Abstract
Innovation is one of the pillars for achieving sustainable development, and in order to insert a new food product onto the market one must use approaches that encompass scientific and technological research. With a view to proposing an alternative use for Brazilian pine seeds (Araucaria angustifolia), and temperate climate fruits cultivated in the State of Paraná, Brazil, a creamy persimmon pudding was elaborated with partial substitution of the fruit by different concentrations of Brazilian pine seeds (0, 5 and 10%). The following properties of the products were analysed: soluble solids, water activity, pH, total acidity, moisture, ash, colour, texture and the microbiological characteristics. Complying with the standards of identity and quality and also with the physical, chemical and microbiological characteristics, from the technological point of view, the insertion of pine seeds and consequent reduction in pulp content allowed for the adequate development of this innovative product. The values for water activity, the sugar content and the low acidity level observed in the sweet creamy pudding made the ambience unfavourable for microbial development, associated with good manufacturing practices. Due to the presence of starch in the Brazilian pine seeds, the change in the standard formulation influenced the instrumental texture profile analysis. The colour parameters showed low luminosity, indicating only slightly translucent products, characteristic of high-sugar content foods concentrated by evaporation, and the expression of the a* and b* chromaticity indicated the predominance of the colours yellow and red, characteristic of the original fruit. The investigations carried out in this study revealed the technological applicability of the Brazilian pine. This contribute to the adding value via product diversification, as an alternative to generate financial resources for small farmers by way of extractivism, ensuring the conservation of forest species such as Araucaria.
Keywords:
Diospyrus kaki L.; Araucaria angustifolia; Processing; Physicochemical and microbiological characterization; Texture and colour analyses
Thumbnail
