Commercially available sponge cakes are typically low in resistant starch (RS) and protein. This study aimed to enhance the nutritional and functional quality of sponge cakes by incorporating raw, roasted, and heat-moisture-treated (HMT) chickpea flours into composite wheat flour formulations. Cakes were evaluated for their physicochemical, textural, colour, and structural properties, as well as changes that occurred during short-term storage.The incorporation of treated chickpea flours significantly improved the nutritional profile of the cakes, with HMT chickpea flour showing the greatest enhancement in RS content and moisture retention. Cakes containing higher proportions of HMT chickpea flour exhibited softer crumb texture during storage, indicating improved textural stability. While roasted chickpea flour increased crumb darkness, this colour change represented a trade-off rather than a functional limitation. Structural analysis revealed differences in gas cell distribution depending on flour composition, highlighting the role of composite flour balance in cake quality. Multivariate analysis i.e. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Pearson’s correlation matrix further confirmed strong relationships between RS content and selected colour parameters.Overall, the results demonstrate that HMT chickpea flour is a promising functional ingredient for developing nutritionally enhanced sponge cakes with acceptable technological properties, offering potential for healthier bakery product formulation.

The plant-based diets market has grown in popularity over recent decades and is projected to reach USD 27 billion by 2030. Innovative systems such as intercropping, defined as growing two or more crop species in proximity, are promising contributors to the advancement of sustainable agriculture by improving resource efficiency, enhancing crop resilience, and cutting down the need for chemical inputs. However, legume seed lots grown under intercropping versus monocropping systems differ in composition, which, in turn, can influence seed flour quality. Furthermore, antinutritional properties of legumes, such as phytic acid, condensed tannins (CTs), and raffinose family oligosaccharides (RFOs), limit their utilisation in product formulation. Therefore, the purpose of the study was to reduce these antinutritional compounds for utilisation of the intercropped legume flour in bakery products. A harvest of intercropped peas and faba bean mix (IM) obtained from Irish farmers was soaked (S) for 8 and 16 h and germinated (G) for 24, 48, and 72 h. Non-germinated intercropped mix (IM) was used as a control. All flours were subsequently used to substitute for wheat flour and fortify wheat-based cakes. The 72 h germinated intercropped mix (pea bean; 95.5:4.5) flour showed significantly (p < 0.05) lower levels of antinutritional compounds than the non-germinated intercropped flour. Raffinose, stachyose, and verbascose contents were reduced by 43%, 38%, and 46%, respectively, while phytic acid and condensed tannins decreased by 32% and 57%, respectively. The germination process also reduced the green hue (a*) from −8.37 to −6.49 and enhanced levels of soluble dietary fibre by 2.67% of the flour, while improving their suitability for bakery applications. Wheat-based cakes fortified with germinated and non-germinated intercropped legume flours showed a significant enhancement in protein and soluble dietary fibre contents. Compared with the control cake, protein content increased from 9.52 to 12.80%, while soluble dietary fibre content increased from 0.47 to 1.99% in the fortified cakes. Cakes containing up to 40% germinated flour (G72) showed comparable specific volume values 1.84–1.86 mL/g) and slice brightness (112.50–94.23) to the control cake. Additionally, cakes formulated with 40% intercropped flour showed significantly lower condensed tannin and phytic acid contents (p < 0.05), with reductions of 38% and 31.38%, respectively. Samples containing intercropped legume flours proved suitable for bakery applications, supporting up to 40% substitution in wheat-based cakes, and the germination process was effective in reducing antinutritional properties in intercropped legume flour fortified cakes.

With growing interest in plant-based ingredients, Irish-grown peas offer a promising opportunity to enhance the nutritional quality of cereal-based foods, while supporting local crop diversification. However, their wider use is limited by techno-functional limitations, including low solubility and off-flavours. This study evaluated the effects of roasting (R), ultrasound (US), and microwave (MW) treatments, applied individually and in combination, on the compositional, functional and structural properties of pea flour and a pea:wheat blend (35:65) intended for bread applications, being the first report of this combined processing approach for pea flour. Commercial pea (CP) flour showed higher water solubility, pasting viscosity, and gel hardness than Irish pea (IP). Processing significantly modified flour functionality, with roasting most strongly affecting starch gelatinisation, protein denaturation, and water absorption capacity, increasing the water absorption index by approximately 24% relative to untreated Irish pea flour. FTIR revealed reduced short-range starch crystallinity and a conformational transition of proteins from α-helices to random coils, particularly after roasting. SEM micrographs confirmed substantial matrix disruption, with the combined treatments US+MW+R producing the highest microstructural breakdown, while also showing partial recovery of gel hardness (86.6 g) caused by roasting alone (67.9 g), indicating distinct functional behaviour driven by enhanced protein-starch interactions. Overall, the findings reveal how controlled physical treatments drive structural reorganization of legume biopolymers, thereby enabling functionality enhancement in cereal-based formulations. Future work will investigate the incorporation of treated flours into bread-making to evaluate their impact on final product quality.

Legumes, particularly chickpeas (Cicer arietinum L.), are recognized for their exceptional nutritional value, and their inclusion in diets is widely encouraged by global health organizations, including the World Health Organization. Given their longstanding use in traditional recipes such as Farinata or Socca (Italian chickpea pancake), Panella (Sicilian chickpea fritter) etc. integrating chickpea flour into bakery products offers an effective strategy for enhancing legume consumption. This study focused on the development of chickpea flour-fortified sponge cakes using varying proportions (0-50 %) of raw chickpea flour (CPF), microwave-roasted chickpea flour (MRCPF), heat moisture-treated chickpea flour (HMCPF), using wheat flour (WF) as the base flour and control formulation. A simplex lattice mixture design was employed to optimize the flour blend for improved technofunctional and nutritional properties of the sponge cake. Key parameters such as specific cake volume, crumb hardness, crumb colour [L* (lightness) and b* (yellowness)], slice brightness, and protein content were analysed. The optimal formulation consisted of 71 % WF, 1.04 % CPF, 15.46 % MRCPF, and 12.5 % HMCPF. The optimized sponge cake exhibited a specific volume of 2.05 (ml/g), crumb hardness of 6.34 N, crumb L* of 72.52, crumb b* of 28.96, slice brightness of 98.2, and protein content of 11.17 %, achieving a desirability index of 0.894. This study highlights the potential for using chickpea flour variants to develop nutritionally enriched bakery products with desirable technical and functional characteristics.

The global shift towards plant-based food consumption presents significant environmental benefits, yet the consequential rise in related by-products still imposes a challenge to be addressed. The present work was carried out to evaluate the rheological properties of bread dough as affected by the incorporation of dry fractionated oat drink residue flours as a functional ingredient to identify the optimum condition for incorporating fibre-rich ingredients in bakery products. Mechanically dry fractionated, dried oat drink residue flour of particle size F1: > 150, F2: 150-224, and F3: 224-300 mu m was blended with strong wheat flour at 10% and 20% substitution levels of the wheat flour. The resulting doughs were assessed for their rheological characteristics. Results from Mixolab, Rapid Visco Analyser, and gel texture properties revealed that 10F3 showed the highest peak viscosity; 20F2 exhibited the highest water absorption value (66.7%), whereas 20F2 showed the lowest gel hardness level compared to control (100% wheat flour). Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that the specific surface area of the flour composite is a key feature determining dough rheological properties. Additionally, cluster analysis results revealed that, within measured parameters, flour pasting properties are the most representative of the flour composite characteristics. Moreover, the analysis was able to discriminate between different flour composites based on their rheological properties. The TOPSIS-Shannon entropy approach was used to increase the inclusion level of non-wheat components in the bread formulations while maintaining the structural quality of the bread. The comparison between different flour composites via TOPSIS analysis revealed that 10F2 was the best formulation in terms of instrumental quality properties of the resultant bread among other flour composites. It was observed that the effect of inclusion level outweighs the effect of particle size distribution on incorporated fibre-rich ingredients in terms of affecting the texture quality characteristics of the resultant bread. Results highlight the potential application of fractionated oat drink residue flour for blending with wheat flour properties to produce fibre-rich bakery products.

Utilizing locally grown peas in bread-making offers environmental, nutritional, and economic advantages, yet pea milling remains underexplored compared to wheat. Optimizing pea flour processing is critical, as its integration with wheat can drastically alter baking performance. This study evaluated the impact of three milling techniques: roller mill (RM), hammer mill (HM) and cutting mill (CM). The pea flours were blended in a 15 %/85 % (pea/wheat) ratio and bread profiling was assessed. Additionally, flour and bread were analysed using NIR spectroscopy. Pea flour increased bread protein content. Considering the milling yield, bread characteristics and spectral analysis undertaken, this study suggests that the hammer mill is the most effective method for breadmaking. NIR spectroscopy effectively distinguished formulations despite composition similarities enabling product standardization. Furthermore, NIR uniquely classified diverse breads by storage time, highlighting its potential for bread staling assessment.

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a condition affecting the digestive system and can be triggered by several different factors, including diet. To ease symptoms of IBS, a diet low in fermentable oligo-, di-, monosaccharides and polyols (FODMAPs) is often recommended. Pasta, as a staple food in the Western World, is naturally high in FODMAPs. This study investigates the impact of insoluble and soluble dietary fibre ingredients in low-FODMAPs pasta. The assessment included physicochemical, sensory, and nutritional quality. Soluble fibre strengthened gluten network, which caused a lower cooking loss and a lower release of sugars during in vitro starch digestion. Insoluble fibre interfered with the gluten network development to a higher extent causing a higher sugar release during digestion. This study reveals the most suitable fibre ingredients for the development of pasta with elevated nutritional value and sensory characteristics compared to commercial products on the market. This type of pasta has a high potential of being suitable for IBS patients.

The present work investigated the structure-function relationship of dry fractionated oat flour (DFOF) as a techno-functional ingredient using bread as a model system. Mechanically, DFOF fractions (F), that is, F1: <224 m, F2: 250-280 mu m, F3: 280-500 mu m, F4: 500-600 mu m, and whole oat flour (F5) were blended with white wheat flour at 10%, 30%, and 50% substitution levels for bread making. The blended flours, doughs, and bread samples were assessed for their techno-functional, nutritional, and structural characteristics. The results of Mixolab and the Rapid Visco Analyzer show that the 50% substituted F3 fraction exhibits the highest water absorption properties (69.53%), whereas the 50% F1 fraction exhibits the highest peak viscosity of the past slurry. Analysis of bread samples revealed a lower particle size of DFOF fractions and higher supplementation levels, increased beta-glucan levels (0.13-1.29 g/100 bread (db), reduced fermentable monosaccharides, that is, glucose (1.44-0.33 g/100 g), and fructose (1.06-0.28 g/100 g). The effect of particle size surpassed the substitution level effect on bread volume reduction. The lowest hardness value for F1 is 10%, and the highest value for F2 is 50%. The total number of cells in the bread slice decreased from the control to the F4 fraction (50%). Multi-criteria analysis indicated that DFOF fractions produced breads with similar structure and higher nutritional value developed from white wheat flour.

SummaryThe aim of this study was to determine the textural sensory profile of wheat breads developed using oat flour at different substitution levels (10%, 30%, and 50%) and particle sizes (<224, 250–280, 280–500, 500–600 μm). A trained descriptive panel evaluated the wheat–oat breads using quantitative descriptive analysis (QDA) (n = 8) and partial napping (PN) (n = 12) sensory techniques. The QDA results showed that the textural properties of the breads were significantly affected by oat flour at different substitution and particle size levels (P < 0.001). The attributes crumb ‘denseness’ and ‘stickiness’ discriminated most frequently across samples, while crumb ‘chewiness’ and ‘dryness’ discriminated the least. Principal component analysis (PCA) illustrated that in PC1 (59%) crumb ‘denseness’ was positively correlated with crumb ‘hardness’ and ‘graininess’, while ‘stickiness’ was negatively correlated with crumb ‘graininess’. The application of clustering techniques on QDA data showed that breads with 10% oat flour were differentiated based on particle size; however, as the substitution level of oat flour increased, the substitution level of oat flour used in formulations exceeded the effect of particle size. In terms of PN, panellists identified four distinct groups of wheat–oat breads, indicating that wheat breads with 10% oat flour and <224 μm, 280–500 μm and whole oat flour had similar textural properties to the control wheat bread sample. The texture of wheat breads substituted with 50% oat flour were very different to the control. The results of this study suggest that in addition to the effect of substitution level, fractionation of oat flour may have application in the production of wheat bread formulations with different textural profiles. The findings also emphasise the importance of considering clustering techniques when evaluating complex samples for new product development applications.

Buckwheat flour is a pseudocereal that can be used to improve the nutritional value of staple food, such as bread. However, substituting wheat flour can be challenging due to potential loss of the final product's technological quality. Therefore, understanding the influence of buckwheat inclusion level on dough rheology and bread quality is essential. This study evaluated the effect of wheat flour substituted by buckwheat flour on dough rheology and bread quality over the staling process. Wheat flour was replaced by 0%, 10%, 20% and 30% of buckwheat flour and the resulting dough mixing properties, viscosity profile, gel texture, rheology behaviour and extensibility properties were analysed. Internal bread structure (C-Cell and confocal microscopy), specific volume, density and crumb texture profile were also assessed. The increase in buckwheat level gradually decreased flour water absorption (p < 0.05), dough stability and development time, with increased gluten weakening as evidenced by decreased C2 values (protein strength) of Mixolab. As a result, the dough was less resistant to extension, with decreased extensibility. The highest viscosity profile of the starch paste was observed with 30% buckwheat inclusion level, which may lead to faster bread staling process. A solid-like and elastic behaviour was observed in the rheology evaluation, suggesting an interaction between fibre and starch from buckwheat with gluten proteins. Although changes in dough rheology occurred, the bread quality remained unchanged at levels of up to 20% buckwheat level (p > 0.05), with similar specific volume, density, internal structure and texture profile compared to the control bread (0% buckwheat). In conclusion, buckwheat was found to be a viable wheat flour substitute with only minimal changes in dough behaviour and maintenance of bread technological quality, while enhancing the nutritional profile by increasing fibre content and total essential amino acid.

An increasing consumer demand for plant-based and high-protein options, motivated by health and sustainability, has resulted in a surge of food innovation in this area. Incorporating alternative plant sources, such as pulses and pseudocereals, has been proven to enhance the nutritional profile of baked products. However, these can also negatively impact the yeasted bread acceptability. In the bakery sector, it is crucial to consider how incorporating non-wheat ingredients influences product quality. Consequently, exploring effective treatments/processing methods becomes essential to minimize the impact of alternative plant ingredient additions. This review explores conventional and emerging processing approaches for alternative plant materials and discusses the nutritional value may be enhanced while maintaining high acceptability. A meta-analysis was undertaken to visualize the influence of plant processing technologies on product quality, specifically on loaf-specific volume and crumb texture. This review highlighted the importance of conventional processing methods when applied to bread. Additionally revealed the potential of emerging processing which can positively affect a loaf volume and texture when compared with non-processed plant ingredients. Such studies enabled the production of acceptable bakery products with higher levels of alternative ingredient incorporation. However, increased use of emerging technologies is dependent on further research and overcoming scaling-up difficulties.

Peas contain valuable macronutrients, such as protein and dietary fibre, associated with health benefits. Blending pea flour (PF) with wheat flour (WT) can improve the nutritional profile of bakery products. In addition, the use of locally grown peas for food innovation activities can benefit the environment and the local economy. However, the pea milling process is of paramount importance and can affect the final flour quality. This study aims to evaluate the influence of different milling processes of Irish-grown peas on flour composition, spectral profile (Near Infrared - NIR), pasting properties and dough rheology. Three mills were used: roller (RM), hammer (HM) and cutting (CM) producing RM, HM and CM flours, respectively. A commercial strong wheat flour was used as the base flour. For producing doughs, wheat flour was blended with each pea flour at a 15:85 (pea: wheat). Flour composition, particle size, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), dough mixing properties, viscosity profile, gel texture, dough extensibility and rheology were assessed for the control, all pea flours and flour blends. The hammer mill produced the highest yield of pea flour (93.9 %). Near Infrared Spectroscopy reflected the same results for proximate composition, and the PCA and was able to discriminate the main differences between flour samples. SEM demonstrated that higher particle sizes obtained from the CM tended to have larger starch and protein matrix aggregates. Pea flour from the RM presented the highest viscosity profile and hardness, most likely due to the higher starch and lower total dietary fibre content. The lower pasting viscosity profile of pea flour obtained from CM is most likely due to a high level of damaged starch present in this flour. There were no significant differences found among WT and flour blends for gel hardness. This may imply that the incorporation of 15 % HM and CM flours perhaps will not impact the staling process of the final bread products. Further research is being undertaken to examine the influence of the pea milling process on bread-making performance.

Research on the effects of animal diet on consumer liking of beef has yielded conflicting results. Currently it is unknown whether dynamic changes occur in liking during consumption of beef. This study applied a combi-nation of traditional and temporal (free and structured) liking methods to determine consumer liking of beef derived from animals that were fed grain (GF), grass silage plus grain (SG) or grazed grass (GG) during finishing. Three separate panels of beef eating consumers (n = 51; n = 52; n = 50) were recruited from Teagasc Food Research Centre, Dublin, Ireland to assess striploin steaks from animals fed either GF, SG, or GG. Using the free temporal liking (TL) method, results revealed that beef from GF animals was liked significantly less (p <= 0.05) in terms of overall liking, tenderness and juiciness, when compared to steaks from the SG and GG animals. These effects were not observed using the structured TL or traditional liking methods. Further analysis showed the evolution of scores over time was significant (p <= 0.05) for all attributes using the free TL method. Overall, the free TL method yielded more discriminative data and was perceived as easier to perform by consumers compared to the structured TL method. These results show that the free TL method may provide an opportunity to elicit more in-depth information regarding consumer sensory response to meat.

Fermentable oligo-, di-, monosaccharides and polyols (FODMAPs) are carbohydrates which can cause symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Cereal-based products are high in FODMAPs, as they are part of the carbohydrate fraction in flour. Low-FODMAP products are starch-based which leads to a low dietary fibre content. Hence, the fortification with dietary fibre ingredients low in FODMAPs is essential. This study reveals the impact of three different fibre ingredients, resistant starch, cellulose, and arabinoxylan, and their interactions with each other in a low-FODMAP biscuit model system using response surface methodology. All fibre ingredients have an affinity to water which was further increased by their coexistence in the model system. Fibersym RW affected the biscuit hardness by its morphology and potential to recrystallise leading to a maximum inclusion level of 40%. VITACEL L 600-30 also increased biscuit hardness due to its plasticising character leading to a maximum inclusion of 20%. AgriFiber BFG mainly impacted the colour of the product restricting its inclusion to 2.3%. Additionally, it reduced the degree of starch digestibility of the biscuit by the formation of a film imbedding the starch granules and reducing enzyme attack. This research provides an in-depth insight into the integration potential of these fibre ingredients into a low-FODMAP biscuit, their interactions within the system and inclusion levels which allow their coexistence.

Wheatgrass juice has become a popular beverage in many countries as a “health food”. The juice is extracted from mature wheatgrass shoots and is a concentrated source of nutrients, containing considerable levels of vitamins, minerals, active enzymes, chlorophylls and antioxidant polyphenols. The growing market for wheatgrass juice creates a need to increase its availability for consumers. A limitation of the product is that it has a short shelf life; therefore, it is usually consumed fresh. Therefore, there is a need to find suitable treatments to extend the shelf life of wheatgrass juice, while preserving its beneficial properties and assuring product safety. This review aims to assess wheatgrass juice properties, its microbiological profile and shelflife limitations, while also reviewing how different non-thermal pasteurisation treatments available to date are capable of preserving the quality and safety of wheatgrass juice.

As fat contributes important textural properties such as lubricity and tenderness to cakes, it is plausible to focus on ways to increase the perception of these properties with the aim of creating the illusion of a higher fat. The utilisation of small sugar particles has been shown to increase the moist and soft texture of Chocolate Brownies. The present study assessed three different sugar particle sizes in their ability to create the illusion of fat content and therefore their ability to permit fat replacement (FR) in this product. The unground commercial sugar (200-5181 µm) was used as the control (UC) and two of its sieved sugar separates, Large (L924-1877 µm) and Small (S459-972 µm) were investigated. For each, fat was replaced using pureed black beans. The most accepted sample was used for sucrose replacement (SR) using inulin and Rebaudioside A. (Reb A.). Samples containing the smallest sugar fraction with 25% FR were most significantly associated overall acceptability (OA) (p<0.01). The application of small sugar particles did not significantly negatively affect OA or liking of samples at a level of 75% FR compared to the other two sugar fractions. The utilisation of small sugar particles (459-972 µm) in the preparation of baked goods could aid baking & industry professionals in reducing the fat content of cake-like products.

Determining minimum levels of fat and sucrose needed for the sensory acceptance of sponge cake while increasing the nutritional quality was the main objective of this study. Sponge cakes with 0, 25, 50 and 75% sucrose replacement (SR) using a combination of inulin and Rebaudioside A (Reb A) were prepared. Sensory acceptance testing (SAT) was carried out on samples. Following experimental results, four more samples were prepared where fat was replaced sequentially (0, 25, 50 and 75%) in sucrose-replaced sponge cakes using pureed butter beans (Pbb) as a replacer. Fat-replaced samples were investigated using sensory (hedonic and intensity) and physicochemical analysis. Texture liking and overall acceptability (OA) were the only hedonic sensory parameters significantly affected after a 50% SR in sponge cake (p < 0.05). A 25% SR had no significant impact on any hedonic sensory properties and samples were just as accepted as the control sucrose sample. A 30% SR was chosen for further experiments. After a 50% fat replacement (FR), no significant differences were found between 30% sucrose-replaced sponge cake samples in relation to all sensory (hedonic and intensity) parameters investigated. Flavour and aroma intensity attributes such as buttery and sweet and, subsequently, liking and OA of samples were negatively affected after a 75% FR (p < 0.05). Instrumental texture properties (hardness and chewiness (N)) did not discriminate between samples with increasing levels of FR using Pbb. Moisture content increased significantly with FR (p < 0.05). A simultaneous reduction in fat (42%) and sucrose was achieved (28%) in sponge cake samples without negatively affecting OA. Optimised samples contained significantly more dietary fibre (p < 0.05).

Consumption of fermentable oligo-, di-, monosaccharides and polyols (FODMAPs) often induces symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Since FODMAPs and dietary fibre (DF) share certain characteristics, IBS-patients have a limited intake of DF. Therefore, enrichment of a low FODMAP model bread (based on 84% wheat starch and 16% vital gluten) with various fibres (bamboo, cellulose, psyllium, guar gum) in two different concentrations (3 g/100 g and 6 g/100 g) was investigated. Physico-chemical properties of doughs and breads were analysed (fermentation quality, gluten development, specific volume and hardness), as well as the release of reducing sugars during in vitro digestion. High performance anion exchange chromatography with coupled pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD) was used to determine the FODMAP levels (contents of mannitol, sorbitol, fructose in excess of glucose, fructans and α-galactooligosaccharides) of both dough and bread. Prototypes were compared with wheat flour-based breads (bakers’ flour with and without wheat bran addition) to assess the performance of these prototypes. Prototypes showed a decreased quality compared to a baker’s flour control, however, a quality comparable to commercial wheat bran breads was found. This in combination with a lower release of reducing sugars during in vitro digestion underline the potential of fibre enriched breads as part of a healthier and more palateable low FODMAP diet. Furthermore, this study highlights the importance of the type (viscous and insoluble) and the concentration of fibres used. Application of psyllium in a concentration of 3 g/100 g showed the most beneficial impact on both physical (specific volume, hardness after 0 h and 24 h) and nutritional aspects of bread.

A rich sugar diet has negative health implications so it is necessary to reduce sugar where possible. The objective of this study was to determine if different sugar size fractions could increase the sweetness intensity of Shortbread biscuits and therefore, permit sugar reduction. For this, the unground commercial sugar (Control, 102 to 378 µm) and two of its sieved separates, (Coarse (C), 228 to 377 µm and Fine (F), 124 to 179 µm) were investigated in biscuit formulation with the following content: Control 100% or 50%; (C), 100 or 50% and (F), 100 or 50% or its initial content. Biscuits were tested using sensory (hedonic and intensity), physical (dimensions, fracture properties, color), and compositional analyses. Trends showed that samples containing C-sugar with its 50% content were more preferable than samples containing the Control and F- sugar fractions at the same level without impact upon acceptability of the final product in all three sugar fraction sizes. As sweetness intensity scores correlated directly with flavor liking scores, these findings promote the use of this sugar fraction in the formulation of low-sugar baked biscuits. Sugar particle size manipulation could be used as a viable, cheap, technological approach to reduce sugar in baked goods and therefore promote consumer acceptable and commercially available baked biscuits products. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: In order to reduce sucrose content in products one of the approaches might be via the utilization of small sugar particles which has been shown to increase the intensity of sweetness in chocolate brownies, which has been previously shown by Richardson et al. in 2018. This study investigates the use of a clean label approach in sugar reduction of short bread biscuits. This approach involves decreasing the sugar particles size and demonstrates how reducing the content to half of its initial content formulation will affect the sensory perception and physical properties.

The sensory and aroma quality of 30% (w/w) sucrose reduced sponge cakes incorporating clean-label replacers were investigated. The sensory quality of the reformulated sponge cakes varied, with those containing apple pomace powder (APP) showing the greatest difference to the control (SC100). Volatile profiles mainly differed in relation to compounds derived from the Maillard reaction, caramelisation and lipid oxidation. Thrity six aroma active volatile compounds were identified in the SC100, APP and oligofructose (OLIGO) sponge cakes by olfactometry. Furfural 'spicy bready' contributed most to the overall aroma of all samples, with factor dilution values differing the most for heptanal 'fatty cake crust', methional 'potato damp', and 2,5-dimethylpyrazine 'cake crust, nutty'. This study provides an in-depth insight into the impact of sugar reduction reformulation on the sensory perception of sponge cakes and demonstrates how this approach can be used to improve the sensory perception of reduced sucrose sponge cakes.