Bird's milk: benefits and harm to the body

Candy and Bird's milk cakes are associated with a holiday, a surprise, pleasant gifts from your beloved people. This is not everyday sweetness, and it's not about the price. In Soviet times, such confectionery was in short supply, but the housewives managed to cook it with their own hands. Now there are dozens of recipes that allow you to make a delicious and nutritious delicacy on your own.

What is bird milk?

Candy called Bird's Milk consists of a soft, porous white filling that is coated with chocolate icing. The composition of the cream can vary within wide limits. This is due to the lack of strict standards for the manufacture of the product.

Foamed soft filling is half the volume of the cake of the same name. Often, the creamy part takes up to 80% of the culinary product. The cake consists of 1-3 layers of biscuit (or shortcrust pastry), between which is a white filling. Cakes are coated with chocolate (on top, or on all sides).

What are they made of

The first sweets called “Bird's milk” began to make the Polish confectionery company E.Wedel. This was in the late 30s of the last century. The factory produced glazed chocolates with marshmallow filling. This soft, porous substance looks like a foamy marshmallow. It contains corn syrup (or sugar), gelatin, vanilla flavor and glucose. The ingredients were whisked to a stable foam, which after hardening forms a soft sponge. At E.Wedel, marshmallows were cut into pieces and doused with chocolate. The new product is called “Ptashe Milechko”, which translates from Polish as “Bird's milk”.

“Soviet milk” was brought to Soviet Russia by a Soviet official. This was in 1967, and after 12 months the factories released the first boxes of chocolates. Their composition was very different from the Polish delicacy, which inspired officials to create similar products in the country of the Soviets. The modern filling “Bird's milk” is prepared in the same way as in the late 60s of the twentieth century. The main delicacy products are condensed milk, agar agar thickener, beaten egg white and nutritional supplements.

Agar-agar is produced from two types of algae living in the coastal zones of the Pacific Ocean, White and Black Seas. This substance dissolves in water and after cooling the liquid forms a dense jelly. Agar-agar goes on sale in the form of a light yellow fine-grained powder or plates.

Unlike animal gelatin, agar agar does not dissolve in cold water. For the complete dissolution of the granules, a temperature of 95–100 ° C is needed.

Agar-agar makes the "Bird's milk" filling porous and spongy. In home recipes, it is often replaced with ordinary gelatin, but the result is far from always meeting factory standards. Gelatin is made from collagen-containing animal tissues, and agar-agar is made from plant materials, so the properties of culinary products are different. Filling with agar agar is tastier and more tender. It contains air bubbles and layers, which makes the gentle cream literally melt in your mouth.

For the manufacture of the first Russian sweets, agar agar made from an anfelium extract - seaweed was used. This sea grass is widespread in the coastal shelf. Far Eastern agar-agar is still being produced, but mainly for the needs of the Primorsky Confectioner factory. And in stores they sell mainly imported thickener.

What is the difference between "Bird's milk" from soufflé

"Bird's milk" and soufflé differ in cooking methods. The “Bird's milk” filling for sweets is not baked, the ingredients are only mixed and whipped. No heat treatment other than brewing agar-agar is required.

So, in the classic recipes for making homemade cream, agar-agar is soaked in water, sugar is added and the liquid is boiled for 5 minutes. It is important that the pieces or plates are completely dissolved. Egg white is poured into a cup, a few grams of citric acid and vanilla sugar are added. The ingredients beat well. Slowly pour hot agar-agar and continue to mix the mass with a blender until the temperature drops to 50 ° C.

At 40 ° C, agar-agar goes into a jelly-like state, so it is important not to overcool the mixture and put it on the cakes in time. Then add condensed milk, mashed with butter, mix the components and spread the mass on a cake with an even layer.

Mistresses and culinary experts often call the filling “Bird's milk” cream soufflé. There are no exact terms in cooking, and that doesn't matter. But real souffle is made differently, with heat treatment.

Souffle is a baked confectionery that is cooked in the oven. This word comes from the French "prompter", which means "breathe", "pout", "blow up". It well describes the state of airy, delicate baking. To make a classic souffle, you need eggs, flour, butter, icing sugar, milk and vanilla sugar.

The recipe includes the following steps. Melt the butter, add the flour and mix the ingredients. Powdered sugar is added, mixed again, put the pan in a water bath and bring the dough to a boil.

Beat the yolks until they whiten, and combine with milk. Separate the protein until a stable foam. Gently mix all the ingredients and fill the baking dish at two-thirds of the height. The molds are placed in an oven preheated to 180 ° C and baked for 20 minutes. Then the oven is turned off and the baking is kept warm for another 10-15 minutes (if you remove the forms immediately, the souffle instantly settles from the temperature difference).

In the preparation of soufflé, gelatin, agar-agar and other additives forming a colloidal substance are not used. In the preparation of "Bird's milk" is not used wheat or other flour.

Composition and calorie content

Products called "Bird's milk" are made by several confectionery factories. The composition of the ingredients of the candy filling varies, as does their quantity. Information from each manufacturer can be read on the packaging.

Consider the composition, calorie content and energy value of sweets produced by the Rot-Front factory. 100 g of product contain:

• proteins - 2.6 g;
• carbohydrates - 56.0 g;
• fats - 24.9 g.

Calorie content of sweets is 450 kcal (per 100 g), energy value - 1883 kJ.

The composition of the product includes such components: condensed milk, chocolate, cocoa powder, sugar, milk fat or its substitute, starch syrup, eggs, thickener agar-agar, citric acid, food additives - flavors and emulsifiers.

Manufacturer "Roshen" indicates similar numbers. 100 g of product contain:

• proteins - 2.5g;
• carbohydrates - 55.7 g;
• fats - 23.9 g.

Calorie content of sweets is 447 kcal (per 100 g), energy value - 1871.49 kJ.

The composition of the product includes the following ingredients: condensed milk, confectionery fat, starch syrup, cocoa powder, cow butter, cocoa butter, eggs, agar agar, soy lecithin, chocolate, sugar, citric acid, crystalline vanillin, ethyl alcohol, food additives (flavorings and preservatives).

Other manufacturers have a slightly different protein / fat / carbohydrate ratio, but the composition can vary widely, as factories use a wide variety of nutritional supplements. But old, well-known companies still make products according to state standards developed back in the Soviet era.

Bird's milk cake contains flour and other biscuit ingredients. A hundred-gram piece of a classic cake contains:

• proteins - 4.9 g;
• fats - 13.3 g;
• carbohydrates - 55.0 g.

The calorific value of 100 g of the product is 385 kcal, the energy value is 1497.87 kJ.

The composition of biscuit cakes includes premium-grade wheat flour, eggs, baking powder, sugar, and other products. To make the filling, manufacturers use the same ingredients as for “Bird's milk” candies.

Weight watchers can calculate the calorie content of one candy and include them in the menu without exceeding the amount of food consumed. Bird's milk is a lightweight product. One candy weighs approximately 15 g. It contains:

• proteins - 0.4 g;
• carbohydrates - 5.3 g;
• fats - 3.58 g.

There are approximately 66–67 sweets in a kilogram, and 6–7 in 100 grams. One candy contains approximately 6.67 kcal.

What is useful "Bird's milk"

General benefit

“Bird's milk” can benefit the body; it is a high-calorie, nutritious product. Carbohydrates and fats quickly restore strength during active physical exertion, and the great taste of the treat improves mood.

Sweet foods are good for depression and nervous disorders, as well as in stressful situations and with increased anxiety. Sugar refers to fast carbohydrates that supply energy to the muscles and activate the brain.

"Bird's milk" contains agar-agar, which has a number of useful properties. This product supplies the body with trace elements - iodine, iron, magnesium and calcium.

Agar-agar contains polysaccharides and mineral salts and reduces the level of "bad" cholesterol. It has no proteins and ash substances. Agar contains pentose, galactose, agarose, organic acids (glucuronic and pyruvic), which are involved in metabolic processes and improve energy metabolism.

Sweet calms, relaxes and raises the level of “hormones of happiness”. Algae extract products are useful in treating non-diabetes mellitus hypoglycemia.

For women

Women who are not overweight can eat “Bird's milk” within the daily intake recommended by nutritionists. But if such problems are present, sweets can be consumed as a rare treat that will improve your mood.

This product can be included in the diet for a lack of body weight. Older women need to be careful about cakes and sweets. High carbohydrate foods provoke obesity and diabetes.

For men

Men can eat products filled with “Bird's milk” if there are no problems with being overweight. Carbohydrates will not damage during intense physical exertion.

“Bird's milk” can be introduced into the diet when playing sports, any activity associated with high energy costs. The products that make up the treats do not adversely affect a man’s health if he does not have diabetes or is allergic to the ingredients of sweets.

During pregnancy

A pregnant woman can eat any sweets if weight gain goes according to plan, and there are no diseases prohibiting eating sweets. Supporters of a healthy lifestyle advise excluding confectionery from the pregnant woman’s diet, but women rarely adhere to such rules. If there are no contraindications and an allergic reaction, “Bird's milk” can be eaten.

When buying sweets, you should pay attention to what flavorings, emulsifiers and dyes are included in the composition of the product. If you have previously observed intolerance to one or more ingredients of a confectionery product, you should refuse a treat.

When breastfeeding

A nursing mother can eat “Bird's milk” if the product is well suited not only to her, but also to the baby. After the baby is born, sweets and cakes should be tried with caution, in a small piece.

The baby and the mother may react differently to the products. If the mother tried the cake, and the baby had colic, rash, diaper rash, diathesis spots, we can assume that this sweetness is the reason, and exclude it from the diet.

For children

Many pediatricians do not advise children to give marshmallows, marshmallows and "Bird's milk" up to 3 years, since the internal organs of the child are not ready to digest "heavy" sweets. You can find recommendations that prohibit eating such products up to 4-5 years.

Sugar very quickly destroys baby's baby teeth. “Bird milk” can be given to older children, but only as a rare treat, in small quantities. After a treat, a rash, itching, red spots on the cheeks and other symptoms of diathesis should not appear.

When losing weight

People who eat a healthy diet can sometimes enjoy Bird's milk. But those who are on a diet for weight loss should temporarily forget about this delicious dessert.

There are diets whose main component is dark chocolate, which contains a large amount of cocoa. But sweets and cakes filled with "Bird's milk" are not included in the list of dietary products. When losing weight, it is better to eat food recommended by professional nutritionists.

With gastritis

With gastritis, you should approach the selection of foods very carefully. To prescribe a diet, you should visit a gastroenterologist. The doctor can confidently say whether the level of acidity in the patient’s stomach is increased or decreased. At the height of the disease, all foods irritating the stomach are excluded from the diet - spicy, sour, pickled, smoked foods, carbonated drinks and sweets. “Bird's milk” must be discarded, since the composition of sweets includes citric acid, flavorings, and food colors in some variations of the product.

When the condition stabilizes, the patient may eat a little “Bird's milk” products. A person who has problems with the stomach and intestines should include only quality sweets in the menu. When choosing sweets, you need to pay attention to the expiration date and composition of the ingredients. In chronic gastritis, even during remission, you can not eat more than 50 g of sweets per day.

With pancreatitis

Treatment of acute and chronic pancreatitis is accompanied by a strict diet. Only a month after the restoration, it is allowed to introduce new products into the menu. At this time, it is better to abandon the "Bird's milk" factory production, since it is impossible to guarantee the quality of all the ingredients that make up the cake or sweets.

Sweet lovers can make a treat on their own, using only fresh, high-quality, proven products. Agar-agar is safe for a patient with pancreatitis, substitutes can be taken instead of sugar, and good quality dark chocolate is suitable for glazing a cake.

Chicken eggs are best replaced with quail eggs. Flavors, other synthetic additives and dyes are completely excluded from the recipe. The product can only be eaten as a treat, in small portions, watching the reaction of the body.

Harm and contraindications

You can not eat a large number of sweets at once. A very large dose of sugar increases insulin levels, causes a feeling of apathy and weakness.

Excessive consumption of sweets is the reason for the change in the bacterial composition in the oral cavity. This can cause tooth decay (as well as the direct effect of sugar on tooth enamel). Poultry milk contains a fairly large amount of fat, so when you exceed the daily dose of sweet, cholesterol levels often rise.

Frequent use of sweets and pastries can cause a painful dependence on sugar. If the body does not receive a daily portion of glucose (which often exceeds the permissible norm), discomfort will appear - drowsiness, irritability, fatigue, anxiety, a person will overeat.

The body will seek to compensate for the level of lost glucose. There will be a desire to eat foods containing hidden sugar.It can be pancakes, rolls, pancakes, bananas, grapes, cereals. Fatty foods such as hamburgers, sausages and cheeses will be eaten at the same time.

The product is contraindicated in the following cases:

1. With intolerance to egg white.
2. Lactose intolerance, which causes an allergic reaction when consuming milk and dairy products.
3. Diabetes, obesity and individual intolerance to the product.

How to store "Bird's milk"

Storage periods for factory and home-made products vary. Sweets and cakes prepared in culinary workshops can be stored for up to six months.

Manufacturers indicate different storage temperatures - from 15 to 21 ° C. “Bird's milk” retains its qualities thanks to preservatives - potassium sorbate, sodium benzoate and other substances. The optimum humidity for storage is 75%.

Store the product in a dry, clean place, in an undamaged bag. Sunlight should not fall on the packaging.

The candies of the Primorsky Confectioner factory are made without preservatives (or with a minimum amount of preservative additives). The shelf life of this product is 15 days from the date of manufacture. The factory website states that sweets can be frozen at minus 18 ° C. But there is no information how much this lengthens the shelf life.

Home-made cakes and sweets are not subject to long-term storage. Outside the refrigerator, the product stays fresh for 2 days. Some home-cooks claim that the classic Bird's Milk Cake will remain in the refrigerator for up to 30 days. The camera thermometer should be set to minus 4 ° C.

Is it possible to freeze

Home-made sweets and cakes can be frozen. The filling, prepared on the basis of agar-agar, will not lose its physical and taste qualities.

But if the cake is cooked on ordinary animal gelatin, then you should not freeze it, as the taste and texture of the culinary product will change.

How to Make Bird's Milk Recipes

There are dozens of recipes for making the “Bird's milk” confectionery dessert. Modern chefs can purchase all the necessary ingredients, which distinguishes them from homemakers who wanted to please loved ones and friends with gastronomic delights 30 years ago. At home, making sweets, cakes and ice cream with a white porous filling is easy.

Classic candy

To prepare the cream filling “Bird's milk” you will need the following products:

• protein of 3 chicken eggs;
• 300 g of fine sugar or powdered sugar;
• 150 g of caramel or corn syrup;
• a small lemon;
• a tablespoon of agar-agar;
• 150 ml of water;
• pack of butter (200 g);
• half a glass of condensed milk;
• a pinch of crystalline vanillin.

For glaze you need to take:

• half a pack of butter (100 g);
• a bar of dark chocolate.

Making sweets takes about 2 hours.

1. Agar-arag is poured with water and left for 30–35 minutes, so that the granules swell.
2. In a cup, beat condensed milk and softened butter.
3. A saucepan with softened agar agar is placed on the stove, sugar is poured, molasses is put and the mixture is heated over low heat. The mass is constantly mixed to avoid burning.
4. Cook the mixture for at least 15 minutes, after heating, the paste should be pulled in a stream.
5. In a separate cup with a mixer, beat egg white, add vanilla and juice squeezed from half a lemon.
6. Turn off the stove, let the molasses cool for 5 minutes. Then the viscous mass is carefully poured into the protein without stopping the whipping procedure.
7. Oil is added in the same way. The result is a creamy white paste of medium viscosity.
8. The cream is poured into a mold (you can take a deep rectangular baking sheet) and leveled.
9. Leave the form for half an hour, then put in the refrigerator for 30-40 minutes.
10. Thread or fishing line cut the filling into squares or rectangles.
11. Chocolate and butter are melted in a metal saucepan.
12. When the icing has stood a little, take pieces of the filling, dip into the stewpan and put on a metal or plastic tray.

To cool the icing, put the trays in the refrigerator for half an hour (or 10 minutes in the freezer). The homemade Bird Milk treat is ready.

Semolina cake

This is an alternative cake. Semolina gives the dessert a pleasant aftertaste. To prepare the cakes, you need to take:

• 150 g of cow (butter) butter;
• 200 g of sugar;
• 3 chicken eggs;
• a teaspoon of soda;
• table vinegar;
• 160 g of premium wheat flour;
• a tablespoon of cocoa powder.

For the filling you need:

• 400 ml of milk;
• half a glass of semolina;
• half a small lemon;
• one and a half packs of butter (300 g);
• 100 g of sugar.

To prepare the glaze take:

• 2 tablespoons of thick sour cream and cocoa powder;
• 3 tablespoons of sugar;
• a slice of butter (30–40 g).

Cooking a cake involves 4 steps.

The first step is baking a biscuit.

1. In a deep bowl, softened (or melted) butter is mixed, 3 eggs are broken and the workpiece is mixed with a blender.
2. Soda is quenched with a few drops of vinegar, added to the bowl, flour is poured there.
3. The ingredients mix well.
4. The dough is divided in half and laid out on separate plates.
5. Cocoa is poured into one part and kneaded until the dough acquires a uniform coffee color.
6. A round silicone mold with straight edges is greased with oil, sprinkled with a breading mixture and spread the dough.
7. 2 cake layers are baked alternately. The heating temperature of the oven is 200 ° C, the baking time is 20 minutes.

The second stage is the preparation of the cream. The “Bird's milk” filling is prepared while the cakes are baked or after they are made.

1. Boil semolina with sugar, remove it from the stove and leave for 10-15 minutes.
2. Rub a half of the lemon on a coarse grater (the peel can not be removed) and add it to the porridge.
3. The butter is softened in the heat and also put in a pan.
4. Beat the filling with a mixer until smooth.

The third stage is the preparation of glaze.

1. In a metal saucepan, put sour cream, cocoa powder, sugar and heat while stirring.
2. Immediately after boiling, put the butter, again bring the icing to a boil and remove from heat.
3. Before using as directed, the mass should stand, cool slightly and thicken.

The fourth stage is the preparation of the cake.

1. With a sharp, long knife, cut cakes along the “pancake”.
2. Put the bottom cake, put a layer of filling on it and put the next one.
3. Alternatingly dark and light layers. The top biscuit filling is not lubricated.
4. When the cake is “assembled”, chocolate icing is applied.
5. The cake is decorated with crushed roasted peanuts or fresh strawberries.

The side of the cooking product can be lubricated. The cake looks beautiful, with the top filled with shiny glaze, and picturesque streaks of chocolate adorn the sides.

Gelatin Cake

An alternative thickener is used to make this cake. The chef will need the following products:

• 14 chicken eggs;
• 300 g of sugar;
• 150 g of powdered sugar;
• a glass of wheat flour (premium);
• 40 g of gelatin;
• a glass of milk;
• pack of butter (200 g);
• 200 g of dark chocolate.

Cake preparation begins with baking sponge cake. The oven is preheated to 200 ° C.

1. 4 eggs are broken into the pan, sugar (150 g) is added and the ingredients are well beaten.
2. The dough is poured into a silicone mold with straight edges. The container is pre-lubricated with oil so that the biscuit does not stick.
3. The mold is placed in the oven and the cake is baked for 25 minutes.

Cooking toppings:

1. Yolks taken from 10 eggs are placed in a large bowl and the remaining sugar (150 g) is poured out, the ingredients are whipped.
2. Add flour to the eggs, add milk and mix the ingredients.
3. Put a cup in a water bath. As soon as the mixture boils, take out the dishes and put on the table. The result is a liquid, creamy mass. Pieces of softened butter are placed in it and the components of the filling are mixed.
4. The gelatin is heated in a small saucepan until the granules are completely dissolved.
5. Beat the whites with icing sugar and gelatin, add the contents of a bowl heated in a water bath. After thoroughly mixing the blender with a large whisk, the filling is placed in the refrigerator.

"Assembly" of the cake:

1. Sponge cake is cut along the "pancake".
2. On the lower part, spread the whole cream with a thick layer and cover it with the upper half of the biscuit.
3. The chocolate bar is melted in a water bath with the addition of butter.
4. Liquid icing is applied with a brush to the top of the cake.

The cake is delicious and high-calorie. It can be decorated not only with glaze, but also with nuts.

Cake "Bird's milk" for lazy housewives

This culinary product is prepared in 1 hour. The chef will need the following products:

• 2 bars of dark chocolate;
• 100 g butter;
• 4 eggs;
• a tablespoon of gelatin;
• half a glass of powdered sugar.

The cake is prepared in the following order:

1. Gelatin is poured into a metal mug and poured with cold water.
2. Chocolate and butter are put in a metal cup and melt products in a water bath.
3. The baking sheet is covered with baking paper.
4. Half the melted chocolate is applied to the paper with a brush.
5. The sheet is refrigerated to freeze the icing.
6. A mug of gelatin is placed in a water bath and kept until the thickener is completely dissolved.
7. Eggs are broken, the protein is separated and poured into a deep cup. Powdered sugar is added and the components of the mixture are whisked well.
8. Gelatin is poured in small portions without turning off the blender. You should put on a wide nozzle and turn on the high speed of rotation of the device.
9. Remove the sheet from the refrigerator and spoon the protein foam onto a layer of frozen glaze.
10. Put the cake in the refrigerator so that the foam thickens.
11. Spread the rest of the chocolate onto the surface of the filling, evenly distribute with a brush and put the baking sheet in the refrigerator again.

After an hour, the culinary product can be served. You can further decorate the cake with strips of fudge, grated peanuts or pieces of walnut.

Interesting Facts

1. In the United States, “Bird's milk” cakes are made with cream filling. The cream is well whipped and a gelatin solution is introduced into them. The result is a tasty, tender mass that is resistant to settling. Such a culinary dessert is popular with immigrants from the former USSR.
2. Bird's milk is called the protein-fat secret, which is secreted in the goiter of pigeons, flamingos, some species of parrots and penguins, when chicks hatch from eggs. Parents feed the younger generation until the chicks' stomachs begin to absorb coarse food.
3. Residents of Japan believe that seaweed extract has a healing effect on the body. Agar-agar is added to various dishes, including tea. In European countries, the expression “bird's milk” is used in an ironic sense to emphasize that a person has everything, but he himself does not know what else he wants.
4. There are many dishes in modern European cuisine that require agar-agar. This product is used in recipes for making cheesecakes, puddings, marmalade, jelly, jams, teramisu, mousses, marshmallows, jellied vegetables, poultry, fish, meat and jellied meat.

Photo of bird's milk