Evaluation of the effect of quinoa flour and monoglyceride emulsifier on physicochemical and sensory properties of gluten-free cookie

The purpose of this research is to investigate the replacement of different levels of chickpea flour (0, 25, 50, 75 and 100%) with quinoa flour and the addition of monoglyceride emulsifier at levels of 0, 0.5 and 1% to the formulation of gluten-free cookies. In this research, the amount of ash, protein, moisture, specific volume, firmness and sensory properties (form and shape, surface, texture, cheweness, odor and taste, and overall acceptance) of the samples were evaluated. The results showed that the moisture, ash and fat content of quinoa flour was higher and its protein content was lower than chickpea flour. By increasing the level of replacing chickpea with quinoa flour in the formulation of gluten-free cookies, the amount of moisture and ash was increased and the amount of protein was decreased. The sample containing 25% quinoa flour and 0.5% monoglyceride emulsifier had the highest specific volume (0.98 ml/g) and the lowest firmness (31.37 N). The presence of quinoa flour and the increase of its level in the formulation showed L* value decreased and a* value increased. The sensory evaluation showed the sample containing 25% quinoa flour (without emulsifier) and the sample containing 25% quinoa flour and 0.5% monoglyceride emulsifier had better than other samples. It should be noted that the samples containing 50% quinoa flour in the presence of 0.5% monoglyceride emulsifier were of high quality and quantity, and the overall acceptance score and physicochemical characteristics of these samples were favorable. Therefore, samples containing 25  quinoa flour and 0.5% monoglyceride emulsifier are introduced as the best samples of gluten-free cookies in this research.