AACC International 2014 Meeting Abstract - Incorporation of Intermediate wheat grass in food products.

Special Session Presentation
Perennial Grasses: Can They Replace Annual Grains in the Future?

83-S

Incorporation of Intermediate wheat grass in food products.
T. C. SCHOENFUSS (1), K. Seetharaman (2), D. G. Peterson (1)
(1) University of Minnesota, Department of Food Science and Nutrition, St. Paul, MN, U.S.A.; (2) Dept. of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN, U.S.A.

Intermediate wheatgrass (IWG) has functional differences from other common cereal grains that require alterations in product formulations in order to manufacture traditional products. The main gross-compositional differences include lower starch, higher fiber and higher protein concentrations than whole wheat flour (WWF). In order to assess differences from WWF, products were made using IWG alone or in combination with other ingredients and examples will be presented. The low starch concentration affected the baked volume and cell structure of cakes and muffins similarly to differences seen between whole wheat and refined flour. Even though IWG has a high protein concentration, it exhibited no gluten forming ability and therefore no elasticity or extensibility. Yeasted breads made solely with IWG did not have very good baked volume when compared to refined flour. Refining the flour made from IWG has shown positive results, as has using ingredient solutions designed for gluten-free cake formulations (egg whites, xanthan gum and starch, in particular). Differences in the aroma flavor fingerprint of bread crust formulated with IWG was compared to bread made with WWF were also observed. IWG bread had lower concentrations of common lipid oxidation products than WWF, even though IWG has slightly higher lipid concentrations. IWG also had higher amounts of other compounds, such as the Maillard-type products 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (a well-known desirable corn-chip odor) and Methional (potato-like odor). Overall, difference in the IWG baking performance and flavor properties will be discussed in relation to the utilization of this product for food manufacturing.