Nutritional value of skimmed flax flour as a functional ingredient for the confectionery industry
Confectionery products are consistently in high demand among consumers. However, in terms of nutritional value, confectionery products are characterized by unbalanced chemical composition, the predominance of fats, simple carbohydrates, and lack of biologically active substances necessary for humans. Search for new ingredients of high nutritional and biological value can be considered an urgent task facing the confectionery industry. Flax cake is a by-product of the oil and fat industry, but it has a high content of nutrients. Using it as a non-traditional raw material will increase the nutritional value of finished products and organize waste-free oil and fat production. The aim of the work is to study the nutritional value of defatted linseed flour as a functional ingredient. After oil extraction by “cold pressing” method, the received cake was extruded and ground to flour. To characterize the nutritional value of defatted flax meal, the amino acid composition was studied by capillary electrophoresis and the fatty acid composition by gas-liquid chromatography of fatty acid methyl esters. Skimmed linseed flour is characterized by high protein (33.39 %) and fat content (13.5 %). Biological value of proteins of defatted flax meal is represented by the full set of essential amino acids: lysine, phenylalanine, leucine, isoleucine, methionine, valine, threonine, tryptophan. The fatty acid composition of the analyzed sample showed a high content of ꞷ-3 and ꞷ-6 fatty acids: α-linolenic (45.28 %) and linoleic (18.05 %), respectively. These acids are essential polyunsaturated fatty acids that are not synthesized in the human body and can only come from food. Thus, to increase the nutritional value of products, it is advisable to introduce non-fat linseed flour into the recipe for flour confectionery products.