The objective of the current study was to create a frozen dessert with reduced fat and sugar content, using plant-based ingredients and to evaluate its physical, rheological and nutritional properties. The dessert formulations were developed using plant-based ingredients such as sweet potatoes, potatoes, carrots, and beetroot, combined with date sugar, corn starch and skimmed milk powder. Chemical analysis showed that the sweet potato (SP) sample had the highest energy value due to its carbohydrate and fat content, while the carrot (CR) sample had the lowest. Rheology tests revealed that beetroot-based (BR) samples exhibited the highest viscosity, likely due to the high dietary fibre content in beetroots, while the CR sample was the most fluid, attributed to its lower solids content. The study showed that air bubble size influenced texture and melt behaviour. The overrun, a measure of air incorporation, was highest in the BR sample, contributing to a lighter texture. The hardness of the desserts was influenced by solid content and ingredient composition, with the CR sample being the hardest. Melting rate analysis revealed that all samples melted slowly, with the SP, SPP (sweet potato + potato), and BR samples melting uniformly over time. Overall, the study demonstrated that plant-based ingredients could effectively replace traditional high-fat animal-based ingredients, yielding frozen desserts with favourable nutritional profiles, acceptable rheological properties, and desirable physical characteristics.

Muffin is a flour confectionery product with an elastic texture. Nowadays, vegetable products are replacing traditional dairy products more often in the food sector. Tofu, which is a quintessential soy protein product, is one of the alternatives for making vegan products. The aim of this research was to determine the influence of defrosting processes to changes of sensory and textural properties of muffins with cottage cheese and its vegan substitutes. Five types of muffins were used in the study – muffin without cottage cheese (control), muffin with cottage cheese, muffin with lactose-free cottage cheese, tofu muffin and tofu chickpea muffin, which were thawed after freezing in two ways (at room temperature and in a microwave oven). For the determination of muffin quality, the Quantitative descriptive method (QDA) was used, and for overall liking, the 7-point hedonic scale and acceptance – Just-about-Right (JAR) method were used. To evaluate physical-chemical and textural analysis, standard methods were used. The method of defrosting muffins – room (ambient) temperature or microwave – has no significant effect (p is greater than 0.05) on the quality and JAR rating of the muffins with cottage cheese and tofu. The obtained results showed that the addition of plant-based protein sources significantly reduces the volume of muffins; the texture of the muffins becomes softer, but stickier. In the process of defrosting using a microwave, the structure of the muffins is drier, softer, whitish, and less sticky, compared to a muffin thawed at 22 °C.