Development of a decreased calorie cake mix containing ascorbyl palmitate and fructose

An experimental yellow cake mix was formulated which was used to determine the effects of ascorbyl palmitate (0.00, 0.33, 0.67, and 1.00% FWB) as a shortening-sparing agent and fructose as a replacement for sucrose at 0, 25, 50, and 75% of the total sugar on the quality of the baked cake. The FWB was the original flour weight in the cake mix prior to cellulose substitution. All possible combinations of ascorbyl palmitate (AP) levels and fructose levels were tested, and each combina-tion was a treatment. The resulting 16 treatments and a control yellow cake were replicated twice. The cake mix contained 25% cellulose substituted for flour, 66.67% (FWB) total sugar, 7% (FWB) double action baking powder, 5% (FWB) shortening, 1% (FWB) distilled monoglycerides, 0.5% (FWB) lecithin, and 0.06% (FWB) beta-carotene. All cakes were analyzed for volume, weight, height, diameter, crumb color, hardness at 0, 1, 3, and 5 days storage, moisture, and lipid content and subjectively evaluated for softness, tenderness, moistness, flavor, cell size uniformity, cell size and wall thickness, grain, and color. In addition, cake batter specific volume and viscosity, AP recovery from the experi-mental cakes, and chemical composition of one rep of cakes were deter-mined. Substitution of fructose for sucrose resulted in decreased cake tenderness and volume and increased cake weight. Cakes containing 66.67% (FWB) sugar were judged between slightly sweet and moderately sweet except for cakes containing 50% fructose in the total sugar which were judged just above moderately sweet. Addition of AP generally produced a lighter cake with less moisture, a silkier grain, and more uniform cell size. AP also increased cake tenderness and decreased cake hardness. Addition of AP at or above 0.67% (FWB) in cake batters containing fructose also resulted in more panelists scoring cake texture as gummy. Fructose level at 75% of the total sugar resulted in more panelists detecting a gummy texture and an off-flavor in the cake. AP recovery ranged from approximately 15% in cakes made from batter containing 0.33% (FWB) AP to approximately 40% in cakes made from batters containing 1% AP (FWB). The experimental cake was much heavier and softer (determined by shear), had larger, less uniform cells in the crumb, and a less silky grain than did the control. Compared with the control cake, the experimental cake had more moisture (41.1 versus 26.9%) and less fat (6.1 versus 14.1% on a dry matter basis). The experimental cake with the sweetest flavor and best quality was made from batter which contained 50% fructose in the total sugar and 0.33% AP (FWB). The experimental cake had 229 calories/100 g com-pared to 344 calories/100 g for the control cakes which represented a 33.4% calorie reduction. Cost estimates showed that the cost of the experimental cake at the time the study was performed was 1.5 times as much as the cost of the control cake.