-based
Nestle USA's DiGiorno Fully Stuffed Crust Pizza, which debuted
earlier this year.
Producing a fully stuffed crust is similar to laminating,
Mr. Hagedorn said, as an additional full layer of dough is
placed on top of the full layer of cheese. Croissant crusts
are another innovative option that DiGiorno added to the
category this year but would require a completely different
processing line, Mr. Hagedorn noted.
" When you get to a croissant crust it becomes a laminating
line, almost like you're producing a Danish, " he said.
" You likely will have to layer dough and fat and then laminate,
and your sheeting line becomes more expensive. "
Topping it off
Pizza toppings are just as diverse as the crusts they go on.
In addition to classic add-ons like pepperoni and sausage,
Datassential reported that consumers are increasingly interested
in meat substitutes and plant-based alternatives.
For pizzamakers, this means equipment must be able to
place a wide variety of toppings efficiently and accurately.
" Toppings that are inconsistent in shape and size can
be a challenge, " said Tom Trost, sales manager, Quantum
Technical Services. " Topping applicator deposits are generally
volumetric, so it is important to have ingredients that
are similar in size and shape to achieve consistent deposit
volumes. For example, broccoli florets and sliced tomatoes
can be a challenge to get even coverage across the
pizza surface. "
Quantum's bulk feed conveyors can be loaded with a
higher volume of product that is automatically fed to a waterfall
applicator via a hopper level sensor.
" This creates a steady state of product entering the sys
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