Evaluation of techno-functional properties of fava bean aquafaba powder in vegan muffins: Effects of locust bean gum and foam-mat drying

The fava bean aquafaba with and without locus bean gum (LBG) was foam-mat dried at 50 °C, 60 °C, and 70 °C and used as an egg replacer in the vegan muffin. Foams, muffins, and aquafaba powders were characterized using various analyses. The maximum foam overrun (832.37 %) and the minimum foam density (0.1067 g/ml) were observed at fresh aquafaba. As the drying temperature increased, foam capacity increased to 427 %. The addition of LBG to aquafaba and using 70 °C for drying increased foam stability and decreased foam drainage. Baking loss and specific volume of muffins ranged between 15.31 % to 19.06 % and 1.79 ml/g to 2.42 ml/g, respectively. The moisture diffusion coefficient and activation energy were 1.380-5.448× 10^-9 m²/s and 33.78-40.93 kJ/mol, respectively. Mathematical modeling showed the suitability of the Middilli & Kucuk model for showing the drying behavior of aquafaba. The powder dried at 70 °C showed the best wettability (0.97 min for non-gum-added aquafaba powder) and produced muffins with the highest volume (135 ml for gum-added aquafaba powder). Adding LBG to aquafaba and foam-mat drying could improve the techno-functional properties of foam as an egg replacer in vegan muffins.