Effects of Level and Particle Size of Date Fruit Press Cake on Batter Rheological Properties and Physical and Nutritional Properties of Cake

Date Press Cake (DPC) is a by-product of date fruit juicing, which has remained mostly underutilized in food products. The main objective of this research was to investigate the viability of adding DPC in cake formulation. Thus, different levels (۰, ۱۰, ۲۰, ۳۰, and ۴۰%) and particle sizes (۲۱۰ µm= DPC۲۱۰ and ۵۰۰ µm= DPC۵۰۰) of DPC were used in cake formulation. The results showed that DPC had higher fiber, ash, and fat content than cake flour. Increasing the level and reducing the particle size of DPC increased batter consistency, firmness, stickiness, cohesiveness and viscosity. Inclusion of DPC increased cake density, reduced pH and crust moisture content, but these were not affected by DPC particle size. The samples became harder and less cohesive as the level of DPC increased. DPC۲۱۰ resulted in softer and less cohesive cakes compared to the DPC۵۰۰. Addition of DPC improved the antioxidant content of the cakes, particularly when DPC۲۱۰ was added. Overall, the sample produced with ۱۰% DPC۲۱۰ had acceptable sensory characteristics.

Keywords:

Agricultural by-product , Bioactive compounds , Cake quality , DPC , Value-added product.