Bakery products are popular among different cross sections of population in India and many bakery products are nutritional and have become important part of diet of the people. Cookies are most popular snack items that are small, usually round and flat made from stiff, sweetened dough, and baked. In the present study, Cookies were developed by incorporating watermelon rind flour at different levels like 10, 20, and 30 per cent with refined wheat flour and compared with control (100% refined wheat flour). The sensory scores revealed that the overall acceptability of cookies with 30% incorporation had good acceptable score (8.23) whereas for control cookies sensory score was (8.04). The nutrient composition of best accepted cookies had protein (4.68g), fat (30.04g), crude fibre (3.25g) and carbohydrate (45.69g). Also, cookies had good amount of calcium, iron and phosphorous i.e. 43.11mg, 2.30mg, and 71.81mg respectively per 100g of cookies. Hence watermelon rind flour which is nutritious by-product of watermelon can be utilized in bakery products to upscale the nutritional profile.

Polysaccharides are structurally diverse biopolymers composed of multiple monosaccharide units linked through glycosidic bonds. Their complexity, biodegradability, and functional versatility make them integral to biological systems as well as modern industrial application. Sourced from plants, fungi, marine organisms, animals, and microbes, these natural polymers exhibit a broad spectrum of bioactivities, including antioxidant, antimicrobial, immunomodulatory, and physicochemical protective functions. In the context of food preservation, polysaccharides have gained significant attention as sustainable alternatives to synthetic preservatives and conventional packaging materials. This review summarizes the classification and structural attributes of polysaccharides that influence their functional performance, particularly their ability to scavenge free radicals, inhibit foodborne pathogens, and form protective barrier systems. Special emphasis is placed on their use in edible films, coatings, and encapsulation systems that enhance the shelf life of fruits, vegetables, meats, dairy, beverages, and bakery products. Challenges related to stability, sensory impact, and regulatory compliance are also discussed. Overall, polysaccharides demonstrate substantial potential as eco-friendly, bioactive packaging agents and controlled-release carriers, contributing to safer, greener, and more sustainable food preservation technologies.

Millets are resilient crops with the ability to endure various climatic conditions, making them sustainable and drought-resistant. Over the past few decades, their production has increased to meet the nutritional needs of the growing global population. These grains are rich in essential nutrients, including proteins, carbohydrates, fats, minerals (iron, zinc, magnesium, calcium and phosphorus), vitamins (niacin, thiamine, riboflavin, folate and vitamin E) and bioactive compounds. Millets are recognized for their high-energy content, addressing malnutrition effectively. They serve as a valuable source of medicinal and nutraceutical properties, offering antioxidants that play a role in preventing health issues such as high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and diabetes. Additionally, millets contribute to a decrease in tumour cases. Due to their nutritional composition and bioactive components, millets are considered a long-term and sustainable solution for ensuring a stable supply of food and feed materials. This review aims to emphasize the scientific aspects of millets, focusing on their nutritional content, biologically active compounds, and pharmaceutical properties.

Background: Saccharomyces cerevisiae is one of the important yeast found to be superior in the fermentation technology. Methods: The present study was undertaken to study the periodical changes in TSS, pH, acidity and alcohol content during the fermentation process of wine preparation from coconut water. With different TSS levels (7, 9, 11 and 13°Brix) adjusted with sugar and 9°Brix was the optimized sugar level. Result: TSS in wine was constantly reduced until fermentation was complete. Though the TSS reduced significantly during the first stage of fermentation, it continued to decline at a considerably slower rate until the fermentation was complete. It was observed that the TSS level does not affect the pH of coconut wine, but pH decreased with the increase in fermentation period because of increase in titrable acidity and alcohol. It was also noticed that the titratable acidity was found least at 6th day and maximum at 12th day, titratable acidity increased as fermentation progressed which was consistent with the fall in pH. The higher the TSS levels yields high titratable acidity during fermentation. Immediately after inoculation, the yeast count rises sharply on the first day of fermentation. It then tends to rise drastically till the third day, after which the yeast count is found to have declined until the end of fermentation. The coconut wine was prepared from coconut water added with sucrose as a source of sugar. Saccharomyces cerevisiae (MTCC 171) was used as reference strain and yeast isolate BRYI-1 produced the best results of alcohol content and sensory characteristics when compared to reference yeast strain.

Muffins are popular baked products that can be fortified nutritionally incorporating high-fibre natural flours such as millet, lotus dried flower flour, and flours obtained from by-products of fruits and vegetables. Also, the increasing demand for healthier food choices prompted the exploration of functional ingredients that can improve the nutritional profile of baked goods. A deep insight into the connected literature has highlighted the applications of various alternative flours in baked products as nutritional fortifying agents, but very limited research was documented, specifically on the use of lotus dried flower flour in muffin formulations. Consequently, the present research aimed to examine the potential of lotus dried flower flour as a source of dietary fibre in muffin preparations, focusing on the nutritional quality (physical and sensory attributes) and consumer acceptability of the developed muffins. Muffins were made using a combination of refined wheat flour and lotus-dried flower flour in comparison with 100% refined wheat flour muffins (control). The flour ratios used were 95% Refined Wheat Flour (RWF) to 5% Lotus Flower Flour (LFF) i.e., (T1), 90% RWF to 10% LFF i.e., (T2), and 80% RWF to 20% LFF (T3). The physical, textural, nutritional, and sensory properties, shelf life, and consumer acceptability of the developed muffins were investigated. The sensory evaluation revealed statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) among treatments, with overall acceptability (OAA) scores decreasing from 8.73 ± 0.49 in the control to 7.21 ± 0.60 in T3. The T2 formulation (10% LFF) maintained high acceptability with an OAA score of 8.26 ± 0.60. In contrast, colour analysis showed a darkening effect and shifts towards reddish and bluish hues. Physical characteristics revealed increased baking loss and altered texture as the level of lotus flour increased. Nutritional analysis indicated higher ash content (0.91 g vs. 0.83 g) and crude fibre (2.33 g vs. 1.97 g) in LFF muffins compared to the control, with minimal changes in energy content (366.96 kcal vs. 370.69 kcal). With this, the study concludes that lotus flower flour can effectively replace up to 10% of wheat flour in muffin preparation without compromising sensory and nutritional quality, making it a viable option for nutritionally enriched product development.

Background: Petha is a translucent soft candy historically and geographically originated from Agra that is usually rectangular or cylindrical made from the ash gourd. With growing demand and innovation, more varieties of the original preparation are available in the market. Watermelon is most relished fruit and people just eat reddish pulpy portion and discard the rind. But watermelon rind is by product with good amounts of protein, fat, carbohydrates, crude fiber and ash. Methods: The present study was carried out to develop petha from watermelon rind by osmotic dehydration with varied concentrations of Sugar viz., 50° Brix(T1), 60° Brix(T2) and 70° Brix(T3) and the sensory evaluation was carried out from initial to 45 days of storage at both room as well as refrigerated temperature and further evaluated microbial load, texture analysis and consumer acceptability of petha. Result: Among the three variations T2 was more acceptable than T1 and T3 after 45 days of sensory evaluation. The nutrient composition for the best accepted watermelon rind petha indicated low fat with adequate amount of crude fibre (0.6 g), carbohydrate (52.49 g), calcium (18.68 mg) and phosphorous (9.28 mg). Hence, it can be concluded that watermelon rinds can be better option for byproduct utilization for development of petha with good nutritional profile that is economical too.