In vitro evaluation of the fermentation of added‐value agroindustrial by‐products: cactus pear (Opuntia ficus‐indica L.) peel and pineapple (Ananas comosus) peel as functional ingredients

Agroindustrial by‐products derived from fruit processing are an important source of biocompounds that can be used as functional food ingredients. The objective of this work was to evaluate cactus pear and pineapple peel flours as an alternative carbon source during fermentation using bacteria with probiotic potential. The total fibre content of both flours was over 60%, with total soluble carbohydrate content around 20%, indicating a good carbon source for lactic acid bacteria. Kinetic parameters indicate that peel flours are a suitable carbon source because the lactic acid bacteria grow (mean growth rate constant, k, values close to glucose, 1.52 h) and acidify the culture media (maximum acidification rate, V_max, approximately 1.60 pH × 10^?3 min^?1). There was no difference in prebiotic potential or prebiotic activity score for both the peel flours. Pediococcus pentosaceus performs better during fermentation. In this respect, cactus pear and pineapple peel flours can be used as functional ingredients due to their fermentable properties.     

Effects of pineapple pomace fibre on physicochemical properties of composite flour and dough,and consumer acceptance of fibre‐enriched wheat bread

Pineapple pomace fibre (PF, containing 70.2% total dietary fibre) can be added to increase dietary fibre of wheat bread. This study was performed to evaluate effects of PF added at 0, 5 or 10% (wheat flour‐basis) on physicochemical properties of the composite flour (wheat flour as the control, CPF‐5 and CPF‐10, respectively) and its dough, to evaluate consumer acceptance of CPF breads and to identify factors affecting willingness to purchase of CPF breads. Incorporating PF affected rheological and pasting properties of CPF. Water‐ and oil‐holding capacity of CPF increased (P < 0.05) as PF levels increased. Bread made with CPF‐5 was more acceptable than that with CPF‐10; however, it was not significantly different from the control, having similar specific volume and texture, but having about three times higher total dietary fibre than the control (4.4% vs. 1.5%). Product label and health benefit information potentially affected consumers' willingness to purchase of fibre‐enriched bread.     

Effects of incorporation of sugarcane fibre on the physicochemical and sensory properties of chicken sausage

Improving functional and eating qualities of processed meat products through incorporation of plant fibre is of interest to both consumers and food industry. This project investigated the physicochemical and sensory properties of chicken sausages with incorporation of up to 3% sugarcane fibre, a by-product of sugarcane processing. Compared with no sugarcane fibre sample, the cooking yield of chicken sausage with 3% of fibre and 10% of water addition was increased from 94.20% to 97.52%, total phenolic content from 25.43 to 57.09 mg GAE/100 g and radical scavenging activity from 28.11% to 60.72%, whereas lipid oxidation of Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances value was decreased from 0.535 to 0.428 malondialdehyde mg kg⁻¹. Moreover, consumer overall liking of chicken sausages was not affected by the incorporation of sugarcane fibre. This research suggested that incorporation of sugarcane fibre could improve eating quality and health benefits of the chicken sausage product, and add value to both the food and sugarcane industry.     

Broad bean and pea by‐products as sources of fibre‐rich ingredients: potential antioxidant activity measured in vitro

BACKGROUND By‐products generated during the processing of plant food can be considered a promising source of dietary fibre as a functional compound. The dietary fibre composition, soluble sugars and antioxidant activity of the extractable polyphenols of pea and broad bean by‐products have been analysed in this study. RESULTS: Total dietary fibre using AOAC methods plus hydrolysis (broad bean pod: 337.3 g kg^?1; pea pod: 472.6 g kg^?1) is higher (P < 0.05) in both by‐products than with the Englyst method (broad bean pod: 309.7 g kg^?1; pea pod: 434.6 g kg^?1). The main monomers are uronic acids, glucose, arabinose and galactose in broad bean pods. However, pea pods are very rich in glucose and xylose. The soluble sugars analysed by high‐performance liquid chromatography in both by‐products have glucose as the most important component, followed by sucrose and fructose. The ferric reducing antioxidant power (broad bean pod: 406.4 µmol Trolox equivalents g^?1; pea pod: 25.9 µmol Trolox equivalents g^?1) and scavenging effect on 2,2‐diphenyl‐1‐picrylhydrazyl radical (EC₅₀ of broad bean pod: 0.4 mg mL^?1; EC₅₀ of pea pod: 16.0 mg mL^?1) were also measured. CONCLUSIONS: Broad bean and pea by‐products are very rich in dietary fibre, particularly insoluble dietary fibre and their extractable polyphenols demonstrate antioxidant activity. Therefore they might be regarded as functional ingredients. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Influence of carboxymethylcellulose on the physicochemical,rheological and sensory attributes of a low‐fat Domiati cheese

The physicochemical, rheological and sensory attributes of a low‐fat Domiati cheese produced using carboxymethylcellulose (CMC), a hydrocolloid, at 0.4, 0.6, 0.8 and 1% (w?w) were examined during the ripening period. Results indicated that, as the carboxymethylcellulose content of cheese milk increased, cheese yield and moisture of low‐fat Domiati cheese significantly increased but the protein, salt and fat values significantly decreased. Rheological parameters were significantly lower in cheeses made with CMC. With regard to the sensory properties of the cheeses, low‐fat Domiati cheese made with 1% (w?w) CMC recorded the highest scores for sensory attributes.     

Effect of low‐trans margarine on physicochemical and sensory properties of puff pastry1

The influence of the low‐trans (<1% of total fatty acids) puff pastry margarine and the rest period between laminating on dough physical characteristics and puff pastry quality was investigated. Experiment was planed according to factorial plan 3² with independent variables: quantity of puff pastry margarine (35–55% based on flour, variation interval 10) and rest period (15–45 min, variation interval 15). The experiment involved two margarine samples (MLT1 and MLT2) of similar fat phase composition, but whose physical properties were, statistically speaking, significantly different. The results show that the pastry containing 35% of margarine MLT1 and allowing the rest period of 30 and 45 min has a lift of above 4.0, it is of minimal firmness and has a high specific volume (3.5 cm³ g^?1). Having used puff pastry margarine MLT2, the highest quality of dough and pastry was achieved in the sample containing 55% of margarine and with the maximum rest period of 45 min. The sample mentioned showed an excellent lift of 5.3 and had a specific volume of 4.0 cm³ g^?1, but it as well exhibited the maximal firmness of pastry. The application of puff pastry margarine MLT1 can result in a satisfactory quality of pastry, but it can also cause a reduction in the fat content by 7.5% and in the content of trans fatty acids by two times, while the energy value is reduced by 12% when compared with the pastry containing puff pastry margarine MLT2.     

First investigation on ultrasound-assisted preparation of food products: sensory and physicochemical characteristics

This paper presents a comparison between manufactured food products using conventional and ultrasound-assisted procedures. Three different foam-type products, chocolate Genoise, basic sponge cake, and chocolate mousse were prepared using both methods with subsequent evaluation of the samples using both sensory and physicochemical methods. Ultrasound-assisted preparations were considered superior according to the sensory analysis, and physicochemical data confirmed this finding. This approach of applying an emerging piece of equipment, with potential industrial application to assist food preparation, consists of a new technique that could be of great interest for the development of not only other food products created by molecular gastronomy but also for practical work carried out by students.     

The sensory acceptance of fibre‐enriched cereal foods: a meta‐analysis

Improved understanding of the sensory responses to fibre fortification may assist manufacturers and health promotion efforts. The effects of fibre fortification (or modified ingredients) on sensory acceptability of baked cereal foods (bread, cookies, muffins) were estimated by linear random‐effects meta‐analysis of twenty eligible studies (869 panellists, 34% male). As little as 2 g per 100 g fortification caused moderate–large reductions in overall acceptability, flavour acceptability, and appearance acceptability in most items, with cookies most negatively affected. Fortification of base nonfortified foods with low initial acceptability improved acceptability; however, at higher basic levels, fortification lowered acceptability. Fortification improved texture acceptability of muffins and bread with low base acceptability, but lowered texture acceptability when base acceptability was high. Flavour improvement of muffins with fortification decreased with increasing base food acceptability. Fibre fortification of baked cereal foods lowers acceptability, but food format and base food acceptability affect the magnitude and direction of responses. Refining fibre fortification approaches could improve consumer uptake.     

Effects of dietary fibre‐ and polyphenol‐rich grape products on lipidaemia and nutritional parameters in rats

The aim of this work was to evaluate the effects of three dietary fibre‐ and polyphenol‐rich materials obtained from grapes on serum cholesterol, lipoprotein and triglyceride concentrations as well as on body weight, fat and protein digestibility in adult Wistar rats fed on cholesterol‐free and 10 g kg⁻¹ cholesterol‐added diets. Dietary fibre content of materials ranged from 540 to 590 g kg⁻¹. Intake of grape products increased stool weight and the amount of fat and protein excreted in faeces, but did not affect negatively animal growth or protein efficiency of the diet in Wistar rats. Studied grape fractions lower serum total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol concentrations in hypercholesterolemic rats. These results could be taken into account in potential applications of these products as a food ingredient. © 2000 Society of Chemical Industry     

Effect of chlorophyll removal and particle size upon the nutritional and technological properties of powdered by‐products from artichoke (Cynara scolymus,L.) industrial canning

In this study, the effect of the particle‐size fractionation (Ø < 0.212 mm and 0.212 mm < Ø < 0.991 mm) and chlorophyll extraction on the nutritional and technological properties of the powdered artichoke ingredient was evaluated. The contents of minerals, protein, fat, carbohydrates and dietary fibre together with the content in bioactive compounds such as inulin and phenolics were determined. Other properties such as water‐ and oil‐holding capacities, water activity and antioxidant capacity were measured. The ingredient with chlorophyll and the lowest particle size presented the highest phenolic content and antioxidant capacity (8.4 mg of vitamin C equivalents per 100 g of dry matter) and water‐ and oil‐holding capacities. The removal of chlorophyll increased the oil‐holding capacity (from 59.7% to 94.6%), which was much higher than in the coarse ingredient (34%), but has a deleterious effect reducing the antioxidant capacity and the inulin content. The ingredients also showed high dietary fibre (22.5–33%), inulin (9–16%) and mineral (7.5–7.8%) contents. Although the ingredient with chlorophyll and smaller particle size had the higher antioxidant capacity, the removal of chlorophyll improved the technological properties to be used as food ingredient without affecting significantly to the nutritional value.     

Chemical,antioxidant and sensory properties of tomato‐watermelon‐pineapple blends,and changes in their total antioxidant capacity during storage

A conductometric analysis of the effect of condensate of peroxides generated during lipid oxidation in an accelerated stability test was adapted to test the hypothesis that total antioxidant capacity of tomato products would sometimes increase during processing and in storage. Tomato pulp blends made from a mixture of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum var Roma VF), watermelon (Citrullus vulgaris var Babylack) and pineapple (Ananas comosus var Smooth cayennes) were analysed for basic quality profiles of dry matter, Brix, titratable acidity (TTA) and pH, total reducing sugars, Component antioxidants phytochemicals and total antioxidant capacity. The lowest sensory score (overall impression) of 4.80 ± 2.59 was recorded for tomato juice while, blend TWP 111p had highest score of 6.20 ± 1.99. There was significant difference (P < 0.05) in the basic quality profile of the pulp blends except for TTA values (0.37 ± 0.02 to 0.45 ± 0.05) and 2‐Furfurals (2.47 ± 0.03 to 2.71 ± 0.01). The fresh blend of 50% tomato, 25% watermelon and 25% pineapple had the highest total antioxidant capacity of 3.69 ± 0.52 mg 100 mL^?1 catechin equivalent. The total antioxidant capacity of the stored pulp increased from 2.95 ± 0.13 to 6.22 ± 0.32 mg 100 mL^?1 catechin equivalent in pasteurised TWP 211p blend by 60 days when stored at 40 °C. Total antioxidant status of tomato‐based fruit mix increased during the first 80 days.     

Effect of substitution of soy protein isolate on aroma volatiles, chemical composition and sensory quality of wheat cookies

Wheat flour was substituted with soy protein isolate (SPI) at levels of 0–20% and its effect on aroma volatiles and quality of cookies was evaluated. The chemical analysis showed that the moisture and protein content increased gradually by increasing the added levels of SPI whereas the carbohydrate and fat levels showed the opposite trend. The sensory characteristics, aroma, taste, crispiness and overall acceptability showed significant ( P  <   0.05) increase of up to 10% SPI substitution compared with cookies free of SPI. The gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric (GC-MS) analysis of aroma volatiles revealed that the sample containing 10% SPI had the highest yield (13.57%) of pyranones, the key odourants of cookies. The results of GC-MS analysis were consistent with those of the aroma sensory analysis of cookies during storage.     

Effect of sugarcane bagasse addition on physical,chemical, and sensory properties of oat flour and banana cake

The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of sugarcane bagasse (SB) addition on chemical, physical, and sensory properties of the oat flour and banana cakes. The SB was added in the amount of 3 g and 6 g/100 g solids (BC3 and BC6) to obtain cakes considered “source of fiber” and “high in fiber content,” respectively. The addition of SB did not alter the chemical composition of the cakes except the dietary fiber which was higher in the BC6. The firmness of the cake increased with SB concentration, but this fact did not interfere in the sensorial acceptance of the product. The production of oat flour and banana cakes containing “high fiber content” with good sensorial acceptance was possible and demonstrated the reuse of an agro-industrial residue widely available the sugar and alcohol industry.