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High nutritional value and antioxidant properties make chickpea flour a valuable substitute for wheat flour, although its texture-forming abilities are different. The aim of this study was to investigate the possibility of increasing the content of bioactive compounds and antioxidant properties of shortbread cookies by simple partial or complete replacement of wheat flour with chickpea flour without considerable changes in texture, color, sensory properties, or acceptability. Shortbread cookies were made from wheat flour (0% of chickpea flour), wheat flour and chickpea flour (replacement of 25%, 50%, and 75%), and chickpea flour (100%). Generally, the increase in chickpea flour share resulted in an increase in protein, fat, and ash content, as well as antioxidant properties. Polyphenol content, flavonoid content, and antioxidant activities increased three- to sixfold in shortbread cookies containing chickpea flour in comparison to wheat cookies. The level of proteins increased about 50% and the antioxidant properties were three to six times higher than in wheat cookies. Cookies containing up to 75% chickpea flour were assessed as very good or good quality, while only cookies without wheat flour were assessed as sufficient quality. It could be concluded that part of the wheat flour content in shortbread cookies can be replaced by chickpea flour. Application of a 25% proportion of chickpea flour increases physicochemical properties without changes in sensory properties. Sensory quality was up to 75% lower, but antioxidant properties were increased. However, complete replacement of wheat flour in shortbread cookies without changing the recipe resulted in a product of slightly lower sensory quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fresh and frozen wheatgrass juice (WgJ) stored for three months were examined in terms of: polyphenolic components, total chlorophylls and carotenoids, antioxidant and enzymatic activity and color. Juices were prepared from summer and winter grass, at two growth stages (16 and 21 cm). Raw WgJ (100 g) contained: 5.04 dry matter; 4.59 total extract; and 0.820 ash. Raw WgJ (1 L) contained also 391.4 mg chlorophylls; 79.1 mg carotenoids; 920.9 mg total polyphenols, with a mean antioxidant activity of 9.57 and 93.07 µM Troloxeq/mL (DPPH) and (ABTS) respectively; catalase and peroxidase activity were 114.94 and 0.13 U, respectively. Summer WgJ (fresh and frozen) had higher chlorophylls, carotenoids, total polyphenols concentration, increased enzymatic activity, better color than winter WgJ, but lower levels of dry matter, ash, and extract. Freezing and storage of juices significantly reduced the level of dry matter, chlorophylls, carotenoids, antioxidant, and catalase activity. Color deterioration was also noted. Practical applications Sprouts and wheat grass are young plants, including active enzymes, easily absorbed vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals. Due to the lack of human enzymes digesting cellulose, which large amounts are found in the grass a better alternative is to drink wheatgrass juice. They represent one of the latest discoveries in nutrition. The best way is to drink fresh juice immediately after production, so they do not lose during storage labile compounds. The consumption of wheatgrass juice brings a lot of benefits. Not everyone can afford a grass breeding and production of juice at home. A long list of beneficial properties of juice obtained from wheat grass making it the product of an increasingly desired by consumers. The process of freezing is still one of the least invasive and universal methods for maintaining the product almost unchanged while significantly extend the life of. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low-sugar gooseberry jams enriched by the addition of black chokeberry, elderberry, Japanese quince, flax seeds and wheat germs were examined for the content of total polyphenols, total flavonoids, and total anthocyanins as well as their antioxidant activity (DPPH, ABTS, and FRAP) and individual phenolic compounds. The jams were evaluated immediately after production and after 6 and 12 months of storage. Samples were stored at chilled temperature (10 °C) and room temperature (20 °C). A significant increase in the level of the analyzed components and antioxidant activity were determined in jams with the addition of chokeberry, elderberry and Japanese quince, while in the case of other plant ingredients the differences were not always significant. Immediately after production, the highest levels of total polyphenols (330 mg/100 g), total flavonoids (160 mg/100 g) and total anthocyanins (35 mg/100 g) were recorded in the gooseberry jam with a 15% addition of chokeberry fruit. In the examined jams, p-cumaric acid, ferulic acid, caffeic acid, (+)-catechin and rutin were identified and (+)-catechin were determined in the greatest quantities (1.874-5.660 mg/100 g). The storage conditions of jams determined the level of the examined constituents. Storage temperature generally had significant effect on the level of compounds with antioxidant properties, lower in the products which were chill-stored compared to those stored at room temperature. Anthocyanins were found to be the most sensitive components during storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Vegetables, apart from having high nutritional value, also contain considerable amounts of dietary fibre and other components, which may affect physico-chemical properties of fermented milks, e.g. viscosity, texture, susceptibility to syneresis, flavour profile etc. The present work was established to study the effect of selected vegetables addition on the rheological, textural, microbiological and flavour profile parameters of yoghurts. Material and methods. The vegetable preparations (carrot, pumpkin, broccoli and red sweet pepper) were added (10% w/w) to the processed cow's milk fermented with DVS yoghurt culture. Texture profile analysis, determination of viscosity, susceptibility to syneresis and descriptive flavour evaluation were conducted at the 1st, 7th and 14th day after production. Additionally, microbiological studies were performed for 28 days, at 7-day intervals. Results. The highest apparent viscosity and adhesiveness were obtained for the carrot yoghurt, whereas yoghurt with pumpkin was the least susceptible to syneresis. The other texture parameters were not affected by the addition of vegetables. Broccoli and red sweet pepper flavours were dominating in the fermented milks fortified with these vegetables, whereas carrot and pumpkin flavours were less distinctive. Yoghurt supplemented with red sweet pepper got the highest sensoric acceptability. The number of starter bacteria was not influenced by the vegetable additives, except for pumpkin yoghurt, which contained lower population of lactobacilli. Conclusions. Among all tested vegetables, carrot additive had the greatest potential to improve yoghurt structure, whereas red sweet pepper imparted the most acceptable flavour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Yoghurt is a fermented milk of unique sensory, nutritive and dietetic value offered in a variety of types and in different flavours. Vegetables belong to the group of food products rich in antioxidant substances (e.g., vitamin C, carotenoids, tocopherols, polyphenols) which regular consumption lowers the risk of many diseases including cancers and cardiovascular disorders. The aim of the present work was to manufacture and assess the acidity, sensory quality and antioxidant capacity of yoghurts with addition of selected vegetables during 2-week refrigerated storage. Material and methods. The vegetable preparations (carrot, pumpkin, broccoli and red sweet pepper) were added to the cow's milk fermented using DVS type yoghurt culture after initial cooling to 15-20°C in the amount of 10% (w/w). The following analyses were performed: determination of pH, titratable acidity, antioxidant activity by ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and 2,2'-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) method as well as sensory evaluation and were conducted after 1, 7 and 14 days of cold storage. Results. The yoghurt supplementation with selected vegetables had no significant effect on the pH and titratable acidity level. The highest ability to scavenge DPPH radicals was stated for yoghurts with broccoli and red sweet pepper. The latter treatment gained the highest notes in sensory evaluation. All vegetable yoghurts were characterised by higher than the natural yoghurt FRAP values measured directly after production. However, the level of this parameter significantly decreased after storage. Conclusions. The red sweet pepper additive was the most beneficial regarding antioxidant properties and organoleptic acceptance of the studied yoghurts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vegetables are particularly rich sources of micronutrients and phytochemicals such as polyphenols and vitamins. These plant-derived bioactive compounds provide antitumor and antioxidant properties due to their capacity to interact with reactive oxygen species (ROS). The objective of this study was to determine the effect of iodine biofortification (potassium iodate/KIO 3 /, 5-iodosalicylic acid/5-ISA/, and 3,5-diiodosalicylic acid/3,5-diISA/) on the antioxidant activity of lettuce ( Lactuca sativa L. capitata ) cv. 'Melodion'. In this work, HPLC analysis was used to identify polyphenolic compounds while the antioxidant activity of iodine-enriched vegetables was determined by using DPPH, ABTS and FRAP methods. The content of the water-soluble vitamins was analyzed by using the LC-MS/MS technique. The impact of extracts from iodine-biofortified lettuce on production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in gastrointestinal cancer cells was also evaluated. The results from this research indicate that application of iodine compounds improves the antioxidant potential of lettuce by increasing the concentration of some vitamins, antioxidant enzymes and polyphenolic compounds in the enriched plants. Moreover, the study has shown that iodine-biofortified lettuce induces production of ROS in cancer cells, resulting in an anticancer effect by the induction of programmed cancer cell death., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts to declare., (This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry.)