Mesquite Flour: Processing, Nutrition, and Utilization

JFS S: Sensory and Nutritive Qualities of Food
Processing, Nutritional Evaluation, and
Utilization of Whole Mesquite Flour
(Prosopis laevigata)
A. P. BARBA DE LA ROSA, J. T. FRIAS-HERNANDEZ´, V. OLALDE-PORTUGAL, AND J. GONZALEZ´ CASTANEDA˜
ABSTRACT: BasiccropssuchaswheatandmaizearenotcultivatedeasilyinthecentralhighlandsofMexico,butpods of mesquite
(Prosopis laevigata), a N2−fixing plant that dominates the vegetation, could be used as an additional
foodsource.Thephysicochemicalandfunctionalpropertiesandnutritionalvalueofwholemesquitepodflourdried at 60 ◦C and 70
◦C
and muffins prepared with the mesquite flour were investigated. Drying temperature did not
changethetrueproteinconcentrationofthewholemesquitepodflour,thatis,97%.Thedigestibilityforpodtoasted
at70◦Cwas78%comparedto77%at60◦C,tannincontentwas58%and48%whiletrypsininhibitorwas347and495
unitofinhibition(UI)/gsample,respectively.Functionalcharacteristicsofwholemesquitepodflourweresimilarto
thoseofbeanflour(Phaseolusvulgaris),andsuperiortothoseofwholewheatflour(Triticumsp).Mesquiteproteins were high in
tryptophan and histidine. Sensorial analysis scores for products made with whole mesquite flour were high. The results of
this work suggested that whole mesquite pod flour could be used as a supplement for human consumption.
Keywords: digestibility, functional properties, Prosopislaevigata, sensorial evaluation, whole mesquite flour
Introduction
ost developing countries are faced with an increasing population
and a larger food supply, but have a limited access to cultivable land.
This increased demand for food has increased initiatives to consider
new, underutilized plants as fodder for animals or food for humans, especially
in areas where staple crops such as source wheat or maize are difficult to
cultivate
due
to
lack
of
water
(Beckerandothers1994).Mesquite(Prosopisspp.)isalegumeplant
thatgrowsinAsia,Africa,andLatinAmerica.Itsdeeprootingsystem
and
symbiosis with N2-fixing bacteria allows it to grow in areas with limited and
erratic rainfall and in soils limited in organic material and nutrients (Del Valle
and others 1983; Angoa-Perez and others´ 2004). Mesquite forms “fertility
islands” as organic matter content increases in soil under its canopy that
prevents erosion, improves water infiltration and prevents run-off, and forms
a refuge for fauna and flora (Reyes-Reyes and others 2002, 2003). The
industrial
use
of
mesquiteisvirtuallynonexistentasitgrowsinregionswheretheuse
ofnaturalvegetationisrestricted;exploitationandknowledgeofgermination,plant
ing,cultivation,protection,blooming,ripening,and harvesting is limited
(Figuereido 1990; Ram´ırez-Saldana and others˜ 2000). It is well known,
however,
that
mesquite
seeds
have
high
proteincontentwitharelativelyhighlysinecontent,whichmakesthem ideal to
combine with cereals. Additionally, their nutritional quality improves with
thermal processing such as toasting, microwave, or moist heat under pressure
(Estevez and others 2000). Tradition-´ ally, pods are used to prepare flour,
which is used to make baked
products, or fermented to produce alcoholic beverages (Ram´ırezSaldana and
others 2000). The pods have the potential to be used as˜ low-cost food
supplements, but little is known about their physicochemical and functional
properties.
The
objective
of
this
study
was
tocharacterizemesquitepodsdriedattwotemperatures(60◦Cor70 ◦C), evaluate
whole mesquite flour and prepare different products from it for human
consumption.
Materials and Methods
esquite pods were collected from trees located in the Cortijo at 20
Km from Dolores Hidalgo, Guanajuato, Mexico. The´ pods were
dried at 60 ◦C and 70 ◦C (Rios–Rocha oven, model II SOF, Mexico)
until constant weight and ground in a hammerhead mill (4 model, ThomasWilley, U.S.A.). The obtained flour was passed through a 1-mm × 0.5-mm
sieve, added to polyethylene bags and stored in a refrigerator at 4 ◦C until used.
Chemical characterization of the flour
Moisture content of the whole mesquiteflour was determined by heating a
subsample of 3 g in a vacuum oven at 50 ◦C for 1 h (44-15, AACC 1983).
Crude fat was extracted from a subsample of 5 g dried
invacuumovenat50◦Cwithpetroleumether(boilingpoint30◦Cto
60◦C).Thesolventwasheatedonanelectricplateatsucharatethat the solvent
dropped
from
condenser
at
a
rate
>150
drops/min
(3025,AACC1983).Crudefiberwasdeterminedasweightlossofadried
2-g
subsample digested with sulfuric acid 1.25% and NaOH 1.25% (7-070,
MS 20050254 Submitted 5/2/2005, Accepted 3/7/2006. Author de la Rosa is with
AACC 1983). Total protein (N% × 6.25) was determined with the Kjeldahl
Division de Biolog´ ´ıa Molecular, Inst. Potosino de Investigacion´ Cient´ıfica y
Tecnologica, A.C. Camino a la Presa San Jos´ e #2055, Lomas 4´ a, technique using subsamples of 0.5 g whole mesquite flour (7-015, AACC
78216SanLuisPotos´ı,S.L.P.,Mexico.AuthorOlalde-PortugaliswithDept.de´
1983). All analyses were done in triplicate (n =
Biotecnolog´ıa y Bioqu´ımica, CINVESTAV, Unidad Irapuato, A.P. 629, 36500
Irapuato, Gto., Mexico. Authors Frias-Hern´ andez and Gonz´ alez Casta´ neda˜ 3).
are with Inst. de Ciencias Agr´ıcolas, Univ. de Guanajuato, Ex Hacienda El Copal,
Apdo. 311, 36500 Irapuato, Guanajuato, Mexico. Direct inquiries to´ author
Castaneda (E-mail:˜ [email protected]).
Vol. 71, Nr. 4, 2006—JOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE
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Mesquite flour as food...
Thetrueproteincontentofthemesquiteflourwasdeterminedas
described
before (Naczk and others 1986; Perez-Conesa and others 2002). A subsample
of 500 mg flour was added to 20 mL 10% (w/v) TCA solution. The suspension
was stirred at room temperature for 1 h and centrifuged at 14000 × g at 10 ◦C
for 1 h. The obtained pellet was washed twice with TCA solution and the
disrupt hydrogen bonds and subsequently water molecules become attached to
hydroxyl groups in starch (Rahman 1995)
A subsample of 1 g flour was added to 100 mL distilled water and shaken
for 5 min. The volume of foam was measured immediately after shaking. Foam
capacity (FC) was defined as: FC (%) = total volume after shaking − (volume
Further reproduction without permission is prohibited
supernatants
collectedanddilutedto50mLwithdistilledwater.Totalnitrogenwas
as indicated before (Kjeldhal procedure, 7-015, AACC 1983).
were before shaking). After 30 min, the foam was measured again and foam stability
determined (%FE) was defined as: FE (%) = (volume of foam after 30 min/total foam
volume) × 100.
Digestibility
Digestibility in vitro was determined by the change of pH from a protein
suspension immediately after 10 min digestion with multienzymatic solution,
change in pH has high correlation with the in vivo apparent digestibility of rats
(Hsu and others 1977). A multienzymatic buffer was prepared with 0.16%
trypsin,
0.31%
chymotrypsin,and0.13%peptidase(SigmaChemicalCo,St.Louis,MO,
USA).A312.5mgproteinsubsamplewasmixedwith50mLdistilled water (6.25
mg protein/mL). The pH of the protein suspension was adjusted to 8 with 0.1
N HCl or NaOH and added to 5 mL enzymatic buffer. pH was measured after
digestion
at
37
◦C
for
10
min.
Digestibility(y)wascalculatedaccordingtothefollowingregression equation that
describes the relation samples between digestibility in vitro and in vivo,
determined in mouse (Hesperomys): y = 210.464 − 18.103 x, where x is the pH
of the protein suspension after 10 min digestion with multi-enzyme solution.
Tannin concentration of the flour
Tannincontentwasdeterminedusingthetechniqueasdescribed by Price and
others (1978). A subsample of 200 mg flour was added to 10 mL HCl 1% in
methanol.
The
sample
was
agitated
at
225
rpm
onshaker(NewBrunswickScientificCo,Inc.,Edison,N.J.,U.S.A.)at 30 ◦C for 20
min and centrifuged at 14000 × g and 5 ◦C for 1 h. The supernatant was
collected and a 1 mL aliquot was added to 5 mL vanillin reactive and incubated
at 30 ◦C for 20 min. The absorbance was determined at 500 nm. A catequine
standard curve was determined.
Trypsin inhibitors
A subsample of 1 g flour was added to 5 mL deionized water, stirred at 4
overnight and centrifuged at 15000 × g at 4 ◦C for 30 min. The supernatant
was dialyzed on a 2 kDa MWCO at 4 ◦C for 20 h. The Schwertz and Takenaka
method (1995) was used to determine trypsin inhibitor in the supernant.
◦C
Functional properties
Protein solubility of mesquite flour was measured at pH 4.5, 5, and 7 (Del
Valle and others 1983; Hettiararchchy and Kalapathy 1997) and at pH 5 after
addition
of
ammonium
sulfate
((NH4)2SO4)
to30%and50%(100%saturationwasobtainedwith1.0g(NH4)2SO4
per1.5mLwaterat25◦C)andatpH10afteradditionof1%and10% sodium chloride
(NaCl) (100% saturation was obtained with 1.0 g NaCl added to 2.8 mL water
at 25 ◦C). Water absorption was determined with the method of Sosulki (1962)
and was expressed as the amount of water absorbed by 10 g flour.
A subsample of 1 g mesquite flour was added to 3 mL corn oil,
mixedfor1minandlettostandfor30min.Thesuspensionwascentrifuged at 2000
× g for 1 min. Fat absorption capacity was reported as the amount of free oil
per 100 g of sample (Lin and others 1974).
Gelatinization was determined as described by Coffman and Garc´ıa
(1977). Suspensions of 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, and 16% flour were prepared
and heated for 1 h in boiling water and cooled at 4 ◦C for 2 h. Gelatinization
was defined as a suspension of starch in heated water. Diffusion of water
into granules causes swelling, that is an increase in granule volume, and
S316
JOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE—Vol. 71, Nr. 4, 2006
Amino acid pattern
The amino acid pattern was determined according to AOAC method 43.263
(1984). Proteins were hydrolyzed with 6N HCl at 110 ◦Cfor24husingthePicoTagsystem(Waters-Millipore).Amino acids were determined with the method
described by Elkin and Wazyncszuk (1987).
Preparation of muffin cakes
Themuffincakeswerepreparedbymixing25gbutter,175gwheat
flour,175gwholemesquiteflour(bydryingeachsubsampleat60◦C
and70◦C),250gsugar,250geggs,and10gbakingpowderinabowl. The dough was
placed in a baking pan and baked at 150 ◦C for 1 h. Muffin cakes prepared
without mesquite flour served as control.
Sensory evaluation
Sensory
evaluation
(color,
odor,
flavor,
sweet,
texture,
appearance,andacceptation)wasdoneinanexploratorytesttodetermine the level
of acceptability of mesquite pod flour products. Products without mesquite pod
flour served as control. Triplicate samples prepared with mesquite flour toasted
at 60 ◦C, 70 ◦C and controls were served simultaneously. An affective method
or
a
Hedonic
test
wasappliedusingfivecategoriesofappreciationofthemuffincakes.
The
appreciations were balanced and equidistant. The following evaluations were
applied: 1 = Like very much, 2 = Like; 3 = Do not like or dislike, 4 = Do not
like, 5 = Do not like at all (Anzaldua-´ Morales 1984; Pedrero and Pangborn
1989; Spoto and others 1997; Maldonado-Villalba and others 2005). The test
was done by 40 untrained judges and conducted in a sensory evaluation room
illuminated by white fluorescent light in individual partitioned booths. Each
muffin cake with mesquite pod flour and the control were coded with a random
three-digit
numbers.
All
the
samples
were
servedatroomtemperatureandjudgedinduplicate.Deionizedwater was provided
for the panelists to rinse their mouths after testing each sample.
Results and Discussion
Proximate composition
Mesquitepodflourwasobtainedbytoastingthepodsandpassing them through
a mill. The total protein content of 10% (w/w dry basis) was similar for both
toasting temperatures used (Table 1). The protein content was similar to that
reported for cereals, such as corn (Aguilar-Miranda and others 2002), but
lower than found for other legumes, such as peas and soybean, where proteins
contents ranged from 24% to 34% (w/w dry basis) (Augustin and Klein 1989).
Fat content was 3.6% for toasting at 65 ◦C and 3.5% at 70 ◦C (Table 1) for
the pod flour, however, this content was higher in the
muffincake(Table2).Thesevaluesweresimilartothosereportedfor
P.glandulosa(Zolfaghariandothers1986),buthigherthanthosefor P. juliflora
and Prosopis spp. (Del Valle and others 1987, 1988). The fat content was
similar to values reported for cereals (1% to 5%), but lower than that for
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Mesquite flour as food...
soybean (ranging between 24% and 35%) (Augustin and Klein 1989). It has Table 3---True protein and digestibility percent and tannins and
trypsin inhibitors content of mesquite pod flour
been reported that mesquite oil
◦
◦
Table 1---Characterization of mesquite pod flour (Prosopis (Prosopis laevigata) toasted at 60 C and 70 C
a
Trypsin
laevigata)
Toasting temperature
60 ◦C
70 ◦C
Characteristic
Crude proteina
10.0b (0.8)c
10.0 (0.8)
Fat
3.6 (0.1)
Ash
5.8 (0.1)
3.5
(0.1)
6.5
(0.1)
23.2 (0.1)
56.8
Crude fiber
Carbohydratesd
a
bCrude
26.7 (0.1)
53.9
protein was defined as total nitrogen × 6.25.
Toasting
True
temperature protein (%)
60 ◦C
98a
70 ◦C
97a
Digestibility
inhibitor
Tannins
(%)
(UI/g sample) (mg/100 g)
77a
495a
58a
78b
347b
Values with the same letter are not significantly different (P< 0.05).
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Table 4---Solubility of mesquite pod flour (Prosopis laevigata) at
different pH added with different salts
Values are expressed on percent dry basis and are the mean of three
measurements (n= 3). cValues between parentheses are standard
deviations of the mean. dDetermined by difference.
Table 2---Characterization of muffin cakes with or without
mesquite pod flour (Prosopis laevigata)
Muffin cakes
Muffin cakes
Roasting temperature
60 ◦C
70 ◦C
Soluble proteins (%)
pH 5a
36.7 (0.08)b
34.3 (0.08)
20.4 (0.08)
19.5 (0.08)
(NH4)2SO4 at 50% saturation
9.2 (0.01)
8.9 (0.01)
NaCl 0%
NaCl at 30% saturatione
36.7 (0.08)
85.9 (0.08)
34.3 (0.08)
79.3 (0.08)
NaCl at 50% saturation
74.5 (0.08)
69.2 (0.08)
(NH4)2SO4 0%
(NH4)2SO4 at 30% saturation
with mesquite
with mesquite
Muffin with
pod flour
pod flour
only wheat
Characteristic
toasted at 60
Crude proteina
9.7b (0.1)c
Fat
Ash
Crude fiber
Carbohydratesd
◦C
11.2 (0.1)
8.8 (0.1)
7.8 (0.1)
62.5
toasted at 70
48b
◦C
pH 10d
flour (control)
9.8 (0.1)
8.7 (0.1)
11.0 (0.1)
8.7 (0.1)
7.6 (0.1)
62.5
11.2 (0.1)
2.3 (0.1)
1.8 (0.1)
76.0
ab
Crude protein was defined as total nitrogenValues are expressed on
percent dry basis and are the mean of three× 6.25. measurements (n=
3). cValues between parentheses are standard deviations of the mean.
c
a
Temperature 25 ◦C and pH 5 is the isoelectric point of mesquite protein.
b
Values between parentheses are standard deviations
of the
mean of three values (n c100% saturation
corresponded to 1 g (NH4)2SO4 dissolved in 1.3 mL
water. dTemperature 25
C and pH 10 resulted in maximum
protein solubility. e100% saturation corresponded to 1.0 g NaCl in 2.8 mL
water.
d
Determined by difference.
can contain up to 51% unsaturated fatty acids, such as linoleic acid (Marangoni
and Alli 1987).
Theashcontentofmesquitepodflourwas5.8%at60◦Cand6.5% at 70 ◦C (Table
1) for the pod flour. Similar values were reported for Prosopis spp (Del Valle
and others 1983), but lower values ranging from 1% to 4% were reported for
P. juliflore, Prosopis velutina (P. velutina), and P. glandulosa (Meyer and
others 1986; Zolfaghari and others 1986; Del Valle and others 1987). Values
ranging between 1% and 4% were reported for beans (Desphande and others
1982) and from 3% to 4 % for wheat whole flour (Charley 1990). In general,
mesquite flour is rich in minerals, especially Ca, Mg, K, Zn, and Fe
(Marangoni and Alli 1987). Mesquite pod flour was also rich in fiber content,
ranging from 23% to 27% at 70 ◦C and 60 ◦C, respectively.
Theashandfibercontentsofmuffincakeswithpodflourwerehigher
thanthecontrol(Table2).Thiscomponentimprovedthequalityand the nutritional
value of these products.
True protein and digestibility
The true protein content was 97% to 98% independent of the toasting
temperature (Table 3). These results suggest that almost all nitrogen in the
mesquite
flour
could
be
found
in
proteins,
which
couldpotentiallybeusedbythehumanbody.Toastingtemperature did not affect
digestibility, the values were 77% at 60 ◦C and 78%
at 70 ◦C (Table 3). Similar values have been reported for P. juliflora
(Marangoni and Alli 1987; DeMonte-Negreiros 1992). The seeds of
thelegumeplantsPhaseolusvulgarisandLensesculentausedasfood
supplementshavedigestibilityvaluesrangingfrom79%to84%,similar to those of
the mesquite pod flour (Friedman 1996; Balandran´ and others 1998). The
large digestibility together with the high true protein content indicates that
mesquite pods are a good source for proteins for humans.
Trypsin inhibitor and tannins
Trypsin inhibitor of whole mesquite flour was 495 UI/g and
347UI/gforsamplesroastedat60◦Cand70◦C,respectively(Table3).
Anincreaseof10◦Cdecreasedsignificantlytheactivityofthetrypsin inhibitor. The
trypsin inhibitor content in mesquite pod flour was very low compared to other
legume seeds. It was 600 UI/g in lentils and 12000 UI/g in chickpea (ChagollaLopez 1998).´
Tannincontentalsodecreasedfrom58to48mg/100gwhenroasting
temperature increased from 60 ◦C to 70 ◦C (Table 3). Values ranging from
33.7 to 282 mg/100 g have been reported for P. vulgaris
(Desphandeandothers1982).Assuch,flourofP.laevigatahad
low
tannin
content. The decrease in both trypsin inhibitor and tannin content with
increased roasting temperature is mainly due to their thermo-labile
characteristics (Reddy and Pierson 1994). Both trypsin inhibitor and tannin
have nutraceutical characteristics (Li and Zhang 2001)
Vol. 71, Nr. 4, 2006—JOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE
S317
Mesquite flour as food...
Functional properties
Thepatternofsolubilityofmesquitepodflourhadtypicalbehavioroflegumepla
nts,suchassoybean(Waggleandothers1989),and
verysimilartothatofP.juliflorapod(DeMonte-Negreiros1992).The
protein
solubility of whole mesquite flour as a function of pH and salt concentration is
shown in Table 4. Solubility of mesquite pod flour had similar values at pH 5
and pH 10 when no salt was added, 36.7% when pod was toasted at 60 ◦C and
34.3% when toasted at 70 ◦C. However, when (NH4)2SO4 was added at 30%
and 50% saturationatpH5,theproteinsolubilitywasdecreased,at50%saturation
solubility was 9.2% when mesquite pods were toasted at 60 ◦C and 8.9% when
toasted at 70 ◦C. On other hand, the addition of sodium chloride (30%) at pH
10 had a positive effect; protein solubility was increased to 85.9% at 60 ◦C and
79.3% at 70 ◦C toasted pod temperatures (Table 4). Del Valle and others (1983)
have
reported
that
increasingsaltconcentrationatpH5andpH10didnotincreaseprotein solubility of
P. juliflora. In this work sodium chloride improves mesquite proteins
solubility at pH 10.
Mesquite pod flour absorbed 185% times its weight in water (Table 5). A
similar value has been reported for bean (Phaseolus
Table 5---Characteristics of mesquite (Prosopislaevigata) pod
flour roasted at 60 ◦C and 70 ◦C compared to those of bean
(Phaseolus vulgaris) and wheat (Triticum sp.)
Mesquite pod flour
Roastingtemperature
similar values to those found for Phaseolus vulgaris (Sosulki and Youngs
1979).
Amino acids content
Theaminoacidcontentofmesquitepodflourshowedagoodbalanceasrecomme
ndedforadultsandchildrenperdaybyFAO(1993) (Table 6). Results indicate that
essential
amino
acids,
such
as
histidine,threonine,tryptophan,valine,andphenylalaninewerepresent
insufficientamounts.Therelativelyhighlysinecontentofmesquite pod flour
indicates that this flour could be recommended for adult supplement lysinelimited food, such as cereal grains (Marangoni and Alli 1987). Mesquite pod
flour could be combined with cereals, legumes, or mixtures of both, yielding
products of good nutritive value (Del Valle and others 1983; Estevez and
others 2000). Dif-´ ferences in amino acid content between those found in this
study and those previously reported are presumably due to the different species
investigated. Products of P. juliflora were found to be high in sulfur-containing
amino acids (DeMonte-Negreiros 1992).
Table 6---Essential amino acid amounts in mesquite pod flour
(Prospois laevigata) (mg amino acid/g protein)a
FAO
Aminoacid
Mesquitepodflour
Children Adults
Histidine
45(0.1)
19
16
Phaseolus
Tryptophan
53
(0.01)
11
45(0.1)
34
95
60 C
70 C
vulgaris
Properties
Wheat Threonine
Valine
62
(0.1)
35
Lysine
20(0.1)
58
1613
Water absorption capacity 186 (0.8)d 199 (0.8) 185 75 Oil absorption
+
14 (0.1)
25
17
capacity 59 (0.8) 71 (0.8) 100 98
Isoleucine26 (0.1) 28 c
13 Leucine
56 (0.1) 66
Gelatinization
16 (0.9)
16 (0.9)
14
--- Methionine Cysteine
19
Foam capacity
0 (0.0)
0 (0.0)
30
--Foam stability
0 (0.0)
0 (0.0)
50
--d
Emulsionactivity
50(0.8)
50(0.8)
65
--- aPhenylalanine
Tyrosine
28(0.01)
22
19
b
Values are expressed
on percent dry basis.
Mean of three repetitions
Emulsionstability
80(0.8)
80(0.8)
90
--- (standard deviations). cMinimum values required for adults and children per
a
Values are expressed on percent dry basis and are the mean of three
measurements (n= 3). bSosulki and Youngs (1979). cZolfaghari and others
(1986). dValues between parentheses are standard deviations of the mean
(n= 3).
vulgaris) (Sosulki and Youngs 1979), but lower values of 75% for wheat flour
(Zolfaghari and others 1986). The oil absorption capacity of 59% for mesquite
pod flour was lower than for bean and wheat flour (Desphande and others
1982; Zolfaghari and others 1986). However, oil absorption capacity of whole
mesquite flour (59% to 71%), was within the range (68% to 134%) as reported
for eightlegumes(SosulkiandYoungs1979).Gelatinization(Table5)of whole
mesquite pod flour was independent of the roasting temperature and similar to
that of beans (Sosulki and Youngs 1979). Interestingly, mesquite pod flour did
not form foam so it could easily be used in processes where foam should be
avoided. Emulsion activity and stability (Table 5) of mesquite pod flour had
day as stipulated FAO (1993). dcRequirements for methionine +
cysteine.tyrosine. Requirements for phenylalanine +
Sensory evaluation
Although the color, odor, and flavor of the muffins added with
mesquitepodflourwereslightlydarkerandstronger,theyweregenerally given a
favorable evaluation, that is “Score 2: Like” (Table 7).
Thecontrol,however,hadalessfavorablequalification“Score3:Do not like nor
dislike.” The products made with mesquite pod flour roasted at 60 ◦C and 70
◦C had the highest score for color in score 2 with 44% and 50%, respectively,
compared to the control with the highest score of 32% in score 3 (Do not like
or dislike). With respect to the flavor, muffins added with mesquite pod flour
had a higher score46%to36%(like)thanthecontrol40%(Donotlike).Thesweet
texture and appearance of muffins with mesquite pod flour had a similar
sensory
evaluation
as
the
control
muffins
(Table
8).
Acceptancewasbetterintheproductsmadewithmesquitepodflour45%40%
(Like) in comparison with the original recipe 30% (Do not like) (Table 9). It
has been reported that the texture of muffins prepared with mesquite pod flour
Color
Sensory
Descriptor
Likeverymuch
Like
Donotlikeordislike
Donotlike
Donotlikeatall
a
Odor
Mesquitepodflour
Roastingtemperature
Mesquitepodflour
Roastingtemperature
Score
60 C
70 C
Wheat
60 C
70 C
Wheat
60 C
70 C
Wheat
1
2
3
4
5
3a
44
25
25
3
18
50
32
0
0
18
18
32
25
7
21
32
29
18
3
14
36
25
25
0
10
18
29
29
14
21
46
29
0
4
23
36
29
8
4
14
14
18
40
14
Sensoryevaluationexpressedonpercentbaseasdefinedby40untrainedjudgesdoneinduplicate(
S318
Flavor
Mesquitepodflour
Roastingtemperature
JOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE—Vol. 71, Nr. 4, 2006
n
80).
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Mesquite flour as food...
was affected, but not the flavor (Zolfaghari and others 1986). Other products people already use mesquite pods. Toasting improves some nutritional aspects,
were made with up to 30% substitution of whole wheat flour, but only 10% in decreases trypsin inhibitor and tannins contents, which are nutraceuticals
compounds
at
lower
muffins (Meyer and others 1986; Estevez and others 2000).´
concentrations,butantinutritionalathigherconcentrations.Proteinsolubility of
mesquite pod is comparable with other sources of proteins, such as soybean
Conclusion
that is extensively used in food preparation. Mesquite
esquite pod flour (Prosopis laevigata) could be an excellent source
of vegetal proteins. The trees or shrubs grow in arid areas where
Table 7---Color, odor, and flavor evaluation of muffins made with mesquite pod flour (P. laevigata) roasted at 60 ◦C and 70 ◦C
compared to muffins made only with wheat (Triticum sp.)
Table 8---Sweetness, texture, and appearance evaluation of muffins made with mesquite pod flour (Prosopis laevigata) roasted at 60
◦C and 70 ◦C compared to muffins made only with wheat (Triticum sp.)
Sweetness
Sensory
Descriptor
Texture
Mesquitepodflour
Roastingtemperature
Score
60 C
70 C
Appearance
Mesquitepodflour
Roastingtemperature
Wheat
a
60 C
Likeverymuch
1
21
14
4
29
Like
2
43
54
28
50
Donotlikeordislike
3
28
17
28
21
Do not like 4 8 11 28 0 7 18 7 0 14 Do not like at all 5 0 4 12 0 0 14 0 0 18
Mesquitepodflour
Roastingtemperature
70 C
Wheat
60 C
70 C
Wheat
18
46
29
11
36
21
11
46
36
25
39
36
21
29
18
a
Sensory evaluation expressed on percent base as defined by 40 untrained judges done in duplicate (n= 80).
highlands of Mexico as affected by natural vegetation: a laboratory study. Biol Fert Soils
Table 9---Acceptance evaluation of muffins made with mesquite
40:252–9.
pod flour (Prosopis laevigata) roasted at 60 ◦C and 70 ◦C compared
Anzaldua-Morales A. 1984. Importancia de la evaluaci´
on sensorial en la industria
to muffins made only with wheat
ali-´ mentaria. Curso impartido a profesores del Departamento de Graduados, Escuela
(Triticum sp.)
Nacional de Ciencias Biologicas, Instituto Polit´ ecnico Nacional de M´ exico.´
Acceptance
Sensory
Descriptor
Likeverymuch
Like
Donotlikeordislike
Mesquitepodflour
Roastingtemperature
Score
70 C
Wheat
1
2
3
13
40
32
14
17
22
24%
45%
22%
60 C
Do not like 4 9 11 30 Do not like at all 5 0 4 17
[AOAC] Assn. of Analytical Chemists. 1984. Official methods of analysis of the association of
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ua A, Quintero A. 1998. Functional and´
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URLs and E-mail addresses are active links at www.ift.org
a
Sensory evaluation expressed on percent base as defined by 40 untrained
judges done in duplicate (n= 80).
flourdidnotproducefoam,whichisanadvantagewhenfoamisnot desirable such as
in ice-cream processing. Mesquite pod flour was incorporated in muffins
resulting in a positive sensory evaluation.
Acknowledgments
We thank the Consejo Estatal de Ciencia y Tecnolog´ıa del Estado de
Guanajuato(CONCyTEG),CentrodeInvestigacionyEstudiosAvan-´
zadosdelInst.PolitecnicoNacional,UnidadIrapuato(CINVESTAV),´ and the
Univ. of Guanajuato for providing facilities, A. ChagollaLopez,C.AlcantaraSegoviaandL.A.Jim´ enezMagdaleno,L.Castro-´
Barrita,S.ChaconSegovia,M.Ch´ avez-Taboada,F.Ram´ ´ırez-Saldana˜ for technical assistance
and L. Dendooven for critical reading of the manuscript. The research was
funded by CONCyTEG and the Univ. of Guanajuato.
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