U.S. Patent 2,549,595: Process of Preparing Baked Food Products (1951)

Bibliographic and Legal Data

• Patent Number: U.S. Patent No. 2,549,595[uspto-2549595]
• Title: Process of Preparing Baked Food Products
• Inventor: Joseph A. Gregor, residing in Avon Park, Florida
• Assignee: General Mills, Inc., a corporation of Delaware (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
• Application Filed: September 29, 1949
• Serial Number: 118,566
• Patent Granted / Issued: April 17, 1951
• Legal Status: Expired (Pioneer Patent)

Technical Summary and Process

U.S. Patent No. 2,549,595 is recognized across food science and the commercial baking industry as the pioneer patent for par-baking (partial baking). It established the method whereby yeast-leavened dough products—such as rolls and bread—are subjected to a controlled two-stage baking operation[uspto-2549595].

1. Preliminary Baking Step (Commercial Baker)

• The dough is mixed, fermented, shaped, and proofed to approximately one-half to three-fourths regular height.
• Baking occurs at a reduced oven temperature of 250°F to 325°F (optimally 275°F to 300°F) for 8 to 12 minutes, rather than standard baking temperatures of 400°F to 450°F.
• The internal dough temperature reaches the starch gelatinization and pasteurization range of 165°F to 180°F, completing leavening action and structural rigidity.
• The bake is arrested before surface browning or crust caramelization occurs.
• The process retains 25% to 50% more moisture than conventional baking, yielding a firm, chalk-white, unbrowned product that can be cooled, packaged in moisture-resistant film (such as Pliofilm), and held under refrigeration for weeks or frozen indefinitely.

2. Final Baking Step (Consumer / Household Oven)

• The consumer removes the unbrowned rolls from the package without proofing or yeast preparation.
• The rolls are baked in a preheated kitchen oven at 425°F to 450°F for 7 to 10 minutes.
• Rapid crust formation, surface browning, and final moisture reduction take place, delivering hot, freshly baked rolls at the table.

The Claims

The patent concludes with nine specific method claims covering:

1. Adjusting baking temperature, time, dough absorption, and thickness to delay external crust browning until internal starch gelatinization is complete.
2. Arresting leavening action while preserving moisture levels between 25% and 50% above fully baked goods.
3. Specific temperature operating ranges between 250°F and 325°F for the initial commercial bake and 425°F to 450°F for consumer finishing[uspto-2549595].

Historical Context in Avon Park

The invention originated at Gregor’s Bakery on South Forest Avenue in Avon Park, Florida[maxwell-1976]. Joseph A. Gregor, a veteran and volunteer firefighter with the Avon Park Fire Department, discovered the method in 1949 when a fire alarm summoned him away from his oven during a low-temperature bake[uspto-2549595].

Following the initial commercial success of “Joe Gregor’s Brown ’n Serve Rolls” across central Florida, Gregor and partner Jules Jacobsen signed an option with General Mills on 23 June 1949 and completed the formal purchase contract in Atlanta on 2 September 1949. General Mills filed Serial No. 118,566 on 29 September 1949, naming Gregor as sole inventor and General Mills as assignee.

References

• uspto-2549595 — Joseph A. Gregor (inventor), General Mills, Inc. (assignee). United States Patent 2,549,595: Process of Preparing Baked Food Products. 17 April 1951. https://patents.google.com/patent/US2549595A/en
• maxwell-1976 — Leoma Bradshaw Maxwell. The First Hundred Years of Avon Park. 1976. the-first-hundred-years-of-avon-park_leoma-bradshaw-maxwell_1976.md

Related

• Finding: Brown ’n Serve Rolls: Joseph A. Gregor in 1949, not Joe Gregory in 1945
• Entity: Gregor’s Bakery and the invention of Brown ’n Serve rolls
• Finding: Brown ’n Serve Rolls Patent and Commercialization (1949–1951)
• Entity: Avon Park Fire Department

Where this comes from

Evidence

corroborated — More than one independent source agrees.

Review

unverified — Drafted from sources but not yet checked by a volunteer.

Rights

public-domain

Sources

1. Joseph A. Gregor (inventor), General Mills, Inc. (assignee), United States Patent 2,549,595: Process of Preparing Baked Food Products (1951)
2. Leoma Bradshaw Maxwell, The First Hundred Years of Avon Park (references/the-first-hundred-years-of-avon-park_leoma-bradshaw-maxwell_1976.md) (1976)

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