Disclosed are confectionery products having a texture and other attributes of a potato chip or snack chip, but which is made from candy ingredients.

Described herein is a crystalline fat comprising a powder density ranging from about 0.04 g/mL to about 0.40 g/mL at room temperature and at least 50% of particles have a particle size ranging from 10 to 50 m in diameter. Also described herein is a shortening comprising crystalline fat having a powder density ranging from about 0.04 g/mL to about 0.40 g/mL at room temperature and at least 50% of particles have a particle size ranging from 3 to 60 m in diameter and a liquid oil; wherein the crystalline fat ranges from about 25 wt % to about 99.9 wt % and the liquid oil ranges from about 0.1 wt % to about 75 wt %.

The invention provides a chocolate product comprising a chocolate shell containing a confectionery filling wherein the shell comprises at least 15 wt. % of the product and wherein the filling comprises at least one soluble dietary fibre in an amount of at least 40 wt. % and wherein the filling comprises less than 5 wt. % sugar or sugars and less than 5 wt. % sugar alcohols. The invention further provides a food product having a filling comprising a chocolate product according to the invention and methods of preparing a chocolate product of the invention comprising the steps of providing a chocolate shell and providing a confectionery filling, depositing the confectionery filling into the chocolate shell and optionally sealing the chocolate shell.

The invention provides a confectionery composition comprising: a) at least one fructan; b) at least one isomaltose oligosaccharide (IMO); and c) at least one further soluble dietary fibre ingredient.

A composition for coating confectionary and/or surfaces of food processing machines. The composition includes 60% to 99.09% by weight, based on a total amount of the composition, of an oil. The composition further includes 0.05% to 40% by weight, based on the total amount of the composition, of rice bran wax.

A method for coating food products is described, comprising:

providing a coating ingredient and forming a vertical curtain (2) with the coating ingredient in free fall;

advancing, in succession, a plurality of rows of products (100) along a feed path (K), wherein the products of each row of products are mutually aligned along a common reference axis (Xi) parallel to a transverse direction (T) to the feed path (K);

impinging the products (101) of each row of products (100) with the vertical curtain (2) to form a continuous coating (102) with the coating ingredient that deposits on them.

The method is characterized in that said step of forming a vertical curtain (2) includes:

dispensing the coating ingredient through a dispensing slit (22) of a dispensing head (20), and

feeding the coating ingredient to the dispensing slit (22) via a feed conduit (26) inside which the coating ingredient is maintained at a predetermined pressure by a pressure generating unit (27), so that a flow of the coating ingredient at a given flow rate is dispensed through said dispensing slit (22).