Abstract
Food with functional properties have sparked consumer interest due to health benefits. In this work, mint and blueberry were chosen to be added to chocolate as a source of bioactive compounds because they have functional properties. The aim of this study was to evaluate the physical-chemical characteristics (color, moisture content, water activity, acidity, viscosity and pH) and antioxidant properties by the DPPH method of bitter, white and milk chocolate, added with blueberry peel and seeds and hydro-alcoholic mint extract in concentrations of 3 and 0.3%, respectively. Regarding color parameters, the greatest differences were observed in samples containing blueberry. The moisture content and viscosity of chocolate tend to decrease with the presence of mint and blueberry, while water activity tends to increase for bitter and white chocolate. The pH of milk chocolate decreased with the addition of mint and blueberry, while the acidity of milk chocolate increased, as long as for bitter chocolate it decreased and for white chocolate it did not change. Regarding the antioxidant activity, the concentrations of blueberry and mint used were not effective in increasing this property. Therefore, higher concentrations are needed to improve chocolate functional properties.
Highlights
Chocolate is a product obtained from the processing of cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.), and the main steps of this process are fermentation, drying and roasting
Some beneficial health properties are attributed to the phenolic compounds present in cocoa products, such as the antioxidant activity already reported in the literature, which provides positive effects like LDL cholesterol reduction, anti-inflammatory activity and the prevention of some chronic diseases (ANDÚJAR et al, 2012)
Cocoa beans are rich in phenolic compounds, during the making of chocolate the content of these bioactive compounds decreases, especially in fermentation and roasting (MUHAMMAD et al, 2018)
Summary
Chocolate is a product obtained from the processing of cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.), and the main steps of this process are fermentation, drying and roasting. Among the compounds related to the sensory and functional quality of cocoa products are phenolic and alkaloids (MUDENUTI et al, 2018; VANDERSCHUEREN et al, 2019). Some beneficial health properties are attributed to the phenolic compounds present in cocoa products, such as the antioxidant activity already reported in the literature, which provides positive effects like LDL cholesterol reduction, anti-inflammatory activity and the prevention of some chronic diseases (ANDÚJAR et al, 2012). Cocoa beans are rich in phenolic compounds, during the making of chocolate the content of these bioactive compounds decreases, especially in fermentation and roasting (MUHAMMAD et al, 2018). Mainly the phenolic class (flavonoids, anthocyanins), occur naturally in fruit, vegetables and teas, providing an alternative to the food industries to use synthetic antioxidants (MOO-HUCHIN et al, 2015)
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