314: Development of Snack Bars From Whole Concord Grape Puree and Plant-Based Ingredients

Introduction

Snack bars have gained increased popularity as they provide nutrition and convenience to consumers. Clean-label, nutritionally enriched snack bars were developed from whole Concord grape puree (WCGP) and plant-based ingredients (hemp, buckwheat, and red beans).

Methods

Different formulations of snack bars were prepared by combining WCGP (69-95%) with plant-based ingredients: roasted hemp seeds (H, 30%), buckwheat flour (B, 5%) and red bean powder (R, 12%). Buckwheat flour was added (0-1%) to the hemp formulation as a binding agent. Grapeseed oil (O) was added (0-10%) to buckwheat and red bean for texture enhancement. Optimized formulations (in triplicate) were steam-cooked and processed by: hot air drying (HAD, 70°C, 23 h), freeze-drying (FD), and microwave vacuum drying (MVD, 3 W/g, 20-30 min). Color, pH, water activity, texture, total phenolics (TP) and total monomeric anthocyanin (TMA) contents were evaluated after drying. Proximate composition analysis and consumer acceptance tests (n=101) were conducted on the FD and MVD samples.

Results

The optimized formulation for the snack bars were: (1) 69.2% WCGP, 30% H, 0.8% B for hemp; (2) 93.5% WGCP, 5% B, 1.5% O for buckwheat; and (3) 81% WGCP, 12% R, 7% O for red bean. FD bars retained the highest L* values, indicating lighter color. Texture analysis revealed that MVD produced the hardest bars (20.7±6.0 kg for red bean), while FD samples maintained softer textures. FD retained the highest TP for red bean bars (1590±96 mg/L), while HAD yielded the highest for hemp bars (798±256 mg/L). TMA was highest in FD hemp bars (13.1±3.9 mg/L). FD hemp bars had a higher protein and fat content, were most preferred across most sensory attributes, and rated higher for flavor and overall liking. MVD hemp bars faced penalties for insufficient fruit flavor (2.3 points mean drop, detected by 80% of participants). Texture issues, such as excessive hardness or insufficient crunch, in addition to fruit flavor, were critical drivers of consumer dislike in both FD and MVD samples.

Significance

Optimization of formulation and drying conditions were critical to achieve the desired sensory attributes and texture that consumers prefer for plant-based snack bars.

Authors: Promwadee (Aida) Muneechai, Viral Shukla, Mark Emile H. Punzalan and Olga I. Padilla-Zakour