Development and Quality Assessment of Nutrient-enriched Value-added Energy Balls and Cookies

Background: Value-added food products represent an emerging approach in food science aimed at improving both sensory quality and nutritional value. Such products are formulated using functional ingredients that not only enhance patability but also provide additional health benefits, responding to the increasing consumer demand for nutritious alternatives to conventional foods. Objective: This study aimed to develop value-added products—specifically energy balls and cookies—using almond milk, wheat germ flour, dates, and makhana powder, and to evaluate their sensory and nutritional qualities compared to non-value-added controls. Methods: Both control and incorporated products were prepared following standardized procedures and subjected to sensory evaluation for colour, flavour, texture, taste, and overall acceptability. The most acceptable formulations were identified through hedonic scoring. Nutritional composition of the selected products was determined, including proximate analysis (moisture, ash, fat, dietary fibre, protein, carbohydrates), caloric value, and mineral content (Ca, Fe, Zn, Mg, K, Na). Results: Sensory analysis revealed that all incorporated products were superior to control samples, with treatment T2 for both energy balls and cookies achieving the highest overall acceptability. Nutritional analysis of value-added energy balls demonstrated 22.01% moisture, 4.9% ash, 8.4% fat, 6.1% dietary fibre, 10.53% protein, and 48.05% carbohydrates, corresponding to an energy value of 309.92 kcal. Mineral analysis indicated appreciable levels of calcium (0.02%), iron (0.39%), zinc (0.95%), magnesium (0.12%), potassium (0.30%), and sodium (0.43%). Value-added cookies showed 14.5% moisture, 2.78% ash, 12.5% fat, 6.5% dietary fibre, 8.24% protein, and 49.98% carbohydrates, yielding 345.38 kcal, along with significant amounts of calcium (0.03%), iron (0.38%), zinc (0.91%), magnesium (0.12%), potassium (0.43%), and sodium (0.29%). Conclusion: The incorporation of wheat germ flour, dates, and makhana powder significantly enhanced both the sensory attributes and nutritional value of developed products compared to controls. These findings highlight the potential of formulating functional food products such as energy balls and cookies to deliver improved health benefits and consumer acceptability.