Effects of Banana Flour on Some Physicochemical, Textural, Bioactive, and Sensory Properties of Gluten-Free Cookie

The present study aimed to investigate the effects of banana flours obtained from different banana cultivars (Grand Nain (GN), Azman (AZ), and Erdemli (ER)) on some basic physicochemical, bioactive, textural, and sensory properties of the gluten-free cookie samples by the simplex lattice mixture design approach. Incorporating banana powder into cookie samples resulted in significant changes in the parameters studied. The banana flours' total dietary fiber and total starch levels ranged between 1.37% and 3.43% and 34.82% and 41.38%, respectively. Erdemli type bananas (ER) were distinguished by their high dietary fiber and resistant starch content as well as their superior bioactive properties. Total phenolic content and antiradical activity of the cookie samples enriched with banana flour were in the range of 376-600 mg GAE/kg, while the antiradical activity values ranged between 8.64% and 59.42%. The hardness of the cookie samples also ranged between 1664.5 and 2605.9 g. According to the results of the optimization, 98.5% ER and 1.5% GN flour mixture could yield the highest response scores. As a conclusion, gluten-free cookies can be enriched by using banana flour, especially ER-type ones, to increase the bioactive properties and overall acceptability.