Modern cake making techniques use high levels of sugar, emulsifiers and humectants, which result in a soft eating quality for several weeks. However, the challenge is ensuring the cakes are microbiologically stable. To protect cakes from the premature growth of spoilage yeasts and moulds, preservatives such as potassium sorbate are often added. But additives of this kind are very pH dependent. For this reason, it can beneficial to add an acid such as malic acid or citric acid to control the pH level.
When added to a cake formula they will reduce the pH, but they will also begin to react rapidly with any leavening agents present. This reduces the leavening potential of the product during the baking phase, which leads to reduced volumes, poor eating quality and less product stability. By encapsulating the acid you can prevent this reaction taking place until the baking phase, resulting in a more stable product with increased volume.
To demonstrate the effectiveness of encapsulated acid in cakes, we devised a study using our encapsulated malic acid. This research emphasises the effectiveness of encapsulated malic acid as a means to balance pH in cakes. Higher inclusion rates reduce the pH of the final product to the optimum level, allowing the potassium sorbate to function normally. They also have a positive effect on the volume of both the batter of the cake and the baked product.
