Effect of hydrocolloid addition on cake prepared with aquafaba as egg substitute

Abstract

SummaryPressure‐cooked or boiled chickpea aquafaba (prepared at a 3:1 water to seed cooking ratio and adjusted to pH 5) was used in place of egg white in a hi‐ratio cake. Xanthan gum or hydroxypropyl‐methylcellulose was added at 0%, 0.2%, 0.4% and 0.6% to increase the air volume fraction in foams and their stability. Cake and crumb appearance, moisture, texture and colour were evaluated. Gum type and level significantly affected the shape and crumb hardness. The most pronounced change was induced by the lowest hydroxypropylmethylcellulose level, which prevented collapsed cake centres. In cake with pressure‐cooked aquafaba, 0.2% hydroxypropylmethylcellulose raised the volume index to a comparable level as egg white cake. Xanthan gum, on the other hand, did not lead to a desirable crumb structure or cake shape. Our results suggest that at optimum addition levels, certain gums in combination with aquafaba can assume some of egg whites' functional roles in cakes.

Plant proteins for sustainable food production: “Serving present to secure the future”

“…The focus of this special issue also extends to product development incorporating plant proteins as alternatives to meat. This includes a manuscript on protein‐rich biscuits using lablab bean seed protein (Akter et al ., 2023), cakes made with aquafaba as a substitute for egg whites and hydrocolloids (Crawford et al ., 2023), meat analogues produced from soy protein and mushrooms and Pickering emulsions stabilised with soy protein isolate and soy peptide nanoparticles complex (Wang et al ., 2023), mung bean protein‐based burger patties containing tapioca starch as binder (Ratnaningsih et al ., 2023).…”