Studies on cake quality made of wheat–chickpea flour blends

Legume flours, due to their amino acid composition and fibre content are ideal ingredients for improving the nutritional value of bread and bakery products. In this study, the influence of the total or partial replacement of wheat flour by chickpea flour on the quality characteristics of two kinds of cake was analyzed. The effects of the chickpea variety and the kind of flour used (white or whole) were also considered. Volume, symmetry, chroma, and crust and crumb L^* diminished when increasing the amount of chickpea flour. The replacement of wheat flour by chickpea flour also induced an increase in the initial firmness but cohesiveness and resilience diminished, increasing the tendency to hardening. Among the studied varieties, Pedrosillano and Sinaloa produced cakes with the highest volume. Those varieties also gave layer cakes with the lowest firmness, gumminess and chewiness. White flours produced sponge cakes with higher volume and symmetry than whole flours. No significant differences, however, were observed in layer cakes between white and whole flours. In both layer and sponge cakes, white flour produced cakes with lower firmness, gumminess and chewiness than whole flours.     

Influence of Flour Particle Size on Quality of Gluten-Free Rice Cakes

There is a growing interest in developing gluten-free bakery products in recent time. In cake making, gluten network formation is not essential, but hardly any information exists about the influence of the gluten-free flour characteristics affecting the final cake product. This study analyses the influence of two different rice cultivars (short and long) with different flour particle size in batter characteristics (specific volume, viscosity and internal structure) and in sponge and layer cake formulas (volume, shape, texture and colour). During starch gelatinization, the finest flours (median particle size finer than 100 μm) increased their viscosity and reached the peak viscosity (RVA) later than the coarsest flours. Moreover, the finest flours gave batters with lower specific volumes but with an air distribution in smaller and uniform bubbles in both formulas. These flours also produced higher volume and lower firmness in sponge cakes and greater symmetry index both in sponge and layer cakes. The rice type also influenced batter and cakes characteristics but in a lesser extent. The different results obtained depending on the rice flour particle size, type flour and cake formulation indicate the need to define them both in industrial specifications and in research studies.     

Effects of adding chickpea and chestnut flours to layer cakes

Chestnut and chickpea flours have interesting nutritional characteristics and can be incorporated into layer cake formulations. This study aims to evaluate the effect of incorporating mixtures of these flours with wheat flour in the elaboration of layer cakes. With this aim, layer cakes were elaborated with the three different flours. Mixes of 50% of these flours and a mixture of the three flours in the same proportion were analysed. Batter density, microstructure and viscosity, as well as the specific volume, texture and acceptability of layer cakes were evaluated. Chickpea flour reduced the batter density and increased viscosity compared to wheat flour, while chestnut flour reduced viscosity and did not clearly affect density. Although both flours produced layer cakes with lower specific volume, as well as less cohesive and springiness, the effect on specific volume was clearer in chestnut flour. With 50% of chickpea flour, it was possible to obtain layer cakes with the same specific volume and hardness as those made with wheat flour. Layer cake acceptability decreased with the reduction in wheat flour, regardless of the type of flour incorporated. No improved acceptability has been found when combining chickpea and chestnut flours.     

Studies of the quality of cakes made with wheat-lentil composite flours

Legume flours, due to their amino acid balance and their demonstrated nutritional benefits, are ideal ingredients to improve the nutritional characteristics of bakery products. We have studied the inclusion of lentil flour on layer and sponge cakes, and its effect on the characteristics of the batter and of the final product. The addition of lentil flours reduced the density of layer-cake batter but increased the density of sponge-cake batter. This effect was greater with the smaller flour-particle size. Adding lentil flour to the formula reduced layer-cake volume, symmetry index, cohesiveness and springiness and increased hardness. In sponge cakes, no clear tendencies were observed in volume or symmetry index, but the total substitution of wheat flour by lentil flour gave rise to harder and less cohesive cakes. The use of lentil flour with a fine particle size increased cake volume but reduced hardness, particularly in sponge cakes.     

Original article: Influence of flour mill streams on cake quality

Wheat‐milling process generates different flour streams that differ in particle size, composition and functional and cake‐making properties. Particle size, composition and pasting properties of flour fractions (two from break and three from reduction system) obtained during milling of three wheats varying in protein content were determined. Shape, textural, colour and sensory analyses were performed on cakes prepared with the different mill streams. The final break and reduction streams had the highest protein and ash contents, pasting temperatures and the lowest starch percentage. Cakes prepared with the last streams showed higher batter density and lower volume. These results could indicate good air incorporation but deficient air distribution. Last streams cakes showed a darker, more reddish and yellowish crumb that was significantly related to flour colour characteristics. Because of these differences, such cakes obtained the lowest sensory scores. In this study, it has been verified that, to adapt flours to cake preparation, the final streams should be eliminated. The particle size of each stream is the most determinant parameter to obtain cakes with better volume and texture, being the flours with small particle size the most adequate.     

Effect of fibre size on the quality of fibre-enriched layer cakes

The effects of fibre type (wheat bran, oat bran, cellulose microcrystalline), size (50, 80, 250 μm) and percentage of substitution (0%, 12%, 24%, 36%) on batter and layer cake characteristics were determined. Batter density, and the rheological parameters (G′ and G″) increased with fibre size, but the flow index decreased. Especially with 20% wheat bran, large-sized fibre gave the most firm, chewy and yellow cakes, while providing the most significant sensory differences with the control. Cakes with microcrystalline cellulose were the most similar to the control. All cakes obtained high sensory scores, indicating that they were not disagreeable for consumers. It is possible to obtain high quality cakes when adding up to 20% of fibre, but selection of an adequate fibre is necessary.     

Thermal properties of batter systems formulated by combinations of different flours

There is an increasing consumer preference for reduced oil content in fried food products. The amount of fat absorbed by deep fried foods can be modified using appropriate coatings such as batter and breading systems. Coatings also change the heat transfer characteristics of the composite products. The goal of this study was to determine some thermal properties of selected batter mixes that are commonly used for deep fat frying of chicken products. Three types of flour-based batter mixes were used. These were mixtures of wheat and rice (WR), wheat and corn (WC), and corn and rice (CR) flours with salt and different methylcellulose (MC) levels. The differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) was used to measure glass transition temperature (T_g), gelatinization temperature (T_G), ice-melting temperature (T_m) and enthalpy (ΔH_G) of the different batter formulations. Salt and MC greatly influenced the thermal properties of batter systems as they increased T_G, but depressed T_m. Adding rice and corn flours to wheat flour based batters apparently changed the thermal properties. Corn flour based batters required considerable more energy for gelatinization during the cooking process.     

Effect of tigernut (Cyperus esculentus) flour addition on the quality of wheat‐based cake

The effect of substituting tigernut flour for wheat flour on the proximate, mineral and pasting properties of the resultant blends and cake quality were studied. The proximate composition of flour blends increased with increasing level of tigernut. Protein increased from 22.30 to 26.93% and fat from 4.17 to 7.21% resulting in an increase in energy value from 342.09 to 390.93 kcal. The pasting properties of the flour blends were affected significantly (P ≤ 0.05) by tigernut substitution. Pasting peak time and temperature decreased with increasing level of tigernut. Mineral elements such as iron and calcium increased from 3.13 to 4.19 and 54.01 to 56.41 (mg 100 g^?1) respectively, with tigernut substitution. The weight and volume of cakes increased with tigernut level while batter density and volume index decreased. Acceptable cakes can be made with up to 30% tigernut flour substitution. Such composite cakes may help in reducing protein energy and micronutrient deficiencies.     

EFFECTS OF BAKING PARAMETERS ON THE WHITE LAYER CAKE QUALITY BY COMBINED USE OF CONVENTIONAL AND MICROWAVE OVENS

The effects of combined conventional and microwave oven baked white layer cake characteristics were studied. Two types of commercially milled wheat flour, white (A) and whole wheat (B), were used. The modified white layer cake making method was used for conducting the cake baking trials. The conventional baking times (8 or 11 min), microwave power (400 or 600 W) and microwave baking time (30, 40, or 50 s) were chosen as baking parameters. Conventional baking was applied to form the cake crust before baking with the microwave oven used to form the crumb of the cakes. The performance of combination baking was compared with the performance of conventional baking. The volume, bake loss, internal factors, and crust color of cakes were evaluated as quality characteristics. The bake losses of cakes using the combination of short oven times and low microwave power for selected microwave times were smaller than the bake losses of the control cakes for both flours. Long oven times and low microwave power increased the specific volume of cakes. Cakes baked from flours A and B exhibited similar internal properties. Oven time significantly affected the crust color of cakes made with flour A. The crust color of cakes made with flour B was similar to the crust color of control cakes. Using a combination of conventional and microwave baking produces cakes with qualities equivalent to the qualities of cakes produced with conventional baking.     

Influence of quinoa roasting on sensory and physicochemical properties of allergen‐free,gluten‐free cakes

The objectives of this study were to determine pasting properties of non‐roasted (NR) and roasted quinoa (RQ) and to investigate the effect of RQ on consumer acceptance and physicochemical properties of an allergen‐free, gluten‐free cake formulation. Quinoa seeds were roasted at 177 °C for 15 (R15), 30 (R30) and 45 min (R45), and flours were analysed for pasting properties. Five cakes including a commercial chocolate cake (CCC) and cakes made with NR and RQ flours were evaluated for preference by fifty panelists. Quality parameters included colour, water activity, moisture content, firmness, weight and height. Peak and final viscosity increased with roasting time. The NR cake had the highest sensory scores for appearance, colour and texture. On flavour and overall acceptability, CCC was the highest. Regarding quality data, CCC, NR and R15 cakes had similar L* values, while CCC had the lowest a*, b*, a_w, moisture content and firmness values.     

Effect of oat β‐glucan and its oxidised derivative on the quality characteristics of sponge cake

The objective of this study was to investigate the characteristics of sponge cakes containing native oat β‐glucan (BG‐B) and its oxidised derivative with TEMPO (2, 2, 6, 6‐tetramethyl‐1‐piperidine oxoammonium ion) (Oxi‐B). BG‐B and Oxi‐B were substituted at 1% (w/w) into a formulation, and then the effects of BG‐B and Oxi‐B addition on the pasting properties of wheat flour and the physicochemical and textural properties of sponge cakes were determined. The pasting parameters of wheat flour were increased by BG‐B, whereas they were decreased in wheat flour with added Oxi‐B. The cake containing Oxi‐B had a lower volume, and a higher symmetry and uniformity than the BG‐B cake. The Oxi‐B cake exhibited smaller L* and b* values and a higher a* value than the control in crumb and crust colour. According to texture profile analysis, the BG‐B cake had increased hardness, chewiness and gumminess, whereas the Oxi‐B cake had decreased hardness.     

Effect of the Addition of Different Dietary Fiber and Edible Cereal Bran Sources on the Baking and Sensory Characteristics of Cupcakes

The effect of successively replacing (10%, 20%, and 30%) wheat flour with dietary fiber (DF) from wheat, oat, barley, and maize or cereal bran (CB) from wheat, oat, and rice on cake batter, final cake quality parameters, as well as on product shelf-life was studied. Batter viscosity (control, 2.96; wheat fiber 30%, 20.21; rice bran 10%, 0.47 Pa sⁿ), cake-specific volume (control, 2.27; wheat fiber 20%, 2.83; rice bran 30%, 1.94 cm³/g), porosity (control, 0.75; wheat fiber 30%, 0.81; rice bran 30%, 0.69), and crumb moisture content (control, 20.07%,; wheat fiber 30%, 26.45%; oat bran 30%, 13.89%) increased significantly (P < 0.05) with DF addition but decreased with CB addition. Addition of DF resulted in softer crumb texture (Control, 4.20 N; wheat fiber 20%, 3.19 N), while CB addition increased crumb firmness (rice bran 30%, 10.84 N), respectively. Minor differences were observed in the crumb and crust color of the DF cakes with respect to the control. Addition of CB decreased the L values of crumb color significantly and the decrease increased with increased level of CB incorporation. DF addition led to cakes with greater acceptance by panelists than CB addition, similar to the control. DF cakes stored in polyethylene bags at 25 °C and 60% relative humidity for 6 days showed delayed moisture loss and lower firmness compared to CB cakes. The optimal level of incorporation based both on the objective and sensory characteristics results was found 20% for DF and 10% for CB, respectively. Concluding, by incorporating DF or CB properly, cakes with improved nutritional value can be manufactured.     

Navy Bean Flour Particle Size and Protein Content Affect Cake Baking and Batter Quality1

Whole navy bean flour and its fine and coarse particle size fractions were used to completely replace wheat flour in cakes. Replacement of wheat flour with whole bean flour significantly increased the protein content. The protein content was adjusted to 3 levels with navy bean starch. The effect of navy bean flour and its fractions at 3 levels of protein on cake batter rheology and cake quality was studied and compared with wheat flour samples. Batters prepared from navy bean flour and its fractions had higher viscosity than the cake flour. Reducing the protein content by addition of starch significantly lowered the viscosity of cake batters. The whole navy bean flour and coarse bean fraction cakes were softer than cakes made with wheat flour but had reduced springiness. Principal component analysis showed a clear discrimination of cakes according to protein. It also showed that low protein navy bean flour cakes were similar to wheat flour cakes. Navy bean flour with protein content adjusted to the level of cake (wheat) flour has potential as a healthy alternative in gluten‐free cakes.     

The effects of various ratios of sunflower oil and surfactant on household type cake quality

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of sunflower oil (0, 5, 10, 15%) and surfactant (acetic and lactic acid esters of mono and diglycerides; 0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1%) on the quality of the wheat flour based household type cake. The variable ingredients were used as alone or in combinations in cake manufacture; therefore 20 different batter formulations were formed. Quality characteristics of cake samples (volume, symmetry, uniformity, shrinkage, weight loss, crumb–grain structure, crumb firmness) were investigated. Both components had a significant (P?<?0.05) impact on cake quality. In trial conditions, it was determined that the effect of surfactant on cake quality was greater than the oil. In cake batter, using up to a certain level (0.5%) surfactant was improved the cake volume and porosity. When the surfactant was used at 0.75 and 1% levels, these cake properties were deteriorated. The softness of the cakes have been measured as maximum when surfactant was used alone in increasing order from 0 to 1%. Sunflower oil improved the cake quality up to a limited extent. This improvement generally occurred at 5% level. Usage of oil with higher levels declined cake properties significantly. In combination formula, it was determined that using surfactant made using more oil in the batter formula possible. Careful attention should be paid to the appropriate level of use of oil and surfactant in cake production. Otherwise, significant declines occurred in cake quality. It was concluded that high-quality household-type cakes can be made if both ingredients were combined the use of 5–10% oil and 0.75–1% surfactant.     

Functional Characteristics of Sprout-Damaged Soft White Wheat Flours

Soft white wheat was sprouted in the laboratory for 1, 2 and 4 days, respectively, before milling the wheat into flours. The flours were used to bake cakes and cookies and to determine thickening powers. The flours milled from wheat which had been sprouted for 2 or 4 days were slightly higher in ash and protein and darker in color than the flour from the sound wheat. Sprouting of the grain for longer than 1 day resulted in flours of poor cake baking quality. The cakes were low in volume, had a dip in the center, a coarse grain and a firm texture. Cookie spreads increased and cookie top grain score improved with longer times of sprouting of the grain, but the crust color of the cookies darkened. The flavor was not affected by sprouting. The thickening power of the sprout-damaged soft wheat flours decreased with time of sprouting of the soft wheat before milling into a flour. Generally, laboratory sprouting of soft white wheat had an adverse effect on the functionality of flours in soft wheat applications. Effects of field sprouting on soft wheat flour performance are expected to be similar to those observed with laboratory sprouted soft wheat.     

Utilization of Mixolab<Superscript>®</Superscript> to predict the suitability of flours in terms of cake quality

The objective of this study was to determine the possibility of using Mixolab^® to predict the cake baking quality of different wheat flours. Mixolab^® data were also compared with various flour quality characteristics. The correlations between Alveoconsistograph data and the cake quality characteristics were not significant. Therefore, Alveoconsistograph test does not seem to be useful to predict the cake quality of the flour samples. Mixolab^® characteristics C2, C3, C4 and C5 were found to be significantly correlated with volume index while C5 was correlated with hardness of cakes. The parameters C2 to C5 represent the end point of the corresponding mixing stages. The flour samples which gave higher cake hardness values had higher C5 values and the samples with lower cake volumes had higher C2, C3, C4 and C5 values. It seems to be possible to estimate the texture and volume of cakes by these values. Therefore, Mixolab^® seems to be a useful tool to predict the cake making quality of flour samples.     

Quality and antioxidant property of green tea sponge cake

Green tea powder was used to substitute 0%, 10%, 20%, and 30% of wheat flour to make sponge cakes, called the control, GT10, GT20, and GT30, respectively. The viscosity and specific gravity in cake batter, and hardness, gumminess, chewiness, crumb a value, protein, total dietary fibre, ash, and various catechin content of baked cakes increased with increasing green tea levels whereas the volume, cohesiveness, adhesiveness, springiness, resilience, crust L, a, b and crumb L, b values of samples showed a reverse trend. No differences were found in all hedonic sensory results for control, GT10, and GT20 whereas GT30 were rated lower in all sensory results. Green tea cake contained a greater variety of catechins, and had good antioxidant activity, reducing power, scavenging ability on 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radicals and chelating ability on ferrous ions. Overall, green tea cake could be developed as a food with more effective antioxidant properties.     

Characteristics of Some Fiber Incorporated Cake Preparations and their Dietary Fiber Content

The dietary fibers were mainly isolated from seed hull of field beans (Phaseolus vulgaris), waste pulp of pineapple (Ananas camosus) as well as from whole wheat flour and, the fiber yields were 16.8, 2.0 and 7.0g/100g, respectively. These isolated fibers were included in sponge cake preparation by partially replacing all-purpose flour (maida) by 5% (w/w). Cakes and cake batter were evaluated for pH change, specific gravity, volume, moisture content, and color. The sensory characteristics and volume of the cakes were not altered with the inclusion of isolated fiber in the cake. The sensory quality evaluation showed that the fiber incorporated cakes were acceptable similar to the cake without added fiber. Incorporation of various fibers in the cake preparation increased the total dietary fiber content of the product by 4-6%.     

Effect of wheat flour characteristics on sponge cake quality

BACKGROUND: To select the flour parameters that relate strongly to cake‐making performance, in this study the relationship between sponge cake quality, solvent retention capacity (SRC) profile and flour physicochemical characteristics was investigated using 38 soft wheat samples of different origins. Particle size average, protein, damaged starch, water‐soluble pentosans, total pentosans, SRC and pasting properties were analysed. Sponge cake volume and crumb texture were measured to evaluate cake quality. Cluster analysis was applied to assess differences in flour quality parameters among wheat lines based on the SRC profile. RESULTS: Cluster 1 showed significantly higher sponge cake volume and crumb softness, finer particle size and lower SRC sucrose, SRC carbonate, SRC water, damaged starch and protein content. Particle size, damaged starch, protein, thickening capacity and SRC parameters correlated negatively with sponge cake volume, while total pentosans and pasting temperature showed the opposite effect. CONCLUSION: The negative correlations between cake volume and SRC parameters along with the cluster analysis results indicated that flours with smaller particle size, lower absorption capacity and higher pasting temperature had better cake‐making performance. Some simple analyses, such as SRC, particle size distribution and pasting properties, may help to choose flours suitable for cake making. © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry     

青稞粉粒径及其高添加量对戚风蛋糕面糊特性和品质的影响

针对蛋糕制备中增加高纤原料含量容易带来的结构塌陷等品质不稳定问题,该研究选择高膳食纤维含量的青稞粉为主要粉料,探究青稞粉粒径及其高添加量对戚风蛋糕面糊特性和蛋糕品质的影响。以小麦粉基戚风蛋糕为对照,研究了不同粒径青稞粉（QKF80、QKF100、QKF120）在不同添加量（50%、75%、100%）下,面糊的比重、气泡分布、黏度以及蛋糕的比容、气孔结构、质构、感官品质的变化。结果表明,青稞粉粒径越大,膳食纤维含量越高,青稞粉的吸水吸油能力越强。随着青稞粉添加量的增多,面糊稳定性降低、比重及黏度增加,蛋糕比容减小、硬度增加、内部气孔变大,塌陷程度增加,感官品质下降。小粒径青稞粉可赋予面糊适当黏度,使之在缺乏面筋蛋白的情况下也能稳定。QKF120三种添加量下,面糊比重范围0.33~0.36,糊中气泡分布均匀,成品蛋糕比容4.8~5.2 mL/g,内部气孔结构致密均匀,质构特性及感官评分与小麦粉基蛋糕无显著性差异。该研究可为开发高含量青稞粉戚风蛋糕提供理论依据和实践参考。