Innovative confectionery products based on hazelnut paste and probiotics

Health and hedonic benefits are key factors for the success of innovative foods. The purpose of this study was to develop new confectionery products, sensorially pleasant and intense, with high nutritional value, stable at high environmental temperatures, also with regard to the texture. Different recipes with hazelnut paste, maltitol, bitter cocoa powder, maltodextrin DE12, and tragacanth gum were prepared with the eventual inclusion of Bifidobacterium (BB-12®). The formulations were added with water, emulsified, and dehydrated by freeze-drying. Lyophilized samples were covered with dark or milk chocolate and, finally, kept for 24 weeks at 40 °C simulating 2 year storage at 20 °C. Samples were characterized (for moisture, fat, protein, reducing sugar, ash, and mineral contents) and monitored in terms of oxidative stability (moisture, acidity and pH, peroxide number, conjugated dienes and trienes, color, total phenols, tocopherols, organic acids, hexanal and hexanol compounds), microbial count (microorganisms at 30 °C, Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp., Staphylococci, yeasts and moulds, viable probiotic cells) and sensory characteristics (texture analysis, QDA test). All the different formulations were sensorially highly appreciated. Data from accelerated storage test did not highlighted the onset of relevant degradation phenomena. However, in the medium term (8-16 weeks) most of the examined parameters underwent significant variations, even though below the threshold of unacceptability; differences were perceptible also with regard to rheology and sensory (mainly as for brittleness and rancidity), even though these attributes went diminishing towards the end of the storage. After 16 weeks, the probiotic viability declined below 10E9 CFU/g.