Effect of pecan nut expeller meal on quality characteristics of gluten-free muffins

MARCHETTI, L.; ACUÑA, M.S.; ANDRÉS, S.C.

LEBENSMITTEL-WISSENSCHAFT UND-TECHNOLOGIE-FOOD SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV

Año: 2021 vol. 146

0023-6438

To improve gluten-free (GF) muffin quality the pecan nut expeller (PNE) has been incorporated at two levels (20and 30 g/100 g, P20 and P30, respectively) as a partial replacement for traditional flour mix, while water wasadjusted to obtain iso-viscous batters than the GF-control. Process yield, aw, texture, color, crumb structure, andmoisture were analyzed. PNE inclusion improved water-binding properties and let to obtain softer crumbs withmore pores. Texture, crumb moisture, thermic transitions, fatty acid profile, and antioxidant capacity werestudied during their storage. Product hardness increased over storage time but in a lower proportion for PNEmuffins,while chewiness increased for control and remained stable for them (2.43 N). Besides, starch retrogradationenthalpy diminished through the storage when the expeller was included. Higher antioxidant capacitieswere obtained in PNE-muffins, which were slightly lower by the storage time. Muffin?s fatty acid profileswere almost stable during their storage in agreement with TBARS value that showed slight differences with time.Also, PNE-muffins presented higher PUFA contents (18.13 and 20.9 g/100 g for P20 and P30, respectively) withrespect to the control. These results reflected that pecan nut expeller could be successfully incorporated into aGF- muffin with improvements in their physicochemical characteristics, PUFA content, antioxidant activity, andstorage stability.