The Color Changing Ice-cream

Ice-cream is everyone’s favorite. A variety of flavors, shapes, and colors fascinates us more. We always eat with our eyes. It’s general to associate the flavor of the ice-cream with its color, say brown color means chocolate or caramel, yellow is mango, pink is strawberry, and many more. Color has an important role in flavor perception.

In our previous articles about the ice-creams, we have discussed the various types of ice creams such as the never melting ice-cream which can be stored for hours at room temperature, mini ice-cream bombs which are the innovative type of ice-cream beads, and the glowing ice-cream which has the property to glow in the dark.

But the innovations in the field of ice-creams are not yet finished. Imagine a situation where you have bought the ice-cream of your favorite flavor and color, and suddenly it starts changing its color. The more you lick the ice-cream, the more is the color change.

Strange?

Is it a kind of magic? How is it possible for an ice-cream to change its color instantly on licking?

Well, the concept of color-changing ice-cream is not a new thing. In 2001 also, a patent has been filed for the frozen dessert which changes its color. In 2014, physicist Manuel Linares announced his invention of developing color-changing ice-cream, named Xamaleon (similar to Chameleons who can change their color as per their wish), gaining huge importance in the market. The ice-cream is made up of natural ingredients including almond, vanilla, banana, and strawberries, and comes in tutti-frutti flavor which on continuous licking, changes the color from periwinkle to pink to purple. Before serving, a liquor called ‘love elixir’ is sprayed on the cone, which is claimed to accelerate the rate of color change in the ice-cream. The exact compound used for the preparation of this ice-cream is not known due to the patent filing process.

Two theories are related to the color-changing effect. One is thermochromism and the other is acidochromism. Thermochromism means a change in the color of the product concerning a change in the temperature. Compounds that are responsible to show thermochromism is heat susceptible and undergo reactions that cause a change in their changing temperature. Similarly, there are compounds available in nature which changes the color on varying acidic conditions or pH.

The human mouth has saliva with an approximate pH of 6.5. When the ice-cream is licked continuously, there is a change in the pH of the ice-cream which affects the chemical constituents and causes the color change. Moreover, licking the ice-cream causes an increase in the temperature of the ice-cream. These thermochromic and acidochromic compounds are been utilized in the ice-cream to give it a unique color-changing feature. The major category of these compounds is anthocyanin. These are responsible for the natural colors in various flowers and fruits. The Xameleon is made up of Peruvian and African medicinal plants i.e. all the color-changing compounds are natural.

Presently, Manuel Linares has its own ice-cream stores where this magical ice-cream is sold. It is available only in Spain but maybe available across the globe soon.

Many natural compounds are existing in our incredible nature that are unexplored. So, what are you waiting for? Try your own experiments and you may also develop something innovative in your backyard.

References:

1. https://science.howstuffworks.com/innovation/edible-innovations/color-changing-ice-cream.htm

2. https://patents.google.com/patent/US6231901B1/en

3. https://www.quora.com/How-does-color-changing-ice-cream-work

4. https://inventionland.com/blog/check-color-changing-invention/