CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

Apple pomace (AP) is a by-product, rich in dietary fiber, that is generated in large quantities by the juice industry. The objectives of the present work were to evaluate the effect of the particle size (d(4,3)= 362-840 μm) and the level of replacement (15% and 30%) on the quality of sugar-snap cookies with AP, in terms of dough viscoelasticity and physical properties, color, texture and overall acceptability of the final product. The present study used dehydrated AP that was ground to three different particle sizes (d (4.3) = 362, 482, 840 μm). Wheat flour (WF) showed lower values of hydration properties (WHC and WBC) than AP. When comparing AP with different particle sizes it was found a significant increase in hydration properties as the AP particle size decreased. The particle size of AP influenced the viscoelastic behavior of dough (at both levels of replacement); when the particle size decreased the value of the dynamic moduli (G? and G??) increased. This increase led to a reduced spread during baking. Cookies prepared with AP of the smallest particle size (d(4,3)=362 μm) showed a significant increase in hardness compared to cookies with AP of the largest particle size (d(4,3)=840 μm). The hardness significantly and positively correlated with both dynamic moduli and negatively with the loss tangent, indicating the strong influence of dough viscoelasticity on the hardness of the final product. Cookies with addition of AP showed lower values of L* and b*. The higher the level of replacement the lower values were obtained. There was not a clear trend when using different particle sizes. Addition of AP on sugar-snap cookies led to a similar global acceptability than for control cookies. The sensory attribute that most differentiated the cookies with AP was their pleasant taste. These results suggest that the incorporation of a byproduct of the juice industry such as apple pomace could be a good alternative for fiber enrichment and improving taste.