Fortification of bread with bee pollen, and its effects on quality attributes and antioxidant activity.

Bee pollen (BP) is a good source of nourishing substances with preventative effects against metabolic syndrome and subsequent type II diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular diseases. In the present work, the addition of BP changed the characteristics and nutritional values of bread. It was found that the addition of BP significantly increased dietary fibre, thiamine, and riboflavin levels, as well as phenolic contents and antioxidant activity. When blending the wheat flour with 20 - 25% BP, the antioxidant activity of bread increased effectively, while at 20% BP addition level, the specific volume, springiness, hardness, and chewiness were significantly detrimentally affected. Addition of 10% BP was beneficial to water retention, and delayed bread staling. These results suggest that the addition of 10 - 15% BP could effectively improve the nutritional and antioxidant properties of wheat bread with textural and sensory quality being closer to the white bread. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]