Development of Functional Synbiotic-Designed Sorbets as Carriers of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 299v and Fruit-Derived Bioactive Compounds: Probiotic Survival, Physicochemical Quality, Consumer Acceptance, and Purchase Intention

The growing demand for dairy-free functional foods has created a need for fruit-based products that simultaneously provide probiotics, prebiotics, and bioactive compounds. This study evaluated seven high-fruit synbiotic-designed sorbets prepared with raspberries, strawberries, haskap berries, apples, or plums, and two variants with blackcurrants, containing 45–55% fruit, 3% inulin, and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 299v added at two inoculum levels. Sucrose was added to the mixture, and in one variant of the blackcurrant, it was replaced with erythritol, which can affect, among other things, the sweetness, hardness, melting point, mouthfeel, and freezing point of frozen desserts. Erythritol was used to evaluate the effect on these characteristics in one variant. The addition of one and two probiotic capsules to each sorbet was also compared. The viability of the probiotics (as LAB) before and after freezing, physicochemical composition, color, hardness, melting, aeration, antioxidant properties, consumer acceptance, and purchase intention were assessed using univariate and multivariate statistical analyses. After freezing, the number of viable cells remained at approximately 7.05–7.18 log CFU/g in the single-capsule variants and 7.45–7.51 log CFU/g in the two-capsule variants, confirming the high immediate viability of the probiotic cells. The fruit type and its content in the matrix significantly differentiated acidity, sugars, color, hardness, degree of growth, melting properties, phenolic compounds, anthocyanins, antioxidant activity, and sensory quality. The dark berry sorbets showed a particularly high content of bioactive compounds. Consumer responses varied significantly between formulations, with taste, texture, and consistency demonstrating the strongest associations with overall acceptance. The results demonstrate that fruit sorbets can serve as practical, dairy-free carriers for Lactiplantibacillus plantarum 299v and inulin, while retaining fruit-specific functional and sensory properties.