Study on Proximate Composition and Sensory Attributes of Shortbread Cookies Produced from Wheat, Soybean and Carrot Flour Blends
Ekeocha, P. N. *
Department of Food Science and Technology, Imo State Polytechnic, Omuma, Oru East, Imo state, Nigeria.
Nwokeke, B. C.
Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Umuagwo, Imo State, Nigeria.
Eweama, A.U.
Department of Food Science and Technology, Imo State Polytechnic, Omuma, Oru East, Imo state, Nigeria.
Madu, U.E.
Department of Food Science and Technology, Imo State Polytechnic, Omuma, Oru East, Imo state, Nigeria.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Shortbread cookies are a form of confectionery product usually dried to a low moisture content. Shortbread also known as shortie is a traditional Scottish biscuit usually made from one part of sugar, two parts of butter and three parts of plain wheat flour. This study investigated the proximate composition and sensory properties of shortbread cookies produced from Wheat, Wheat flour, soybean seeds and carrots purchased from Eke Ukwu market, Owerri Municipal, Imo state, Nigeria. Moisture, fat, crude fibre, protein, ash and carbohydrate content of the shortbread cookies were determined according to the methods of AOAC. Soybean and Carrot flour blends at different proportions were taken. A total of 25 semi-trained panelists performed the sensory test to assess the appearance, taste, aroma, texture, and overall acceptability of the bread on a 9-point Hedonic scale (1=dislike extremely and 9=like extremely). The experimental data generated from various studies were statistically analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) computer software (IBM SPSS version 23). Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was performed to detect significant differences (p<0.05) among sample means. The results showed that the proximate composition ranged from 6.34 - 8.41%, 6.34 - 7.68%, 1.73 - 2.12%, 2.05 -2.48%, 7.47-11.90% and 69.72 - 76.07% for moisture, fat, ash, fibre, protein and carbohydrates, respectively. Significant differences (p<0.05) existed among the test samples in all the parameters except in fibre where samples D and E did not differ significantly (p>0.05). The partial substitution of wheat with soybean and carrot flour increased the fat, ash, fibre and protein contents of the cookies test samples. The results showed that the sensory panelists scores ranged between 5.35 and 6.70 for appearance, 5.60 and 7.80 for aroma, 5.20 and 8.05 for taste; 5.45 and 7.50 for texture; 5.55 and 8:25 for overall acceptability. The test sample from formulation B had the highest score of 8.11 (liked very much) in all the parameters checked and was the most acceptable by the panelists of the entire test sample. In conclusion, the addition of soybean and carrot flour to wheat in shortbread cookie production resulted in significant improvement in the protein, crude fibre, crude fat and ash when compared to 100% wheat shortbread cookies.
Keywords: Shortbread cookies, soybean, carrot, sensory attribute, proximate composition