The utilization of date palm fruits powder in the development of pasta / Nur Anis Najihah Rabfie and Nafisah Musa

Date palm fruits have proven rich in nutrients that are needed by the human body including carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals. The present work focused on increasing the nutritional quality of pasta via date palm fruits powder to monitor the influences of physicochemical, texture, and colour attributes of functional pasta. Three pasta products were prepared with 22.86 %, 15.24 %, and 7.62 % of date palm fruits powder (DPFP) for Formulations 1, 2, and 3, respectively. The nutritional content, colour, and texture of the date palm fruits pasts were evaluated. Ash (0.96 % - 1.45 %), fat (6.41 % - 8.45 %), and carbohydrate content (72.75 % - 80.64 %) show an increasing (p<0.05) trend along with decreasing percentage of date palm fruits powder in each formulation. However, moisture content (8.81 % - 10.51 %) and protein content (4.3887% - 9.36 %) show a decrease (p<0.05) in trend along with an increasing percentage of date palm fruits powder. This research shows that date palm fruits pasta had a good lightness L* (64.0767 - 69.5733), redness a* (5.8900 - 4.8233), and yellowness b* (68.1867 – 73.1633). Hardness, cohesiveness, springiness, chewiness, and gumminess show an increasing trend (p<0.05) for each formulation as decreasing date palm fruits powder in each formulation. In conclusion, date palm fruits pasta can be recommended for application in pasta production to produce high nutritional value pasta products with enhanced physicochemical, texture, and colour attributes which at the same time can contribute to achieving better policies of sustainable food systems in the country to ensure food security in future.