Physical, sensorial and bioactive characteristics of white chocolate with encapsulated green tea extract

Abstract

BACKGROUND Many studies have described cocoa polyphenols as being bioactive compounds with a potential positive effect on human health. Although dark chocolate is a most powerful source of antioxidants, their content is lower in milk chocolate; conversely, in white chocolate the fat‐free cocoa solids are omitted. The aim of this study was to increase polyphenol content and antioxidant capacity of white chocolate by adding encapsulated green tea extract (GTE) in amounts of 60, 80 and 100 g kg−1. RESULTS GTE influenced the particle size parameters, increasing the volume weighted mean from 15.43 μm in white chocolate to 19.34 μm in chocolate with 100 g kg−1 GTE. At the same time, the viscosity of enriched chocolate also increased owing to the addition of new solid particles. The surface color of enriched chocolates changed in accordance with the amount of encapsulate, where all enriched chocolates had a slightly lighter color after 12 months of storage. Total polyphenol content (mg gallic acid equivalents (GAE) kg−1) increased from 0.41 in white chocolate to 2.73 in chocolate enriched with maximal GTE. This amount of GTE increased antioxidant capacity (mmol Trolox equivalents kg−1) from 1.22 in white chocolate to 16.12. After 12 months of storage, degradation of polyphenols was found to be a maximum of 37.27%, while antioxidant capacity decreased up to 44.14%. CONCLUSION In addition to the impact on chocolate viscosity, GTE added value through the polyphenol content and sensorial profile of the new product with an unusual green tea flavor and a shelf life of at least 12 months. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry

Influence of Freeze-Dried Phenolic-Rich Plant Powders on the Bioactive Compounds Profile, Antioxidant Activity and Aroma of Different Types of Chocolates

“…Other studies have also reported that the addition of fruit or other phenolic-rich plants to chocolates either increase or decrease antioxidant activity evaluated by FRAP and DPPH assays [32,33,41,46]. These distinct differences may be attributed to the increased interaction between phenolics and other compounds, including carbohydrates, sweeteners, and proteins, present in chocolate and in fruits or vegetables.…”

“…However, the values of parameter b* remained more similar. Generally, the addition of freeze-dried phenolic-rich plant powder to DCH, DCH98S, DCH98ESt or MCH significantly (p < 0.05) brightened the color on the surface of enriched chocolates compared to the control ones, which could be attributed to some changes in the crystal structure of cocoa butter (polymorphism) [32]. On the other hand, there were only slight differences for the a* and b* parameters between the control chocolates and the enriched chocolates of the same type.…”

“…That is why scientists, food technologists and dieticians see the need to enrich food, including chocolate, with an additional portion of bioactive compounds, including antioxidants, and the functional food market is constantly growing and not only small enterprises with niche production but also industrial giants are investing in it [5,16]. The current scientific literature on the subject describes few proposals in this area, starting from the introduction of an additional portion of polyphenols in pure form, in the form of cocoa liquor from raw beans, cocoa liquor or cocoa powder with increased polyphenol content [27][28][29] to the addition of spices [30], leaves [31,32] or pomaces [33]. These studies have shown that in this way the polyphenol content and antioxidant activity of chocolates can be increased and their sensory profile can be influenced.…”

Comparing the application of conventional and supercritical CO 2 extracts of green tea; storage stability and sensory acceptance of coriander sauce

“…One of their peers, Jayawardana et al (2019), found that incorporation of green tea extract as an antioxidant on uncured pork sausages did not impact significantly on sensory profile of the sausages. Likewise, Lončarević et al (2019) mentioned that inclusion of green tea extract in white chocolate did not impart any anomalous changes in its olfactory aspects. All these studies results were in accordance with the current study outcomes.…”

White Chocolate with Resistant Starch: Impact on Physical Properties, Dietary Fiber Content and Sensory Characteristics

“…Thus, the functionality of white chocolate is very low compared to dark and milk chocolate, and functional food development studies associated with white chocolate are very limited [ 7 ]. Our previous investigations were focused on the enrichment of white chocolate with polyphenol compounds by adding 6–10% of blackberry encapsulate and encapsulated green tea extract [ 10 , 11 ]. Barišić et al [ 12 ] showed that cocoa shells may be used in chocolate production as a source of dietary fiber.…”