| dc.description.abstract | Cookies are bakery products which are also referred to as sweet biscuits and are usually consumed by a wide range of population globally. Their appeal and level of acceptability is to a large measure determined by their highly flavored ingredients. They also have a high fat and sugar content and thus a high energy density but low nutrient density. Therefore, their nutrient density, flavor and shelf life of basic cookies need be enriched so as to meet the increasing market demand with a nutritious, shelf stable and healthy food product. Dry spear mint spent grass is usually used as manure and yet it could improve the nutrient content, sensory properties and shelf stability of cookies if added to the recipe. This study was carried out to assess the effect of spearmint spent grass powder on the nutrient content (fiber content and beta-carotene content), shelf stability (variation of moisture content and microbial quality over 6months) and sensory acceptability (among 37 consumer panelists) of basic cookies. A questionnaire was used to collected data for sensory acceptability while experimental methods were used to collect data for assessing nutrient content and shelf stability. Cookies of 0%, 1%, 3% and 6% spear mint spent grass powder concentrations were assessed for sensory acceptability (texture, taste, aroma, appearance, color, general acceptability and regularity of purchase). The sensory acceptability decreased with increase in the mint concentration. Those of 0%, 1% and 3% passed the sensory analysis and were analyzed for nutrient content and shelf stability (for 6months at intervals of 2 months). The cookies with mint concentrations of 0%, 1% and 3% had fiber contents of 0.09%, 4.786% and 25.984% respectively and beta-carotenoid content of 0.959 mg/100g, 1.637 mg/100g and 1.95 mg/g respectively. The moisture content increased from 1.747% to 6.270% for 0%, from 1.713% to 5.686% for 1% and from 1.145% to 5.148% for 3% mint concentration from 0 to 6months. From 0 to 4 months, the peroxide value increased from 0.399 to 2.294 meq/100g, 0.374 to 2.293 meq/100g and 1.145 to 2.950 meq/100g for 0%, 1% and 3% respectively and then reduced to 1.046, 1.024 and 5.148 meq/100g respectively at 6months. All the cookies of the three different mint concentrations did not indicate microbial growth within the 6 months at dilutions of 100, 101 and 103. Therefore, the nutrient content and shelf stability of the cookies increased with increase in the mint powder concentration. However, the sensory acceptability slightly decreased. | en_US |
