Providing single servings of cooled foods and drinks

A machine for producing a single serving of a cooled food or drink, the machine comprising:

• a refrigeration system comprising:
• an evaporator defining a receptacle shaped and sized to receive a pod containing ingredients to produce the single serving of the cooled food or drink, the evaporator being movable between (i) an open configuration in which the pod is axially insertable into the receptacle and (ii) a closed configuration in which the pod is held in a fixed position within the receptacle, the evaporator defining a plurality of channels for refrigerant;
• a condenser;
• and
• a working fluid loop from the evaporator, to the condenser, and back to the evaporator, the working fluid loop comprising:
• a primary path between the condenser and the evaporator;
• a secondary path between the condenser and the evaporator and running in parallel to the primary path;
• and
• a control valve located along the secondary path and configured to selectively open the secondary path in addition to the primary path reducing the pressure drop between the condenser and the evaporator;
• and
• a processor configured to control the refrigeration system to open the control valve opening the secondary path such that refrigerant flows through the primary and secondary paths and through the plurality of channels of the evaporator to cool the ingredients within the pod when the pod containing the ingredients is received in the receptacle.

A machine for producing a single serving of a cooled food or drink from ingredients contained in a pod, the machine comprising a refrigeration system comprising:

• an evaporator defining a receptacle shaped and sized to receive the pod containing ingredients to produce the single serving of the cooled food or drink, the evaporator defining a plurality of channels for refrigerant, and the evaporator being movable between (i) an open configuration in which the pod is axially insertable into the receptacle and (ii) a closed configuration in which the pod is held in a fixed position within the receptacle;
• a condenser;
• and
• a working fluid loop from the evaporator, to the condenser, and back to the evaporator, the working fluid loop comprising:
• a primary path between the condenser and the evaporator;
• a first expansion device located along the primary path;
• a secondary path between the condenser and the evaporator and running in parallel to the primary path;
• a second expansion device located along the secondary path;
• and
• a control valve located along the secondary path and configured to selectively open the secondary path to supplement the primary path,
• wherein the machine is configured such that when the control valve is open refrigerant flows through the primary and secondary paths and through the plurality of channels of the evaporator to cool the ingredients in the pod while the pod containing the ingredients is received in the evaporator.