Physicochemical and sensory characteristics of a breakfast cereal made from sprouted finger millet-maize composite flour

The study examined the utilization of sprouted finger millet-maize composite flour in breakfast cereal production, with a focus on its physicochemical, functional, and sensory attributes. The study followed a one factor design in which maize flour (MF) was substituted with sprouted finger millet (SFMF) at varying proportions (0%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, and 90%) to investigate the physicochemical and functional characteristics. The tristimulus colour (L* value), pH, amount of water and oil absorption capacity, proximate composition, emulsion capacity and stability, swelling power and solubility index of composite flour samples were analyzed. Breakfast cereal samples made from composite flour were analyzed for sensory characteristics and tristimulus colour (L* value). Notably, the moisture and ash content of the composite flour samples displayed significant increases (p ≤ 0.05) as the proportion of Sprouted Finger Millet Flour (SFMF) incorporation rose, while carbohydrate and protein contents decreased significantly (p ≤ 0.05). Functional properties demonstrated significant increases (p ≤ 0.05) in the composite flour samples, except for bulk density, which decreased significantly (p ≤ 0.05) with increasing SFMF content. The L* values for the composite flours significantly (p ≤ 0.05) decreased. In sensory evaluations of the breakfast cereal samples, those with 40% and 50% SFMF received the highest overall acceptability, colour, and taste scores (p ≤ 0.05). The findings of this study suggest that nutritious breakfast cereal can be produced using finger millet-maize composite flour, characterized by elevated levels of ash and crude fiber, alongside low carbohydrate and moisture content.