Effect of Carrot Pomace Powder and Dushab (Traditional Grape Juice Concentrate) on the Physical and Sensory Properties of Cakes: A Combined Mixtures Design Approach

Background: Carrot pomace powder (CPP), a valuable by-product of carrot processing, and Dushab, a traditional grape juice concentrate, can be utilized for enrichment of products. Methods: Combined mixtures methodology using D-optimal design was found to be an effective technique to investigate the effects of replacing wheat flour and sucrose with CPP and Dushab on water activity, moisture content, specific volume, crumb color and textural properties of cakes and their sensory evaluation. Results: Moisture content, color difference and browning index of cakes increased with an increase in the amount of CPP and Dushab substitution. The specific volume of the cakes reduced in the supplemented CPP and Dushab cakes. By increasing the level of CPP and Dushab, the firmness of the cakes increased whereas cohesiveness decreased. Chewiness and gumminess were not affected by Dushab substitution but increased by the increment of CPP. Dushab substitution led to the decline of cake springiness compared to the control one. The least sensory accepted product, with a mean score of 0.7 in a scale from 0 to 1, had the maximum substitution of CPP (24% wheat flour) and Dushab (100% sucrose). Conclusion: The optimization tool indicated that a functional cake with high desirability can be achieved with the substitution of 10% wheat flour by CPP and 65% sucrose by Dushab.