Scientists 3D printed ‘low-fat’ chocolate

Want some healthy chocolate? Just print it.

Chocoholics, rejoice! A Rutgers scientist discovered a formula for healthier low-fat chocolate that can be created using a 3D printer.

Scientists substituted cocoa butter — which is responsible for the texture, structure and consistency of chocolate — for a lower-fat, water-in-oil emulsion, which mimicked the characteristics of the delectable treat.

“Everybody likes to eat chocolate, but we are also concerned with our health,” Qingrong Huang, a professor in the Department of Food Science at the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences said in a press release.

“To address this, we have created a chocolate that is not only low-fat but that can also be printed with a 3D printer,” he continued. “It’s our first ‘functional’ chocolate.”

Traditionally, chocolate is made of cocoa butter, cocoa powder, and powdered sugar, which combine with an emulsifier. In the study, scientists experimented with different ingredients using a standard chocolate recipe as the base, and then tried out substitutions.

They found that substituting part of cocoa butter with gum arabic — an extract from the acacia tree that is commonly used in the food industry — worked and combined it with golden syrup to enhance the flavor of the 3D chocolate.

Huang said the chocolate paves the way for low-fat alternatives to traditionally sugary treats.

“3D food printing technology enables the development of customized edible products with tailored taste, shape and texture as well as optimal nutrition based on consumer needs,” Huang said.