Formulation and Characterization of Muffins Enriched With Green Pea Powder: A Physical Study Using Response Surface Methodology

The study aimed to incorporate green pea powder (GPP) into muffins at an optimum level that reduces sugar content. Cooking time was optimized with the aim of maintaining the sensory quality of the muffins. The study employed a central composite design (CCD) and response surface methodology (RSM) to systematically optimize pea flour addition, sugar reduction, and cooking time optimization in muffins. The recipe refinement by RSM included muffins physical parameters (height, density, baking loss, volume, and mass) and sensory parameters (color, appearance, texture, taste, after taste, and overall acceptability). However, functional parameters like oil holding and water holding capacity were assessed and optimized for only the flour used for making muffins. RSM profiling optimized explanatory variables as 10% pea flour addition, 50% sugar reduction, and 22.7 min cooking. Based on this, the optimized final product surpassed predicted acceptability levels, particularly in taste (7.40), aftertaste (7.40), and overall liking (7.60). Seventeen runs were designed using various recipe combinations depending upon explanatory and dependent variables, and based on data profiling, an optimized recipe was developed, and point confirmation was done. Statistical analysis detected non-significant results in height, density, and texture (<i>p</i> > 0.05 and <i>R</i> ² < 80%). However, baking loss, volume, and mass exhibited significant results (<i>p</i> < 0.05 and <i>R</i> ² 92%, 87%, and 96%), indicating better model fit. Results of this study indicate that pea protein can be incorporated into muffins while maintaining sensory properties.