The effect of functional additives on the indicator “water activity” of biscuit semi-finished products

Abstract

Abstract Among different segments of the population of the Russian Federation, flour confectionery from biscuit dough is one of the most popular. In order to give them functional properties to increase the biological value, we used pumpkin in this work. Such an additive enriches the finished product with pectins, carotenoids and minerals. The introduction of pumpkin puree also has a positive effect on organoleptic characteristics, but increases the humidity of the finished product. Introduction to the recipe for biscuit pumpkin puree helps to increase the value of the indicator “water activity”. Researching the microbiological quality indicators in the products developed showed that between Aw and microbiological quality indicators such as QMAFAnM and the content of yeast and molds, a straightforward relationship is observed: an increase in the proportion of water in the finished biscuit cake mix leads to increasing in a total number of microorganisms and also increasing the microorganisms of spoilage. In the sample with 20% replacement of wheat flour with pumpkin puree, the value of Aw approaches the value characteristic of products with high humidity (0.9). Therefore, enriched biscuit semi-finished products have a shorter shelf life, it is advisable to produce them at public catering facilities.