Production of Biscuit Mixed with Date Powder

Dates (Pheonix dactylifera L.) are high in essential nutrients and have potential health benefits whilst biscuits form the most popular snacks among all ages from children until the elderly in Malaysia. Hence, it is worth developing biscuits mixed with date powder which are easy and light to carry around, tasty, ready and easy to be consumed. The main objective of this study is to develop the best formulation for biscuit mixed with date powder (DP). DP was used at 10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% replacement levels of sugar for the production of biscuits. Biscuit made from 100% sugar was used as control. Results of hedonic sensory test showed that F3 biscuit with incorporation of 30% DP had the highest mean score for overall acceptance of 7.20, thus placing F3 biscuit as the best formulation. Addition of DP more than 30% showed a significant difference (p < 0.05) on the sensory quality of the biscuits. Therefore, the addition of date powder should not exceed 30%. The physical analysis revealed that F3 biscuit had a darker and more red colour than the control besides having a softer texture. Meanwhile, proximate analysis showed that F3 biscuits contained 3.60% moisture, 0.84% ash, 0.30% crude fiber, 7.57% protein, 21.90% fat, 65.80% carbohydrate and energy value of 491.13 kcal. The addition of DP significantly increased the moisture, ash and crube fiber content (p <0.05) in the biscuits but showed no significant decrease (p> 0.05) for the protein content than the control. Microbiological tests proved that total microbial count of F3 biscuits which stored for six weeks is less than the maximum count as stated in the literature. In conclusion, DP has the potential to be used as a sweetener and for fibre enrichment purpose in biscuit production.