Potencial nutricional, funcional e sensorial de pães doces elaborados com frutos do Cerrado

Abstract

The incorporation of native fruits from the Brazilian Cerrado, such as pequi (Caryocar brasiliense Camb.) and gabiroba (Campomanesia xanthocarpa O. Berg) in the form of flour or pulp in the production of bakery products, may increase and spread the consumption of bread and native fruits, being able to meet the nutritional needs of schoolchildren. The first stage of the project consisted in developing and making sweet breads with flours of pequi husk (PHF) and pequi and gabiroba pulps (PPF and GPF) in partial replacement to wheat flour, as well as with the pulps of these fruits (PP and GP) in partial replacement to water. The objective of this study was to obtain an ideal concentration range for each substitute and developing a bakery product with technological qualities compared to that obtained from the standard formulation. In the pequi sweet breads, the ideal replacement ranges were obtained from the formulations using between 0.75% and 2.5% PHF; up to 20% PPF and between 5% and 35% PP. In the gabiroba sweet breads, the ideal replacement ranges comprised from 1.615% to 5.0% PHF and 10% to 11.5% GPF and up to 20% GP. In the second stage of the project, the effect of the aforementioned substitutions was evaluated, in an isolated and combined manner, on physical, nutritional, functional and sensory variables. In the pequi sweet breads, the replacement of ingredients (wheat flour and water) by PHF, PPF and PP contributed to causing some color changes, promoting darker and yellow-orange tones in the crust, crumb and in textural properties. Besides, it promoted an increase in the content of lipids, crude fiber, non-fiber carbohydrates and energy value. Despite this, all formulations showed a high sensory acceptance, with emphasis on formulations with PP. The breads that had PHF in common, as well as those formulated with PP combined with PPF, presented higher levels of total phenolics, vitamin C and carotenoids, in addition to greater antioxidant activity. The major phenolic compounds in PHF and the sweet breads enriched with this flour were catechin, acid gallic and resveratrol. In gabiroba sweet breads, the partial replacement of ingredients wheat flour and water by PHF, GPF and GP promoted changes in the color of the crust and crumb, in the textural properties of the crumb and in the proximate composition, except for the protein content. Besides, all tested formulations were sensorially well accepted and did not differ significantly from each other. The treatments that had PHF in common stood out for the higher levels of total phenolics, vitamin C, as well as higher antioxidant activity, being that, the major phenolic compounds present in PHF and in sweet breads enriched with it were catechin, gallic acid and resveratrol. In general, the partial replacement of wheat flour and water by PHF, PPF, GPF, PP and GP add nutritional value and functional potential to bakery products.