Patent Application
20210378429
The present invention is in the field of food tongs.
Layer cookies having a sandwiched filling are popular and consumers like to dip them in milk to improve the taste. A variety of different tongs and some tongs especially designed for cookies have been discussed in the prior art. For example, a some prior art references show layer cookie tongs. In United States patent number D784096S1, Cookie-dipping tongs by inventor R Jones, published Apr. 18, 2017 the claim discloses, “An ornamental design for a cookie-dipping tongs, as shown and described.”
General application tongs include for example, the U.S. Pat. No. 2,559,978, Tongs by inventor John L Marco, published Jul. 10, 1951 discloses, “Broadly, it is an object of my invention to provide tongs of simple and inexpensive construction bent so that a large variety of articles can be picked up. More particularly, it is an object of my invention to provide tongs which can pick up hot and cold objects with ease without the danger of dropping such objects and without the danger of burning the fingers of the user.”
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,747,912, Kitchen Tongs by inventor Murry H Franklin, published. May 29, 1956 discloses, “The principal object of this invention resides in the provision of kitchen tongs which may be used to handle hot meats and vegetables without endangering the hands of the user by burns from steam, hot gases, and grease while cooking, serving and preparing foods.” Also for example, in the U.S. Pat. No. 3,361,468, entitled Food Turning Tongs by inventor Ralph M Case, published Jan. 2, 1968 discloses, “The present invention relates broadly to culinary instruments, and more specifically to improved turning tongs for use in the broiling, grilling or frying of hamburgers, frankfurters and the like.”
In the U.S. Pat. No. 5,901,993, entitled Food Handling Tongs by inventor Fannie L. Lowery et al., published May 11, 1999 the specification discloses, “Food handling tongs having a first arm and a second arm, each of which includes a front end, a rear end and a middle portion, and pivotally connected to one another in a scissors-like manner. A bottom plate is attached to an upper surface of the first arm and a top plate is attached to the lower surface of the second arm whereby the top and bottom plates move toward and away from one another as the food handling tongs are moved between open and closed positions. A plurality of parallel rows of serrated teeth are formed on an inner surface of the top and bottom plates. Each row of teeth extends between a pair of opposed sides of each plate. The rows are positioned one after the other from a front end of the plates to a rear end of the plates. The rear end of each arm includes a looped handle member which forms a finger receiving opening. A coil spring extends between the first and second arms and is positioned between the pivotal connection of the arms and the handle members to bias the food handling tongs towards the closed position.”
Also for example, in United States patent number 20040104586A1, Tongs by inventor Hidenobu Hamazaki et al., published Nov. 27, 2007 the abstract discloses, “A first tong member includes a first 4-joint linkage, in which both pairs of opposite rods are substantially equal, in length, to each other; a second tong member likewise includes a second 4-joint linkage, in which both pairs of opposite rods are substantially equal; and the first and second linkages have one of the foregoing rods in common. The first linkage has a first arm extended from the rod opposite to the common rod, and the second linkage likewise has a second arm extended from the rod opposite to the common rod, so that when respective actuating tails of the first and second tong members are operated in an arcuate manner, an opening width in the article-seizing area is configured to be capable of being adjusted, while the first and second extended arms in a substantially parallel relationship with each other maintain a substantially constant distance defined in between.”
In the U.S. Pat. No. 7,300,083, Food utensil by inventor Sarah Rose published Jun. 3, 2004 the abstract discloses, “The present invention describes a utensil for retrieving contents from a container.”
Layer cookie tongs include a first arm connected to a first handle and a second arm connected to a second handle. A swivel joint connects the first arm to the second arm. A layer cookie has a first cookie layer, a second cookie layer and a middle filling layer. A filling groove is formed as an indented portion of the middle filling layer edge from the first cookie layer edge and the second cookie layer edge. The first arm and the second arm are configured to engage the filling groove. The first arm as a first time indent, and the second arm has a second arm indent. The first arm is configured to engage the first cookie layer edge and the second cookie layer edge. The second arm is configured to engage the first cookie layer edge and the second cookie layer edge. The first arm and the second arm both have a flexible arm portion and a rigid arm portion. The first arm and the second arm both have an arm engagement edge. The arm engagement edge is configured to engage the first cookie layer edge at a first cookie contact, and is configured to engage the second cookie layer edge at a second cookie layer contact.
The first arm as a first arm indent, and the second arm has a second arm indent. The arm engagement edge is formed at the first arm indent and the second arm indent. The first arm is configured to engage the first cookie layer edge and the second cookie layer edge. The second arm is configured to engage the first cookie layer edge and the second cookie layer edge. The first arm and the second arm both have a flexible arm portion and a rigid arm portion.
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The first and second cookie layer can be made with a dough such as a dough including butter, powdered sugar, dark cocoa powder, salt, vanilla and flour. The cream filling middle layer can be made with a mixture including powdered sugar, melted butter, vanilla extract, and water. The first cookie layer, the second cookie layer and the middle filling layer are preferably disc-shaped such that the first cookie layer and the second cookie layer have a larger diameter than the middle filling layer. The first and second cookie layers are more rigid than the middle filling layer. The dough for the first and second cookie layer can be made with a recipe having the proportions of 1½ cups butter, 1 cup sugar, ½ cup dark cocoa powder, ½ teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons vanilla, and 1½ cups flour. The cream middle filling layer can be made with a recipe having the portions of 3 cups powdered sugar, ½ cup butter, 2 tablespoons vanilla extract and water.
The first and second cookie layers are baked at 350° F. for approximately 10 minutes. Preferably, the diameter of the middle filling layer has a ratio to the first cookie layer and the second cookie layer of 90%. The middle filling layer has a tensile force sufficient to retain the cookie layers while dipping.
