Acrylamide formation in a cookie system as influenced by the oil phenol profile and degree of oxidation

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the olive oil phenolic compounds as well as of thermoxidised oil on the formation of acrylamide in a cookies system. Three virgin olive oils having different phenolic profile and a thermoxidised sunflower oil were selected. Cookies were baked at 190 °C for different times (8–16 min) following a basic recipe where type of oil was the variable. Additionally to acrylamide (AA), other parameters such as colour, moisture, antioxidant activity (AOA), and hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) were measured. Results showed that concentration and composition of phenolic moiety of virgin olive oil significantly affect the acrylamide formation, particularly at prolonged baking time. Virgin olive oil with a higher dihydroxy/monohydroxy ratio was more efficient in the AA mitigation and AA was reduced up to 20%. Colour and AOA were not significantly different among the three types of oils. However, AA is dramatically increased when thermoxidised oil is used with a parallel increase of browning and HMF. It was concluded that lipid oxidation products should be considered as an important factor in acrylamide formation during baking of fat-rich products.