Soft canine biscuit containing discrete particles of meat and other materials and method for making same

Claim 1

A method for making dry soft canine biscuits from a final biscuit dough comprising: (a) dry blending particles, which contain (i) meat and/or meat by-product and (ii) farinaceous material and/or textured vegetable protein, and which have a moisture content of less than or equal to about 35 percent by weight of said particles, with non-fat solids to provide a substantially homogeneous dry blended mixture, said particles having a water activity less than the water activity of said final biscuit dough, said non-fat solids portion containing sufficient added sugar so that the total sugar content of the final soft biscuit dough is adequate to provide a final soft biscuit dough, no fat being added in step (a) except for the indigenous fat which is present in said particles, and said particles being present in an amount of about 3 to about 25 weight percent, based on the total weight of said dry soft canine biscuits; (b) admixing water with said dry blended mixture (a) to form a first stage dough, said water being present in an amount of about 15 to about 35 weight percent, based on the total weight of said final biscuit dough; (c) mixing added-fat with said first stage dough to form said final soft biscuit dough, said added-fat being present in an amount of about 0.5 to about 10 weight percent, based on the total weight of said final biscuit dough; (d) forming said final soft biscuit dough into pieces using a low shear forming pressure of less than 75 p.s.i.g. to make said formed pieces; and (e) baking and drying said pieces to form said dry soft biscuits, which are shelf stable, whereby dry soft canine biscuits are produced having said particles present as discrete visually-apparent particles distributed substantially uniformly throughout and embedded in the surface of said dry soft canine biscuits.

Claim 2

A method for making dry soft canine biscuits from a final biscuit dough comprising: (a) dry blending particles, which contain (i) meat and/or meat by-product and (ii) farinaceous material and/or textured vegetable protein, and which have a moisture content of less than or equal to about 35 percent by weight of said particles, with non-fat solids to provide a substantially homogeneous dry blended mixture, said particles having a water activity less than the water activity of said final biscuit dough, said non-fat solids portion containing sufficient added sugar so that the total sugar content of the final soft biscuit dough is adequate to provide a final soft biscuit dough, no fat being added in step (a) except for the indigenous fat which is present in said particles, and said particles being present in an amount of about 3 to about 25 weight percent, based on the total weight of said dry soft canine biscuits; (b) admixing water with said dry blended mixture (a) to form a first stage dough, said water being present in an amount of about 15 to about 35 weight percent, based on the total weight of said final biscuit dough; (c) mixing added-fat with said first stage dough to form said final soft biscuit dough, said added-fat being present in an amount of about 0.5 to about 10 weight percent, based on the total weight of said final biscuit dough; (d) forming said final soft biscuit dough into pieces using a low shear forming pressure of less than 75 p.s.i.g. to make said formed pieces; and (e) baking and drying said pieces to form said dry soft biscuits, which are shelf stable, whereby dry soft canine biscuits are produced having said particles present as discrete visually-apparent particles distributed substantially uniformly throughout and embedded in the surface of said dry soft canine biscuits.

Claim 23

A method for incorporating particles into a final soft biscuit dough to obtain soft dry canine biscuits comprising: (a) dry blending said particles, which contain (i) meat and/or meat by-product and (ii) farinaceous material and/or textured vegetable protein, having a moisture content of less than or equal to about 35 percent by weight of said particles, with non-fat solids, said particles having a water activity which is less than the water activity of said final biscuit dough, and said particles being present in an amount of about 3 to about 25 weight percent, based on the total weight of said dry soft canine biscuits; (b) admixing water with said dry blended mixture to form a first stage dough, said added-water portion being present in an amount of about 15 to about 35 weight percent, based on the total weight of said final biscuit doughs; (c) mixing fat with said first stage dough to form a final dough, said fat being present in an amount of about 0.5 to about 10 weight percent, based on the total weight of said final biscuit dough; (d) forming said final dough into pieces using low shear forming pressure; and (e) baking and drying said pieces to form dry soft biscuits, wherein the water activity of said soft biscuits is 0.70 or less, and whereby dry soft canine biscuits are produced having said particles present as discrete visually-apparent particles distributed substantially uniformly throughout and embedded in the surface of said dry soft canine biscuits.

Claim 24

A method for incorporating particles into a final soft biscuit dough to obtain soft dry canine biscuits comprising: (a) dry blending said particles, which contain (i) meat and/or meat by-product and (ii) farinaceous material and/or textured vegetable protein, having a moisture content of less than or equal to about 35 percent by weight of said particles, with non-fat solids, said particles having a water activity which is less than the water activity of said final biscuit dough, and said particles being present in an amount of about 3 to about 25 weight percent, based on the total weight of said dry soft canine biscuits; (b) admixing water with said dry blended mixture to form a first stage dough, said added-water portion being present in an amount of about 15 to about 35 weight percent, based on the total weight of said final biscuit doughs; (c) mixing fat with said first stage dough to form a final dough, said fat being present in an amount of about 0.5 to about 10 weight percent, based on the total weight of said final biscuit dough; (d) forming said final dough into pieces using low shear forming pressure; and (e) baking and drying said pieces to form dry soft biscuits, wherein the water activity of said soft biscuits is 0.70 or less, and whereby dry soft canine biscuits are produced having said particles present as discrete visually-apparent particles distributed substantially uniformly throughout and embedded in the surface of said dry soft canine biscuits.