When many of us think about using 3-D printers, we think about making anything from a medical device to a model or perhaps even a tiny home. One thing that we may not think about is producing edible food.
That perception is about to change, thanks to researchers from Columbia University. They just created some edible cheesecake using the 3-D printer and revealed the results in a study.
As the university shared in a press release, the cheesecake was banana and peanut butter flavored with a cherry drizzle. To create it, they converted each ingredient into a substance that had a paste-like consistency.
It wasn’t necessary to convert every ingredient, as the frosting, peanut butter, Nutella, and cherry drizzle already had the proper consistency. They did mash the bananas and graham crackers and combined them with water and butter to create the paste.
The scientists then got busy creating the cheesecake in layers. It was similar to creating each layer of anything with a printer, such as the foundation of the graham cracker crust to the inside pools of peanut butter and Nutella.
The researchers did say that not everybody is going to be happy to eat foods that were 3-D printed. We are a society that is moving toward whole foods, so this type of processed food may not be very popular.
Then again, printing your own food could help you keep track of your nutrition, and cooks can use it to determine how much nutrient content a meal contains. This can be of particular benefit to those who have medical problems.
In the published study, researchers said: “We also see other important uses for 3D food printing, including creating alternatives to bland, unattractive pureed foods for those with swallowing and other digestive disorders.”
They went on to say how bringing new textures and shapes to food can make it more attractive and can even help to produce it on a large scale.
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