Biscuits were prepared from different blends
of refined wheat flour, germinated chickpea flour
and carrot pomace powder in the respective ratios
of 100:0:0, 90:5:5, 84:8:8 and 80:10:10. Refined
wheat flour biscuits were considered as control. The
standardized formulation for the biscuits had the
ingredients as 100 g flour, 50 g sugar, 45 g butter fat,
1.5 g ammonium bicarbonate and required amount of
milk. Butter fat and ground sugars were creamed for
about 3 min achieve a uniform consistency. The flour,
required amount of milk and ammonium bicarbonate
were added to the creamed mixture and mixed for
8 min at medium speed in dough mixer to obtain a
homogenous mixture. The dough was rolled out into
thin sheet of uniform thickness and cut into desired
shape using mould. The cut pieces were placed over
a perforated tray and transferred into a baking oven
at 190°C for 10 - 15 min. The well baked biscuits
were cooled to room temperature and stored in air
tight container till further use.
Analytical methods
Protein (Kjeldahl nitrogen estimation, Nx6.25),
fat (soxhlet extraction), moisture, ash and crude
fiber content of flours and biscuits were determined
by using standard methods of AOAC (1990). The
carbohydrate content was determined by subtraction
method.
Functional properties of flours
Water and oil absorption capacity
The water and oil absorption capacities were
determined using method of Sosulski et al. (1976).
The sample (1.0 g) was mixed with 10 ml distilled
water or refined soybean oil, kept at ambient
temperature for 30 min and centrifuged for 10 min
at 2,000×g. Water or oil absorption capacity was
expressed as percent water or oil bound per gram of
the sample.
Bulk density
Bulk density was determined according to the
method as described by Okaka and Potter (1977).
The sample (50 g) was put into a 100 ml graduated
cylinder and tapped 20 - 30 times. The bulk density
was calculated as weight per unit volume of sample.
Least gelation concentration
The least gelation concentration was determined
using method of Coffman and Garcia (1977) with
some modifications. The flour dispersions of 2 -
30% (w/v) at an interval of 2% were prepared in
5 ml distilled water and heated at 90°C for 1 h in
a water bath. The contents were cooled under tap
water and kept for 2 h at 10 ± 2°C. The least gelation
concentration was determined as that concentration
when the sample from inverted tube did not slip.
Swelling capacity
The method of Okaka and Potter (1977) with
some modifications was used for determining the
swelling capacity. The sample filled up to 10 ml
mark in a 100 ml graduated cylinder was added with
water to adjust total volume to 50 ml. The top of the
graduated cylinder was tightly covered and mixed by
inverting the cylinder. The suspension was inverted