Reformulation of Biscuit and Oatcake Products With Nutritional and Environmental Benefits Using a Novel Palm Shortening Substitute

ABSTRACT This paper assessed the feasibility of replacing palm shortening with a novel sustainable ingredient composed of rapeseed oil, linseed meal, and beta‐glucan (PALM‐ALT) in hard‐texture bakery products (biscuit and oatcake). There is currently no palm shortening alternative that is functional, sustainable, nutritionally‐balanced, and competitive. The PALM‐ALT ingredient was characterized by oil droplet size distribution, rheology, confocal microscopy, and scanning‐electron microscopy, whilst the biscuits and oatcakes were profiled by sensory, texturometry, colorimetry, water activity, and moisture analyses. The PALM‐ALT ingredient exhibited a stable emulsion‐gel structure (32 µm oil droplet size, 62 Pa.s viscosity, 40 Pa yield stress). Linseed proteins contributed to the formation and stabilization of oil droplets, whilst linseed mucilage, oat beta‐glucan, and aggregates of linseed proteins and/or beta‐glucan (observed in the continuous phase) further stabilized the emulsion. Three formulations were prepared with either palm shortening, rapeseed oil, or PALM‐ALT. PALM‐ALT biscuits and oatcakes respectively showed an 86% and 75% saturated fat reduction in comparison with their palm‐based control product. PALM‐ALT products displayed similar sensory and instrumental profiles to their palm‐based controls, whereas rapeseed oil formulations exhibited significantly different color, odor, and texture profiles than the controls ( p < 0.05). Rapeseed oil biscuits showed a lower overall sensory quality than their palm‐based control, whilst PALM‐ALT oatcakes displayed a higher acceptability than the control and rapeseed oil products ( p < 0.05). This study showed that PALM‐ALT was able to replace palm shortening in hard‐texture bakery formulations with maintenance of their sensory profiles, whilst providing nutritional and sustainability benefits.