The objective of this study was to evaluate powder mixtures as substitutes of fresh cheese in traditional manufacturing of a baked snack, due to the cheese variability in its quality properties and its high cost. In the cheese substitute powder mixtures, protein was varied with sodium caseinate/whey protein ratios in ranges from 7.33 to 13.29 and the fat with lecithin/microencapsulated vegetable fat (MVF) ratios from 1.5 to 4. The optimal formulation according to the textural properties was the one composed of sodium caseinate/whey protein ratio of 7.84 and lecithin/MVF ratio of 4. The optimum was compared with a snack control sample prepared in a traditional way using fresh cheese and its porosity, specific volume, texture, microstructure, composition and sensory characteristics were measured, as well as the texture during 30 days of storage. Significant differences were found regarding porosity, specific volume and microstructure. During storage the hardness of both samples increased; however, the control always showed less resistance to cutting and puncture. Snacks made with the powder mixture had higher protein content and less fat; however, its sensory acceptance by consumers was lower compared to traditional samples.

Crackers are a popular food with an appreciable share of the consumer market. Fat is essential for the sensory properties of this product; however, a high fat content is associated with health disorders. For this reason, developing low-fat products with the same desirable attributes as the corresponding full-fat ones is a high priority for the food industry. The objective of the study was to evaluate the inclusion of modified cassava starch as a fat substitute in crackers by measuring their physical and sensory properties and behavior during storage. Fat reduction in crackers led to higher fracturability values for all treatment but the pregelatinized (PREGEL) one ( 11.73 ± 0.39  N). The expansion ratio decreased with fat reduction, and the treatments with the highest expansion ratio and specific volume were the control (CTRL) ( 10.51 ± 0.21 and 1.97 ± 0.09  mL/g), the one with amyloglucosidase (AMG) ( 10.24 ± 0.10 and 2.20 ± 0.023  mL/g), and the pregelatinized (PREGEL) one ( 10.40 ± 0.16 and 1.99 ± 0.15  mL/g). The samples with modified starch showed an average total fat reduction of 49.51% compared with the control treatment. The results of sensory analysis by the acceptability test showed a greater inclination towards the CTRL and AMG treatments, in both color ( 6.73 ± 1.81 and 6.45 ± 2.08 , respectively) and texture ( 6.95 ± 1.72 and 6.67 ± 1.69 , respectively) parameters. During storage, the fracture strength decreased from 13.66 ± 0.32  N to 11.39 ± 0.57  N for AMG and from 12.5 ± 0.42  N to 10.77 ± 0.61  N for CTRL treatment, while the moisture content increased for both AMG (from 4.09 ± 0.85 % to 4.72 ± 0.13 % ) and CTRL (from 3.87 ± 0.14 % to 4.31 ± 0.43 % ) treatments between 0 and 30 days of storage. According to these results, it can be concluded that physically and enzymatically modified cassava starches can work as fat replacers in crackers.