Borage, camellia, centaurea and pansies: Nutritional, fatty acids, free sugars, vitamin E, carotenoids and organic acids characterization

Abstract

The present study aimed to evaluate the nutritional and bioactive potential of four edible flowers (borage, centaurea, camellia, and pansies). Significant differences were observed among the four. Water was the main constituent (> 76%, fresh weight-fw). Linoleic and palmitic acids were the major fatty acids found in borage and red and yellow pansies, while in camellia it was the arachidic acid. In white pansies, behenic and arachidic acids were predominant. Concerning vitamin E, α-tocopherol was the major vitamer. Carotenoids values varied between 5.8 and 181.4 mg β-carotene/100 g dry weight (dw) in centaurea and borage, respectively, being particularly rich in lutein. Malic acid was the major organic acid, except in centaurea, where succinic acid was predominant. Fructose, glucose and sucrose were detected in all flowers. These results can contribute to the knowledge of these edible flowers and consequently increase their popularity among consumers and in the food industry.

Wild and Cultivated Centaurea raphanina subsp. mixta: A Valuable Source of Bioactive Compounds

“…Similarly, Erdogan et al [87] and Tekeli et al [88,89] studied the aerial parts of various endemic to Turkey Centaurea species and reported a significant variation in the fatty acids profile. Finally, apart from leaves the flowers of some Centaurea species are edible presenting a different fatty acids profile compared to leaves [90,91]. In our study, wild plants contained higher amounts of n-3 fatty acids (α-linolenic acid) than n-6 fatty acids (linoleic acid) compared to cultivated ones which were characterized by a balance between these two types of important dietary fats.…”

Edible flowers: traditional and current use

“…EF have a wide variety of colors, textures, sizes and flavors and in Figure 1 are examples of some that are consumed in various parts of the world. Due to this increase in interest in EF, research on the species produced and consumed, their nutritional value and health benefits has been carried out in several countries (Mlcek and Rop, 2011;Kaisoon et al, 2012;Lara-Cortés et al, 2013;Chen and Wei, 2017;Egebjerg et al, 2018;Zheng et al, 2018;Drava et al, 2020;Fernandes et al, 2020;Mulík and Ozuna, 2020;Takahashi et al, 2020;Demasi et al, 2021;Kumari et al, 2021). Other studies focused on consumer preferences and behavior (Chen and Wei, 2017;Rodrigues et al, 2017;Guiné et al, 2017;Guiné et al, 2020;Guiné et al, 2021), in order to better explore the different characteristics of EF to create new products and expand markets in the coming decades (Takanachi et al, 2020;Kumari et al, 2021).…”

Jestivo cvijeće

“…Nutritivni profil jestivog cvijeća (Fernandes i sur., 2017, Fernandes i sur., 2020Sotelo i sur., 2007;Guimarães i sur., 2010;Navarro-González i sur., 2015, Pires i sur., 2017 Table 1. Nutritive profile of edible flowers (Fernandes et al, 2017, Fernandes et al, 2020Sotelo i sur., 2007;Guimarães i sur., 2010;Navarro-González i sur., 2015, Pires et al, 2017…”