Glucosyl Stevia composition

A process for producing a glucosyl stevia composition, comprising the steps of:

• adding starch into water to form a starch suspension;
• adding a mixture of a-amylase and cyclodextrin glucanotransferase (CGTase) into the starch suspension and incubating for about 0.5 to 2 hours at about 75-80° C., resulting in a liquefied starch suspension;
• inactivating the α-amylase by low pH heat treatment;
• adding steviol glycosides into the liquefied starch suspension, resulting in a first reaction mixture;
• and
• adding a second batch of CGTase into the first reaction mixture and incubating for about 24-48 hours at about 65° C.,
• adding soybean ß-amylase, resulting in a second reaction mixture;
• and
• incubating the second reaction mixture for 12-16 hours at 35-55° C.;
• wherein:
• the glucosyl stevia composition comprises steviol glycoside derivatives having twenty or less α-1,4-glucosyl residues, and
• the glucosyl stevia composition comprises greater than 25% by weight di-, tri-, and tetraglucosyl Rebaudioside A and greater than about 9% by weight tri- and tetraglucosyl steviosides.