Formulation, Nutritional and Sensory Evaluation of Baobab Based Ready-to-Eat Sorghum and Cowpea Blend Snack Bars

Abstract Sorghum, cowpea and baobab are underutilized drought-tolerant crops that are grown and occur in abundance in marginalized agricultural areas in Kenya. The objective of this study was to formulate and analyze the physical, nutritional and sensory attributes of baobab based ready-to-eat sorghum and cowpea blend snack bars. Popped sorghum, baked cowpeas and baobab pulp powder were blended in five different formulations (45:55:0; 50:45:5; 55:35:5; 55:35:10; 60:25:15; 65:15:20) to produce ready-to-eat (RTE) snack bars. The nutrient composition, physical properties and sensory qualities of the bars were analyzed and significant difference between means determined by Tukey test, at p Crude protein in the formulations ranged between 11.38±0.35 g/100 g and 21.35±0.89 g/100 g), total fat content ranged between 2 ± 0.03 and 3.26±0.13 while crude fiber ranged between 1.59±0.12 g/100 g and 2.76±0.02 g/100 g. The carbohydrate content of the RTE snack varied significantly between 61.1 ± 3.32 g/100 g and 73.25±0.31 g/100 g while the energy content ranged between 1502.71±43.7 KJ and 1524.06±30.47 KJ. A significant increase in vitamin C concentration between 8.76±0.49 g/100 g and 21.16±2.03 g/100 g with increasing baobab content was observed. Iron concentration of the snack ranged between 4.34±1.80 g/100 g and 5.76±1.78 g/100 g while Zinc concentration (1.65±0.35 g/100 g and 2.76±0.14 g/100 g) was statistically different between the formulations. The sensory evaluation of the product revealed that color, taste, texture, aroma, appearance and overall quality were in acceptable range with mean scores of above 5. Generally, snack bars with low baobab concentration were the most preferred with RTEs3 being the most preferred. The readily available drought tolerant crops used in the formulation of the baobab snack bars can serve to diversify diets and increase the nutrient intake of households particularly, during food scarcity since it is an easy home to make snack. In addition, the snack having an acceptability score of 5, has a great market potential as a convenient food, as consumer needs are changing towards more convenient foods as well as less refined grains.